How to prioritize: 5 rules to be a more productive manager
Published on
June 4, 2021
The manager’s question of the hour:
“How do you manage to keep up with your busy agenda?”
This is a constant pain for managers. So, we went looking for a concrete answer on how to prioritize so you can be there for your team, and still get your own work done.
We gathered some testimonials and learned about the science behind productivity. We put it all together in a 5-rule method that, we are confident, will revolutionize the way you get things done for your work, your team, and your company.
Keep reading to learn how to prioritize, feel in control, anticipate, keep track of things, and know when urgent really means urgent.
If you want to have a prioritization system that works, you need to start by understanding how your brain processes tasks and helps you be productive.
We’ll explore the science of productivity. You’ll understand how a never-ending list of things affects you, why you feel like you’re never doing enough, and how you are not alone in your struggle.
Forget willpower
“On Monday I'll start my day with a to-do list.”
“Next time, I'll be better at gathering feedback.”
In his book “Will Power Doesn’t Work,” Benjamin Hardy explains why willpower doesn’t help you accomplish things. Willpower only considers your ability to push yourself to do something no matter what. What this mentality doesn’t take into account are the very real (and sometimes unexpected) external factors that affect how we feel and respond to life.
Don’t rely on willpower too much to get things done, push yourself to focus on important tasks, or to better your productivity. Instead, adopt methods that take you there, independently of how you feel or your lack of willpower.
Be aware of your instinct to procrastinate
Studies have shown that our brains have a tendency to avoid complex problems and move right away to simple, mindless tasks.
Before we start tasks or projects, our brain thinks ahead. It visualizes the hard parts and decides to focus on simple, mindless tasks that are easier to process.
If you want to get better at prioritizing, understand that your brain might organize things based on their complexity, and not necessarily their urgency or importance.
Have you ever felt overwhelmed even after crossing many things from your to-do list?
You’re not alone. This feeling might be caused by a concept called the Zeigarnik effect. Studies show that when the brain knows there are important unfinished tasks, it will keep them at the top of your mind until you get it done. This is why identifying urgent and important tasks from the rest of the pile is very important ― aka, proper prioritization
Being productive requires taking breaks
So you know what to prioritize but you still don’t manage to finish tasks. You might be missing focus times and breaks.
Think about how runners approach marathons. They don’t sprint throughout the whole 42 km. They distribute their pace and energy. The same goes for professional musicians. They don’t practice all day, non-stop. They actually book 90 minutes-long practice sessions with breaks in between. Instead of extending their energy throughout the day, they focus and work hard, and then recharge.
Book time for hard tasks, and save break times in between. Don’t extend your energy throughout the day. Instead, run “sprints” of hard work and follow them with breaks.
If one thing is certain, it’s that we don’t know what tomorrow will hold. Make sure you recharge and have energy for what is to come. And proactively save the energy you’ll need for more complex work.
Multitasking will slow you down
Studies have shown that people who multitask, get less done. And that is because it causes you to work a little on everything, without actually completing much.
There will always be some multitasking that needs to be done but make sure that you set yourself limits, and when possible, focus on one thing. And that is where proper prioritizing comes in handy as well.
The 5 rules of how to prioritize
To develop our 5 rules, we dug deep into the research: reading academic research, sitting in on webinars, and just talking to other managers. Give our rules a try, see your productivity levels rise, and master your ability to prioritize.
1. Focus on what your team really needs
One of the best things you can do as a manager is to tackle and understand team issues before they grow into complex problems. This means having a system that allows you to be proactive and preventive when it comes to your team's wellbeing.
Knowing exactly your team's pain points is a real game-changer.
A tool like Officevibe automates diagnosis of your team’s wellbeing, regularly. Officevibe gives you full visibility on the right metrics to better understand your team. Having visual and quantitative metrics allows you to focus your management efforts on what is important, and prioritize what really needs your attention. And is all backed-up by science!
Another essential way to know where to focus will come directly from your team's feedback. So don’t wait too long to gather feedback. Keep a constant open door for people to communicate with you. So that you can prioritize issues that seem to be a constant across team members.
Officevibe opens a permanent window for regular employee feedback, so that you can gather impactful and anonymous feedback effortlessly and without worrying about it. Give it a try for free!
2. Have a tier system for your team’s work
Managers have two realities: their day-to-day work and their managerial role. Prioritizing these two spectrums properly will help you stay productive and in control.
