Tough Talks Book Series

A Performance Review for George Clooney

See this blog post as a prezi video.

George Clooney got a dose of bad news the other night. And he got it in front of more than 40 million people who tuned in to watch the Oscars. Nominated for ‘best actor’ for his performance as a consultant who fires people in “Up in the Air,” he lost to Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart.”

I thought his performance review was ironic, in light of the character he played.  It was his character’s job to deliver bad news for bosses who were too chicken to do it themselves. He’d give the bad news, pack his bags, and go on with his life, seemingly unaffected.

Granted, Clooney is an actor whom we want to watch work. I read that he’s a fine worker, so he’ll continue to get good roles in movies. But the Academy members gave him something he probably didn’t appreciate.  In essence, they told him they liked someone else’s work better.  It was a comparative performance review.

In the work world, comparing employees to each other is disastrous when it comes to performance reviews. It’s a quick way to demoralize someone. It does nothing to improve the quality  or productivity of a person’s work.

But how many bosses don’t realize this? A lot, according to the stories I hear from people.

How are you as a boss?  Do you discuss job performance with integrity, concern and with an eye towards motivation? Or do you focus on comparing employees, hoping that will make your point. Be aware: employees don’t quit companies. They don’t quit jobs. They quit bosses.  Is it time for you to consider your performance in your role as boss?

This entry was posted by Jean Palmer Heck in Difficult conversations. Bookmark the permalink. Follow comments with the RSS feed for this post. Post a comment or leave a trackback.

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