How can you evaluate junior staff performance more effectively?

1 Set clear and measurable goals

One of the first steps to evaluate your junior staff performance is to establish clear and measurable goals for each of them. These goals should align with your department's objectives, reflect their roles and responsibilities, and challenge them to grow and improve. You can use the SMART framework to define your goals, which means they should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. For example, a SMART goal for a junior staff could be: "Prepare and submit monthly reconciliations for 10 accounts with 100% accuracy and no errors by the 15th of each month."

2 Monitor and document progress

Once you have set the goals, you need to monitor and document your junior staff's progress regularly. This will help you track their performance, identify their strengths and weaknesses, and provide timely and specific feedback. You can use various tools and methods to monitor and document their progress, such as checklists, spreadsheets, dashboards, reports, or software. For example, you can use a spreadsheet to record their completion rates, error rates, turnaround times, or client feedback for each task or project.

3 Conduct periodic reviews

Another important step to evaluate your junior staff performance is to conduct periodic reviews with each of them. These reviews should be based on the goals and the progress you have documented, and they should be conducted at least quarterly or semi-annually. The purpose of these reviews is to communicate your expectations, recognize their achievements, address their challenges, and discuss their development plans. You should prepare an agenda and a summary for each review, and use a balanced and objective approach to give feedback. For example, you can use the STAR method to give feedback, which means you should describe the situation, task, action, and result of their performance.

4 Solicit feedback from others

In addition to your own observation and assessment, you should also solicit feedback from others who work with your junior staff, such as peers, clients, or other managers. This will help you gain a broader and more comprehensive perspective on their performance, and avoid any bias or blind spots. You can use various sources and formats to solicit feedback from others, such as surveys, interviews, or focus groups. For example, you can use a survey to ask others to rate your junior staff's technical skills, communication skills, teamwork skills, or professionalism on a scale of 1 to 5.

5 Involve your junior staff

Finally, one of the best ways to evaluate your junior staff performance more effectively is to involve them in the process. This will help you build trust and rapport with them, understand their motivations and aspirations, and empower them to take ownership of their performance. You can involve your junior staff in various ways, such as asking them to self-evaluate their performance, set their own goals, provide feedback to you or others, or propose their own learning and development activities. For example, you can ask your junior staff to write a self-evaluation report that summarizes their achievements, challenges, and goals for the next period.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?