On a webinar by Adobe’s Real Creative Leadership community, Chris Do and Adam Morgan recommended developing a tier system with your team to define work priorities. In action, this is how they do it:
Tier 1: Is this a team priority to accomplish our goals? If yes, it is a Tier 1 task or project and will require the manager’s input and attention.
Tier 2: Not a team priority but important? This would be a Tier 2. For their teams, this means it can be done in more than one way and could even be outsourced.
Tier 3: Related to internal communications and inside work? This falls as Tier 3. As a team, they develop templates and guidance, but they let their team run the initiatives “on their own and deliver however they want.”
What is right for your team will depend on what you define as valuable and important.
When you have a tier system in place and your team members come to you with a new task, you’ll be able to get a lot of the context just by asking the Tier of the task. You’ll be able to confidently conclude if your involvement is needed, or encourage your team to believe in their capacities and be autonomous.
3. Use a prioritization system for your own work
We highly recommend the Eisenhower Decision Matrix. Unlike other methods, this priority quadrant method helps you reflect on what you can delegate and what to say no to. Which is key to your ability to be a productive and effective manager.
4. Practice trust
A key element to productivity is knowing when to delegate. When you’re a manager, you’re responsible for a group of people’s performance. And that is why without knowing, you might be doing more than you should. But, why is it so hard to delegate sometimes?
The answer often is a lack of trust.
The moments when I have been great at delegating is when things were so busy, I had to trust people to do their jobs and do it well. I didn’t have time to do otherwise. I was forced to remove myself from many instances. I quickly realized the power of allowing people to be autonomous and feel empowered.
Replace those meetings with email or Slack updates.
As the comments showed, this will look different to every manager. Not everyone can afford to turn off email notifications or eliminate meetings. But we can all reflect on the day-to-day activities that we’re caught up in, and which take lots of our time.
Deprioritize what you can, and eliminate what’s not helping you get things done (like meetings that could’ve been a well-written document).
Pro tip: You can take some of Liz’s advice and apply it for only some periods of your time (for example, turn off all notifications from 2-4 PM, or have no meetings on Tuesdays). Make sure you disclose this to your team so that everyone knows, and remain available for urgent matters.
You got this
Productivity and prioritization go hand in hand. For managers, it’s especially important since you're an employee with tasks and a manager at the same time. You manage up and manage down. Stick to our 5 rules and see the change almost instantly. You got this!
Assess your organization's employee experience in minutes
“How do you manage to keep up with your busy agenda?”
This is a constant pain for managers. So, we went looking for a concrete answer on how to prioritize so you can be there for your team, and still get your own work done.
We gathered some testimonials and learned about the science behind productivity. We put it all together in a 5-rule method that, we are confident, will revolutionize the way you get things done for your work, your team, and your company.
Keep reading to learn how to prioritize, feel in control, anticipate, keep track of things, and know when urgent really means urgent.
If you want to have a prioritization system that works, you need to start by understanding how your brain processes tasks and helps you be productive.
We’ll explore the science of productivity. You’ll understand how a never-ending list of things affects you, why you feel like you’re never doing enough, and how you are not alone in your struggle.
Forget willpower
“On Monday I'll start my day with a to-do list.”
“Next time, I'll be better at gathering feedback.”
In his book “Will Power Doesn’t Work,” Benjamin Hardy explains why willpower doesn’t help you accomplish things. Willpower only considers your ability to push yourself to do something no matter what. What this mentality doesn’t take into account are the very real (and sometimes unexpected) external factors that affect how we feel and respond to life.
Don’t rely on willpower too much to get things done, push yourself to focus on important tasks, or to better your productivity. Instead, adopt methods that take you there, independently of how you feel or your lack of willpower.
Be aware of your instinct to procrastinate
Studies have shown that our brains have a tendency to avoid complex problems and move right away to simple, mindless tasks.
Before we start tasks or projects, our brain thinks ahead. It visualizes the hard parts and decides to focus on simple, mindless tasks that are easier to process.
If you want to get better at prioritizing, understand that your brain might organize things based on their complexity, and not necessarily their urgency or importance.
Have you ever felt overwhelmed even after crossing many things from your to-do list?
You’re not alone. This feeling might be caused by a concept called the Zeigarnik effect. Studies show that when the brain knows there are important unfinished tasks, it will keep them at the top of your mind until you get it done. This is why identifying urgent and important tasks from the rest of the pile is very important ― aka, proper prioritization
Being productive requires taking breaks
So you know what to prioritize but you still don’t manage to finish tasks. You might be missing focus times and breaks.
