Coach’s Journal
Performance Reviews: Another HR admin work we aren't so fond of
Performance review activities are either ticked off a simple checklist or a series of battles culminating into a season finale battle at a grand arena filled with blood-thirsty spectators. Let’s change that, shall we?
It's the year-end performance review season. I can see your thought bubble. Tambak pa ang trabaho pero required to ng HR eh.
If that's how you feel about it, you are, of course, missing the point. I wore those shoes before too. I used to think these activities took me away from all the "real" work.
The performance review activities are either ticked off a simple checklist or a series of battles culminating into a season finale battle at a grand arena filled with blood-thirsty spectators. Let’s change this, shall we?
As a leader, I see it as a required pause. It is time to take an inventory of your wins and learnings as individuals, teams, and the organization as a whole. Frequently zooming out helps us assess whether we need to pivot or stay on track. The whirlwind, though, usually takes over our days. It becomes hard to find time to take a step back. How about making time for it? Consider it your “me-time.” Reflect on the past ten months and celebrate what you’ve accomplished so far. You deserve this pause.
Here are a few things that make the Performance Review season a meaningful pause for me.
Embrace it as an opportunity to celebrate my team and the work that we do. Make sure to include the discussion of your wins regularly during your team huddles. It makes taking an inventory easier when you have all the "wins" on your meeting minutes.
Identify our shortcomings, failures, and learnings. Openly discussing failures and learning from them is a great way to create a safe space for my team.
Recognize your bias. Everyone has some form of prejudice, whether we admit this or not. We must observe and label these. I also ask the people I trust to check for my blindspots here. Does it seem like I have a favorite team member?
Here are my top pet peeves as a Leader.
Copy-paste performance reviews. We know how to "find all + pronoun." and "replace all with a new pronoun." It shows how little you care about your team members. Personally, I find it quite disrespectful.
Fluffynator. Take out the fluff. Talk about specific accomplishments using agreed targets and key performance indicators. For example, when you say, "Jeng is a fantastic team player!". What does that mean exactly? How so?
This pause is part of "real" work. It may even be the most meaningful one you would do this year.
About Jeng
Jeng Macalagay is a Career Coach who has 18 years of work experience in various industries. Over 10 years of which were in Human Resources where she led the people strategies on Talent Management, Performance Management, and Leadership Development.
Book My Free Coaching Session with Jeng.
On Favoritism
Favoritism can be a challenge. It can create a hostile environment for everyone involved. Thoughtfully considering how you respond to what happens around you matters a great deal.
Before she had fans of her own, my younger sister has been my number one fan. She followed me everywhere and did everything I did. She copied my penmanship and wore my clothes.
I remember being forced to sing at every family party where all relatives and people I don't know would gather. I would sing reluctantly each time. Then she takes center stage and grabs everyone’s attention with her version of all the latest TV ads and then dances the Hawaii 5-0 to everyone’s delight. The crowd would erupt to deafening belly-laughs and wide-eyed amazeballs expressions. She’s a natural.
The constant comparison to her effortless confidence and hearing my own parents say I had “inferiority complex” made me dislike her so much. I remember her crying when I refused to hug her. She never got any help from me from tying shoelaces to school projects. I thought, why would she need help if she’s that good?
I was so spiteful. I made sure I poured all the sisterly love I could to our youngest sister. She was really jealous and that made me happy. She can’t have everything. At that point, it had already gone on for too long. I just can’t be the Ate she wanted or needed. I was not there for her. I made her feel that way.
I am grateful for the hardships we had to face as sisters in the coming years because it gave me an excuse to be on her side. We had to stick together. Those years gave us a chance to finally get to know each other. She has since been my rock.
Favoritism can be a challenge. It can create a hostile environment for everyone involved. Thoughtfully considering how you respond to what happens around you matters a great deal. At work and as adults, there are various ways to deal with favoritism or perceived favoritism. Having a Coach who can help you navigate through this is one I offer.
About Jeng
Jeng Macalagay is a Career Coach who has 18 years of work experience in various industries. Over 10 years of which were in Human Resources where she led the people strategies on Talent Management, Performance Management, and Leadership Development.
Book My Free Coaching Session with Jeng.
Performance Feedback: Peer Influence
Feedback is a gift. Sometimes you don’t like what you get but you receive it graciously always. We all try to assume positive intent. I did a few things differently and was glad I made an effort to work on it. If you’re anything like me perhaps these could work for you too.
In my previous organization, I was given the feedback that I needed to improve my influence among my peers. I mostly kept to my team and our deliverables. I could present well to stakeholders when I need to. I’ve never been great at big meetings with all my peers though. I am not socially awkward but I have zero skills at small talk.
Most of them would talk about current events and the latest trends. I always felt inadequate because I made a deliberate effort to avoid the news. I thought I’d inevitably hear about them from people around me anyway. I conserve my very limited energy for my priorities at the moment. I could always reach for the information I need when I need them. We live in a generation where Google is now a verb. We google everything so why bother? We even ditched our TV at home last year.
I sound like a total snob. I must have appeared that way. No one could read our minds. They only see how we behave.
Feedback is a gift. Sometimes you don’t like what you get but you receive it graciously always. We all try to assume positive intent. I did a few things differently and was glad I made an effort to work on it. If you’re anything like me perhaps these could work for you too.
Unlocking Peer Support
Seek help from mentors. Fortunately, my mentors have great charisma and my peers look up to them. I asked for their help. Apart from the tips I got from them, they also created opportunities for me to collaborate more with my peers on various projects.
