How Is Trust Related To Conducting An Effective Employee Evaluation Meeting?

Employee evaluation meetings work best when there is at least some degree of trust -- where the employee believes the manager is there to help them perform better rather than bludgeon them, or find fault. That's because employee evaluation meetings work best when manager and employee work together.

Employee trust of the manager doesn't just "happen". It's a result of a number of factors. Here are a few of the major factors related to management behavior that affect the level of trust.

• Openness and transparency on the part of the manager (all agendas are on the table)
• Honesty
• Walking the talk
• Consistency (i.e. manager's consistency) in action and words
• Demonstrated commitment (through actions) to helping the employee succeed.
• Demonstrated commitment (through listening) to understand the employee.
• Moderate, limited use of power to solve problems.

The above is adapted from from The Manager's Guide To Performance Reviews (McGraw-Hill), by Robert Bacal.