Think about how runners approach marathons. They don’t sprint throughout the whole 42 km. They distribute their pace and energy. The same goes for professional musicians. They don’t practice all day, non-stop. They actually book 90 minutes-long practice sessions with breaks in between. Instead of extending their energy throughout the day, they focus and work hard, and then recharge.
Book time for hard tasks, and save break times in between. Don’t extend your energy throughout the day. Instead, run “sprints” of hard work and follow them with breaks.
If one thing is certain, it’s that we don’t know what tomorrow will hold. Make sure you recharge and have energy for what is to come. And proactively save the energy you’ll need for more complex work.
Multitasking will slow you down
Studies have shown that people who multitask, get less done. And that is because it causes you to work a little on everything, without actually completing much.
There will always be some multitasking that needs to be done but make sure that you set yourself limits, and when possible, focus on one thing. And that is where proper prioritizing comes in handy as well.
The 5 rules of how to prioritize
To develop our 5 rules, we dug deep into the research: reading academic research, sitting in on webinars, and just talking to other managers. Give our rules a try, see your productivity levels rise, and master your ability to prioritize.
1. Focus on what your team really needs
One of the best things you can do as a manager is to tackle and understand team issues before they grow into complex problems. This means having a system that allows you to be proactive and preventive when it comes to your team's wellbeing.
Knowing exactly your team's pain points is a real game-changer.
A tool like Officevibe automates diagnosis of your team’s wellbeing, regularly. Officevibe gives you full visibility on the right metrics to better understand your team. Having visual and quantitative metrics allows you to focus your management efforts on what is important, and prioritize what really needs your attention. And is all backed-up by science!
Another essential way to know where to focus will come directly from your team's feedback. So don’t wait too long to gather feedback. Keep a constant open door for people to communicate with you. So that you can prioritize issues that seem to be a constant across team members.
Officevibe opens a permanent window for regular employee feedback, so that you can gather impactful and anonymous feedback effortlessly and without worrying about it. Give it a try for free!
2. Have a tier system for your team’s work
Managers have two realities: their day-to-day work and their managerial role. Prioritizing these two spectrums properly will help you stay productive and in control.
On a webinar by Adobe’s Real Creative Leadership community, Chris Do and Adam Morgan recommended developing a tier system with your team to define work priorities. In action, this is how they do it:
Tier 1: Is this a team priority to accomplish our goals? If yes, it is a Tier 1 task or project and will require the manager’s input and attention.
Tier 2: Not a team priority but important? This would be a Tier 2. For their teams, this means it can be done in more than one way and could even be outsourced.
Tier 3: Related to internal communications and inside work? This falls as Tier 3. As a team, they develop templates and guidance, but they let their team run the initiatives “on their own and deliver however they want.”
What is right for your team will depend on what you define as valuable and important.
When you have a tier system in place and your team members come to you with a new task, you’ll be able to get a lot of the context just by asking the Tier of the task. You’ll be able to confidently conclude if your involvement is needed, or encourage your team to believe in their capacities and be autonomous.
3. Use a prioritization system for your own work
We highly recommend the Eisenhower Decision Matrix. Unlike other methods, this priority quadrant method helps you reflect on what you can delegate and what to say no to. Which is key to your ability to be a productive and effective manager.
4. Practice trust
A key element to productivity is knowing when to delegate. When you’re a manager, you’re responsible for a group of people’s performance. And that is why without knowing, you might be doing more than you should. But, why is it so hard to delegate sometimes?
The answer often is a lack of trust.
The moments when I have been great at delegating is when things were so busy, I had to trust people to do their jobs and do it well. I didn’t have time to do otherwise. I was forced to remove myself from many instances. I quickly realized the power of allowing people to be autonomous and feel empowered.
Replace those meetings with email or Slack updates.
As the comments showed, this will look different to every manager. Not everyone can afford to turn off email notifications or eliminate meetings. But we can all reflect on the day-to-day activities that we’re caught up in, and which take lots of our time.
Deprioritize what you can, and eliminate what’s not helping you get things done (like meetings that could’ve been a well-written document).
Pro tip: You can take some of Liz’s advice and apply it for only some periods of your time (for example, turn off all notifications from 2-4 PM, or have no meetings on Tuesdays). Make sure you disclose this to your team so that everyone knows, and remain available for urgent matters.