Schedule regular catch-ups. I scheduled a recurring calendar invite with each peer. I am not great at big meetings but I thoroughly enjoy getting to know people through one-on-one conversations, over coffee, if possible. This gave me a chance to get to know each peer, what their priorities are, what they value and how we can best support each other. It’s always fun to discover our similarities and unique talents. If there’s a baggage counter where you could leave any perception or bias you may have with the person you are meeting, I highly recommend it. Be truly curious.
Be consistent. Relationships are built over time. In between those regular sessions, I would check-in on my peers. Whenever you can, offer some support. Cheer someone up. When you truly care about others, it will be felt and appreciated.
Talk behind their backs. Not about awful things. Let’s turn this thing around and spread kindness. Make sure you celebrate their wins by sharing it with others.
Let go. Let’s face it, you may not be everyone’s cup of tea. You will also not enjoy the company of some people. That is perfectly fine. Being authentic is important. Your wellness comes first. We can only serve others when we take good care of ourselves. Serve from your saucer. Keep that cup overflowing.
About Jeng
Jeng Macalagay is a Career Coach who has 18 years of work experience in various industries. Over 10 years of which were in Human Resources where she led the people strategies on Talent Management, Performance Management, and Leadership Development.
Book My Free Coaching Session with Jeng.
Why Am I Not Getting Promoted?
There are three key considerations when your leaders assess your readiness for promotion - Ability, Aspiration, Availability. You need to have most if not all of these to be a “Ready Now” talent.
There are three key considerations when your leaders assess your readiness for promotion - Ability, Aspiration, Availability. You need to have most if not all of these to be a “Ready Now” talent.
Ability. Are you demonstrating the skills and competencies required for the next-level role? These should be recognized capabilities. Your manager should not prepare a full-page speech to “sell” your skills during a calibration session. Be part of projects where your skills can have an impact. This is key to that elusive “visibility” they ask of you.
Aspiration. Do more than meet your own targets. Volunteer for those next-level tasks. This gives you a taste of that role too. Would you really enjoy it? Let your manager know that you aspire for a promotion and seek their feedback. Having candid conversations about your career growth and development should be part of your regular coaching sessions. Be explicit because your leaders may not know that you actually want more responsibilities which usually comes with a promotion.
Availability. Sometimes you are ready and willing to take on the next-level role but there’s no room for growth within your department. Are there other lines of business within the company where they have a need for the same position? It’s the last thing on this list because people who never stop working on their learning and development usually find the next-level role they aspire for within or outside their current businesses.
Based on personal experience, truly enjoying the work you do and focusing on continuous learning inevitably lead to growth opportunities. Promotion or lateral movement to new and exciting roles happens when you are having fun.
Book a free coaching session with me now and find out how we can co-create a career plan for you.
About Jeng
Jeng Macalagay is a Career Coach who has 18 years of work experience in various industries. Over 10 years of which were in Human Resources where she led the people strategies on Talent Management, Performance Management, and Leadership Development.
Book My Free Coaching Session with Jeng.
Quitting in the Time of COVID
Everyone was surprised when they learned that I quit my corporate job. This pandemic brought us down to our knees.
Everyone was surprised when they learned that I quit my corporate job. This pandemic brought us down to our knees. Many lost their jobs. Companies closed. We were forced to stay home and physically apart from our loved ones.
Meanwhile, I was doing well. One of the lucky ones spared. I loved my team. They are the best! I had awesome friends at work. We had work that always pushes us to do better. We have great benefits. I was earning more than I needed.
Nothing was bad but there was also nothing that lit me up anymore. For several months before I finally quit my job, I have been talking about Coaching with my boss, mentors, and peer coaches within the company. I started coaching outside work hours. I read and listened to countless Coaches and coaching demo sessions.
Like a brewing divorce, I saw it coming. It’s not exactly cheating if your boss and everyone knows about it, right? At some point though, we just knew it was time. I was ready and I had an amazing succession pipeline. Did I say I had the best team? Yes!
3 things to consider
I only had three things I was sure of before I quit - my Why, Cash, and If/ Then plan.
1. My reason for leaving is the most important part of it. It had to be more than my dream to just stay in bed all day. Oh but there are some days I get to do that now. That’s for another post. I left my job not because I wanted a pause. It cannot be just an escape. I wanted a more mindful daily life. I am taking a stand on wellness and simplicity. I carefully curated the things I want to enjoy and even the ones I would allow myself to be stressed about.
2. How much I needed to make this happen is another consideration. I knew I would not be earning the same income. I had to drastically reduce my expenses. I unsubscribed from so many things I felt I did not need on a daily basis. I sold a LOT of things too. My friends thought I was going through another depressive episode. I was actually taking a bold step to prevent any such episodes in the future. I even sold my bed and the whole cabinet! I have less things and more time to actually enjoy living.
3. To those who love If/Then’s, ya nerds! I like to apply my basic Excel knowledge in real life. Things are always exciting and fun at the beginning. I know I will enjoy my honeymoon period with Coaching. I also know though that there might be a time when I would lose courage and focus. I am lazy and sometimes easily distracted. Oh a rainbow! Unicorn! Anyhoo, my point is, knowing what those potential pitfalls are and what I would do, who I would reach out to when those happen are essential.
Soon as I had all three ready I went on and just did it. I know it may not apply to all at this point, but for those who have been contemplating it for a while now I hope this helps.