(Business Plus, $24.99)
In his new book, UCLA professor Samuel Culbert speaks out about “one of the most insidious, most damaging, and yet most prevalent of corporate activities,” said Bernd Debusmann in Reuters.com. Culbert points out that the annual performance review is “universally despised”—and deserves to be. It’s based on outmoded management ideas and provides little value to anyone. In truth, one’s performance is constantly under scrutiny, said Simon Constable in The Wall Street Journal. Yet managers who know that “they’re expected to produce a performance review,” Culbert suggests, may actually “withhold feedback when it is most needed” in order to have fodder for the year-end critique. A better strategy is for managers to give an annual “preview” and offer feedback—good and bad—along the way. “Performance reviews should not amount to clearing up the yearlong mystery for employees about how they’re doing.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Mountainhead: Jesse Armstrong's tech bro satire sparkles with 'weapons-grade zingers'The Week Recommends The Succession creator's first feature film lacks the hit TV show's 'dramatic richness' – but makes for a horribly gripping watch
-
Seeing Each Other: Portraits of Artists – a 'riveting' exhibitionThe Week Recommends Pallant House exhibition offers fascinating instances of painterly reciprocity
-
Geoff Dyer shares his favourite books on warThe Week Recommends Out of Sheer Rage author chooses works by Martha Gellhorn, Michael Herr and Dexter Filkins