You got this
Productivity and prioritization go hand in hand. For managers, it’s especially important since you're an employee with tasks and a manager at the same time. You manage up and manage down. Stick to our 5 rules and see the change almost instantly. You got this!
Equip HR and managers with tools to engage, recognize, and drive performance.
Mastering employee performance reviews: A guide for managers
Save your seat
When you hear "performance review," what comes to mind? As a manager, do you think of it as a once-a-year task that's just part of your checklist? Or perhaps, do you think of it as a laborious process with no clearly useful output?
Rest assured; the performance review process can be utilized strategically and absolutely be done in a way that is structured, effective, and impactful.
In this article, you'll find your ultimate guide to employee performance reviews. We'll walk you through the essential steps involved in conducting effective performance reviews and provide guidance on what a successful review should look like — before, during, and after. When done right, they can contribute to employee growth, development, and higher business performance.
Here is everything you need to conduct successful employee performance reviews
Let's first cover the basics. At its core, a performance review is a structured process that evaluates an individual's job performance and provides constructive feedback. Performance reviews are an essential part of the performance management process and support goal-setting, monitoring, and accountability.
Traditionally, a performance review has been an annual event, but in the modern workplace, with continuous performance management gaining traction, performance reviews have taken different forms — be it regular check-ins or ongoing feedback to foster employee development and improvement. In this new era of performance management, managers become more like coaches who empower their employees to reach their full potential.
Performance reviews don't have to be complicated, just as long as you don't undervalue their power either. They offer numerous benefits for both individuals and organizations at every level. They:
Improve communication
Identify strengths and weaknesses
Facilitate goal setting
Enhance employee engagement
Strengthen employee-manager relationships
By investing in performance reviews, you pave the way for continuous improvement and foster a more positive work culture.
Key elements of an effective performance review
Performance reviews play a crucial role in driving employee growth and development while contributing to higher business performance. To conduct impactful performance reviews, it's essential to incorporate key elements that foster a supportive, collaborative, and ultimately thriving environment.
Here are the key elements of an effective performance review process:
Frequent review cycles
Break away from the anxiety-inducing annual performance review and normalize conversations about performance. Implementing regular review cycles allows for ongoing feedback, ensuring employees stay on track and have the opportunity to grow continuously.
For example, quarterly or monthly check-ins provide timely feedback and help address any performance gaps promptly.
Two-way conversations
Performance reviews shouldn't be one-sided. By involving employees in two-way conversations, you demonstrate that their opinions and insights are valued, fostering a sense of ownership and engagement.
Encourage open dialogue and create a space for employees to share their perspectives, offer suggestions, and actively participate in the review process.
Focused on improvements
Modern performance reviews shift the focus from dwelling on past mistakes to emphasizing growth and development. By adopting a forward-thinking approach, you inspire a growth mindset and create a culture that supports continuous learning and development.
Encourage employees to reflect on their experiences, learn from them, and set goals for improvement.
Transparent and honest
Transparency and honesty are paramount in fostering trust between managers and employees. Establish clear communication channels to ensure employees understand how their performance is being assessed and how feedback will be provided.
Transparency also involves clearly communicating the evaluation criteria and ensuring employees have access to the necessary resources for improvement.
Fair and objective review process
A fair and objective review process is essential for employee morale and engagement. Use standardized evaluation criteria that are consistently applied across the organization. This helps maintain fairness and ensures that employees feel their performance is evaluated on an equal basis.
Objective evaluations foster trust and provide employees with a sense of confidence in the review process.
How to prepare for a performance review
To conduct an effective performance review, managers need to prepare in advance. Here are the key prep steps to get ready:
1. Align on performance evaluation criteria
Performance evaluations require a clear understanding of the criteria and metrics used to assess employee performance. It's essential for managers and employees to have a shared understanding of what constitutes good or poor performance.
For example, you might establish criteria such as meeting project deadlines, demonstrating strong communication skills, or displaying proactive problem-solving abilities. By aligning these criteria, you can ensure fairness and consistency in your evaluations.
2. Gather employee data and examples
To provide meaningful performance feedback, gather relevant qualitative and quantitative data, as well as examples that illustrate an employee's performance.
There are different methods of performance evaluation, all of which can be pooled to build a comprehensive performance picture. Qualitative data can come from employee self-evaluation, peer reviews, or supervisor assessments. Whereas quantitative data can come from sales figures or other productivity metrics.
