Laurie Maddalena

In my last blog, I shared best practices for writing an effective annual performance review. Here I provide strategies for making the performance review meeting more comfortable, conversational, and meaningful.  Most performance evaluation meetings are stressful and ineffective. According to Gallup, only 14% of employees strongly agree that their performance reviews inspire them to improve, and only two in ten strongly agree that their performance is managed in a way that motivates them to do outstanding…

Performance evaluations are one of the most dreaded practices in organizations. Employees fear them because they don’t know what to expect, and managers often avoid them because they often feel ill-prepared. Evaluations take time, effort, and planning, and many managers feel they don’t have the time.  When the performance evaluation process is done correctly, it can be meaningful and effective. Employees need consistent and ongoing feedback to work at their peak potential.   An important part…

The past six weeks been challenging for my family. My nine-year-old son has been sick since early August, and we have been visiting several doctors. He has had several medical procedures to determine what is causing his symptoms. After several weeks of anxiety and uncertainty, he was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, an autoimmune disorder. Witnessing his pain and struggle has been very hard, and my compassion for those who have children with even more serious…

In a recent leadership program session, I was sharing strategies and tools for providing feedback to employees when one of the participants asked me a common question: How do I ask my manager for feedback? This leader said her vice president rarely gives feedback on her performance, and she is often left wondering how she is doing. This is not surprising, since one of the top reasons employees leave organizations is not getting meaningful feedback…

The first presentation I ever gave in my career was as the assistant director of human resources, and my vice president asked me to prepare a presentation for the Board of Directors. I had very little experience presenting—especially to ten successful board members who had decades more work experience than me. The week leading up to the meeting, I felt sick and anxious every day. During the presentation, I could feel my face get flushed…

During my tenure as a vice president of human resources for a credit union in Maryland, I worked with two human resources generalists on my team. Both were good at their jobs; they each had completed training and certifications in HR. Yet one was exceptional—she had a few more years of experience than the other employee and had gained knowledge and confidence through everyday practice. She was a self-starter who I could give any project…