By collecting a range of data and examples, you'll have a well-rounded view of the employee's performance that considers all factors — not just numbers.
3. Use a performance review template
Templates exist for a reason. They provide a pre-existing structure from which you can build on and customize. They also save you time!
Performance review templates provide a set of targeted questions that guide you through each aspect of the review, ensuring you cover all relevant areas with your employee. Using a template saves prep time and helps maintain consistency across each team member's evaluation. It also ensures that no important topics or questions are overlooked.
Officevibe includes performance review templates designed to make the review process even more streamlined, effective, and data-driven.
Use performance review templates in Officevibe.
4. Prepare a meeting agenda
Before the performance review meeting, create a detailed agenda to guide the discussion. Outline the specific topics you want to cover, such as achievements, areas for improvement, and future goals. Consider including specific examples or projects to discuss during the meeting.
Having a clear agenda helps keep the conversation focused and ensures that all important points are addressed. It also shows employees that you have taken the time to prepare and value their performance.
👀 Check out our one-on-one meeting agendas that cover most manager-employee scenarios, including performance reviews, performance improvement plans, career development, and more!
5. Schedule your performance review meeting
Set a date and time for the performance review that works for both you and the employee. Choose a time when you can give your undivided attention and create a comfortable environment for open and honest conversation.
Avoid scheduling the review during particularly busy or stressful periods to ensure you can devote sufficient time and attention to the discussion. Scheduling the meeting in advance demonstrates your commitment to the employee's growth and development.
By following these steps and adequately preparing for the performance review, you set the stage for a productive and valuable discussion with your employees. Effective preparation ensures that you have the necessary information, structure, and focus to provide meaningful feedback and pave the way for future growth.
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How to conduct an employee performance review
Now that you're prepared, let's explore how to conduct an effective performance review. This is the time to engage in a productive conversation that supports employee growth and development.
The following guidelines provide the performance review framework you need to promote employee development, foster positive relationships, and drive organizational success:
1. Set a positive and constructive tone during the review
Approach the review with a supportive and coaching mindset. It's critical to create a safe space for open dialogue, which fosters collaboration much better than when employees don't feel like they have input. Remember that the goal is to empower employees in their future performance by emphasizing what they are capable of rather than reinforcing what they may not be doing well enough.
2. Share positive feedback and recognition
Similar to the compliment sandwich approach, balancing positive feedback with areas for improvement can go a long way. Make sure to share your own feedback and words of acknowledgment to strengthen your manager-employee bond. Additionally, pass on any feedback you received from other colleagues or leaders, which could help the employee feel valued and appreciated.
3. Offer constructive feedback
Discuss any performance challenges or areas of underperformance directly and constructively. By framing things in a constructive way and using specific examples to illustrate your points, you provide more actionable solutions for growth. Navigate difficult conversations with empathy and a focus on finding solutions together.
Need the inspiration to find high-quality feedback? Here are 22 constructive feedback examples and tips to help you deliver feedback that gets results.
4. Give specific examples
By providing specific examples, you can ensure clarity and facilitate productive discussions. Make sure to back up your feedback with concrete examples to make it more impactful and actionable. Contextualizing feedback with current and past performance examples, helps employees understand the specific behaviors or situations that need improvement or reinforcement.
5. Address performance challenges
During the review, address any performance challenges or areas of underperformance directly and constructively. There are many ways to approach poor work performance issues, just remember to lead these conversations with empathy and a focus on finding solutions. By addressing challenges head-on, you can work together with the employee to identify strategies for improvement and growth.
Granted, some conversations are a little bit more difficult than others. Hey, managers are only human. Read our difficult conversation tips to ensure the message (and solution) isn't getting lost in translation.
6. Listen actively
During the performance review, practice active listening to show genuine interest in the employee's perspective. Pay attention to their thoughts, concerns, and aspirations. By actively listening, you create an environment where employees feel heard and valued, fostering trust and engagement.
By involving employees in the process of defining the next steps, you empower them to take ownership of their growth and development.
Remember, conducting a performance review is not just a one-time event but part of an ongoing performance management system. Ultimately, ensuring continuous feedback and regular check-ins throughout the year helps set, align, and adjust employee goals when appropriate, which contributes to employee growth and success.
What to do after a performance review
The performance review doesn't end with the meeting. Here's what you can do to ensure continuous improvement and growth.
1. Follow up on the next steps
After the performance review, it's crucial to stay involved and provide ongoing support. Follow up on the next steps that were identified during the review. Schedule frequent one-on-ones and other touchpoints to monitor progress and measure results. This demonstrates your commitment to the employee's growth and helps ensure they are on the right track toward achieving their goals.
🤔 Not sure how often to schedule one-on-ones? Find your best formula for one-on-one frequency.
For example, if one of the next steps identified during the review was for the employee to improve their time management skills, you can schedule a follow-up meeting a month later to discuss their progress. During this meeting, you can ask specific questions about their strategies for improving time management, inquire about any challenges they may have encountered, and provide additional guidance or resources if needed.
By following up on next steps, you show that you are invested in your employees' success and provide an opportunity for course correction or further development.
2. Keep the performance conversation going
Embrace the beauty of continuous performance cycles by conducting regular check-ins and one-on-one meetings. These ongoing conversations provide opportunities to discuss progress, address challenges, and provide timely feedback. By maintaining an open line of communication, you can support employees in their growth journey and ensure that performance remains a priority.
For example, you can schedule bi-weekly or monthly one-on-one meetings with your employees to discuss their ongoing projects, address any obstacles they may be facing, and provide guidance or feedback. These meetings create a space for employees to share their achievements, seek guidance on their work, and discuss any new challenges that may have arisen, to assess at your next employee performance review. By keeping the performance conversation going, you demonstrate your commitment to their development and create an environment where continuous improvement is encouraged.
Officevibe supports continuous performance management. This feature provides tools and resources to facilitate ongoing feedback, goal tracking, and one-on-one meetings!
Effective performance review phrases to use in your next review
Crafting meaningful feedback is key to a successful performance review. Here are some examples of performance review phrases, be them appraisals or constructive, to inspire your next review:
Creativity: "Your innovative thinking has led to impressive solutions, pushing our team to new heights."
Communication: "Your clear and concise communication style has greatly improved team collaboration and project outcomes."
Accountability: "You consistently take ownership of your responsibilities, delivering results with a high level of accountability."
Productivity: "Your exceptional time management skills and efficient work habits have significantly increased productivity within the team."
Collaboration: "Your collaborative approach fosters a positive team environment, encouraging open communication and idea-sharing."
Coaching: "Your dedication to mentoring team members has empowered them to grow and excel in their roles."
Areas of improvement: "To further enhance your performance, focusing on improving your presentation skills will help you engage stakeholders more effectively."
Problem-solving: "Your analytical thinking and resourcefulness have consistently resulted in creative problem-solving and successful outcomes."
Again, following up on any performance feedback with specific examples will make the feedback itself more impactful by giving it context. This will also show the employee you gave the feedback thought. For example, you could pair praise about problem-solving with something along the lines of: "Last month, when we had an issue with project X, you managed to fix this by doing A, B, and C and that ensured we could deliver on time! Thank you."
⭐️ Find more examples of employee feedback that creates an impact, especially relating to more sensitive issues like the need for additional training or failing to meet deadlines, and best practices for delivering them.
Use performance management software
Theoretically, you can master your performance review approach all on your own. Logistically, however, there are ways you can make the entire performance management process infinitely easier for yourself (and your employees).
Performance management software like Officevibe turns the review process into a fun and dynamic aspect of the employee experience. With data-driven features such as goal setting, continuous feedback, and performance tracking, it simplifies, streamlines, and enhances the entire performance review process, making it fair, efficient, and engaging for both managers and employees.
By utilizing performance review software, you can maximize the benefits of performance management, foster employee development, and cultivate a positive work culture.
Elevate growth, engagement, and success with Officevibe
Mastering the art of employee performance reviews is essential for managers looking to drive growth, engagement, and success within their teams. By following the key steps outlined in this guide, you can conduct effective performance reviews that inspire improvement, empower employees, and contribute to overall organizational success.
Remember, performance reviews should be a collaborative and continuous process that prioritizes growth, feedback, and open communication. Embrace the opportunity to support your employees' development and create a culture of excellence!
Inside Workleap
Workleap Fall Launch: Empowering HR Leaders with New Features for Employee Growth and Engagement
Save your seat
MONTRÉAL — Nov. 25, 2024 — Workleap, a leading Canadian software company behind products that empower 20,000 companies in more than 100 countries to build better employee experiences, announces its fall platform release introducing new solutions and integrated features into an all-in-one simple-to-use platform. This release marks a new milestone in Workleap’s ongoing commitment to transform the employee experience by empowering HR leaders to drive organizational performance and achieve business goals.
Workleap’s comprehensive platform helps HR lead organizations to thrive in the modern setting of hybrid, remote, and distributed work environments. The consolidated solution for understanding employee engagement, driving performance, and developing employees is the best add-on to your existing HRIS and HR technology, allowing companies to add simple experiences across the employee lifecycle. Bringing these functions together in one platform, Workleap enables HR professionals to create a more responsive, agile and employee-centric work environment.
What's New
Workleap Performance streamlines performance management reviews and enables HR teams to guide managers to provide meaningful feedback, align teams with business goals, and easily track progress—all in one place.
Workleap Pingboard, an intuitive org-chart, visualization, and company building solution, will be integrated within the Workleap platform before the end of the year.
Integrated tools to help HR: Easily visualize employee engagement data within your org chart, streamline onboarding and learning workflows, accelerate content creation with AI designed for HR, and launch custom surveys across the employee journey.
Unmatched value: Game-changing bundled pricing lowers the barrier for HR teams of any size to enhance the employee experience.
Why It Matters
“Hybrid work has completely reshaped the role of HR. It’s no longer just about managing employees—it’s about building the right frameworks, fostering authentic connections, and leveraging tools that drive meaningful outcomes,” said Simon De Baene, Co-founder and CEO of Workleap. “At Workleap, our mission is clear: make work simpler. The Workleap platform brings together the tools HR teams and leaders need to focus on what matters most—creating workplaces where people feel supported, connected, and empowered to grow. By continuing to invest in our platform, we’re accelerating innovation with solutions like Workleap Performance—designed to be simple, effective, and built to keep HR and leaders ahead as the future of work evolves.”
To learn more about Workleap’s employee experience platform, visit workleap.com.
About Workleap Workleap is the best add-on to your HRIS to build better employee experiences. The all-in-one Workleap platform empowers organizations to make work simpler by unifying onboarding, engagement, performance, and development —in one platform.
Workleap is a Montréal, Canada-based company building the operating system for hybrid work—unifying the experience to streamline talent management and scale productivity tools across 20,000 companies in more than 100 countries.
The future of employee experience: simplified, unified, and much more human
Save your seat
At Workleap, we believe that strong employee experiences stem from three core HR actions:
Understand how your employees feel to make them feel heard.
Help managers to connect their teams and drive them to perform.
Develop your employees, grow their careers, and help them deliver for your business.
HR work should be human work, supplemented by the right tools.
It sounds simple (and appealing, no?), but the reality is, finding a simple software solution to unify and streamline this work is like finding a needle in a haystack.
Refreshingly simple employee experience software
According to HR.com's State of Today's HR Tech Stack and Integrations 2024 report, 37% of respondents are juggling five to eleven (or more) paid HR solutions in their tech stacks. Your job is certainly complex — but the last thing you need is to manage endless tools and increase costs.
Workleap's employee experience platform brings the simplicity you're looking for — one solution to unify and streamline everything you need understand your people, connect teams, drive performance, and develop careers.
Engagement surveys, anonymous feedback, performance management, new employee onboarding, learning management, and career progression — yes, all of this, in one place! It seamlessly integrates with your existing HRIS, adding a layer of simple (and consistently used) experiences.
And with such a breezy setup, you finally have the breathing room to collect the right inputs, take time to analyze and reflect, and plan concrete actions.
Hybrid work has completely reshaped the role of HR. It’s no longer just about managing employees—it’s about building the right frameworks, fostering authentic connections, and leveraging tools that drive meaningful outcomes. At Workleap, our mission is clear: make work simpler. The Workleap platform brings together the tools HR teams and leaders need to focus on what matters most—creating workplaces where people feel supported, connected, and empowered to grow. By continuing to invest in our platform, we’re accelerating innovation with solutions like Workleap Performance—designed to be simple, effective, and built to keep HR and leaders ahead as the future of work evolves. - Simon De Beane, CEO and Founder at Workleap
A main takeaway from the HR.com report is that employee experience is the top priority that businesses want to address with their tech stack. Over half of respondents don't have any capabilities at all!
We know you know it's time to boost your employee experience. And here's how you do it.
Understand your people. Make them feel heard.
Listening is a basic human skill — but in the HR context, it's taken to a whole new level.
Continuous employee listening involves:
Providing a safe space for employees to answer questions and provide feedback
Acknowledging and analyzing employee responses
Actioning on employee feedback and communicating changes
Ensuring your people feel heard is a key element of employee listening. As McKinsey senior partner, Carolyn Dewar, says: “You need to genuinely listen and learn, because the organization will sense if you are asking questions but not interested in the answers.”
While there are many moving parts, continuous listening should be top priority because it goes hand in hand with one of HR's key metrics, employee engagement. In fact, highly engaged employees are three times more likely to say they feel heard at their workplace (92%) than highly disengaged employees (just 30%).
Good news is, there are tools out there that help you collect constant feedback, regardless of location or time zone.
During the webinar, we talked about the how:How can HR leaders hear and analyze the perspectives of hundreds (or thousands) of employees? Their answer? Find yourself a really good survey and feedback tool.
Both tools offer a safe space and an easy user experience to increase employee participation rates, which means greater insights for you! More recently, we updated our pulse survey tool to enable flexible listening. Now, you can deactivate or add custom questions to help you measure what matters to your organization.
My team and I enjoy using Workleap Officevibe because we can instantly view our department's engagement temperature while continuously addressing learning and implementing strategies based on employees' voices. - Sivakumar Muniandy, Head of Singapore Contact Centre Operation, AIA Shared Services
To close the loop, we recommend sharing updates with your people on what you're hearing and doing to address their needs. Open communication is key!
“If you could get all the people in an organization rowing in the same direction, you could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competition, at any time.”
When your people are connected, you’re a force to be reckoned with. Without this, the business goes nowhere. People work inefficiently. Decisions are made more slowly. Alignment ensures everyone works in lockstep. And that can make a big difference on revenue.
What can you do, as an HR leader of a hybrid organization, to connect your teams from the comfort of your home office? Read on.
How Workleap helps you connect and drive performance
When you crack the code for driving alignment, you'll discover endless opportunities. There are many ways to get individuals and teams together and moving in the same direction.
One way is through performance management. Once organizational goals are defined, then all other individual and team goals can feed this North Star.
The reality is, however, that many HR pros are struggling to find a performance management solution that blend theflexibility needed to adapt to changing needs with the simplicity and user-friendliness that fosters widespread adoption and efficiency.
With our new Workleap Performance product, you can finally have a flexible and customizable framework to build performance cycles that fit like a glove. You can easily customize questions and evaluation criteria that align with your organizational goals, mission, and values — while still ensuring a consistent and fair process across managers and teams.
Another way to align people — that's especially valuable for hybrid or remote workforces and incredibly easy to implement — is by helping people connect with the right collaborators across their company. A tool as simple as a dynamic org chart and employee directory can foster faster relationships by showing who you need to speak with to progress your work.
With Workleap Pingboard you can instantly improve alignment by fostering connections between employees, streamlining resource planning, and improving internal communications.
Foster continuous learning and development
Employees care about learning, development, and growth opportunities. This isn't new news.
We've seen the data, too. When an organization provides these opportunities, great talent flocks and they stick around. According to the LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report 2024, organizations with strong learning cultures have a +57% retention rate and +23% internal mobility rate.
Talent development starts from day one and it can be tackled with a strong onboarding process. Fresh training and courses will keep people engaged and growing.
But we know the behind-the-scenes work of an L&D program — planning, managing, and tracking — can be time-consuming, hard to scale, and frustrating to maintain.
How Workleap helps you develop talent at scale
The secret to scaling your learning, development, and growth programs is leveraging AI, tried-and-tested templates, and other tools that remove the heavy lifting, so you can focus on the big picture: building a culture of continuous learning.
Need to create new safety training? Hop into Workleap LMS and leverage AI to create a course outline in minutes with a few simple prompts. Want to integrate this course into your new hire's onboarding plan that you just built in Workleap Onboarding? Easy peasy!
Unifying these product experiences isn’t just great for you — it also helps new hires transition smoothly from onboarding to role-specific training.
When onboarding, training, and career plans are easier to create and manage, you'll see higher engagement — from your HR team, managers, SMEs, and employees.
All you need to build impactful employee experiences
With Workleap's unified platform, you have all you need to tackle the key areas of the employee experience:
Understand how your employees feel to make them feel heard with Workleap Officevibe
Help managers connect their teams and drive them to perform with Workleap Pingboard and Workleap Performance.
Develop employees, grow their careers, and help them deliver for your business with Workleap LMS, Workleap Onboarding, and Workleap Skills
