

Should Performance Reviews Be Scrapped?
Mar 14, 2025
Stacey Kole, an Economist at Chicago Booth and expert in workplace management, joins the discussion on the value of performance reviews. She highlights the anxiety caused by traditional evaluations and questions their overall effectiveness. Through engaging case studies, she advocates for clearer objectives and a collaborative approach to performance assessments. Kole argues for frequent communication between managers and employees to foster meaningful feedback, ultimately linking individual performance to the organization's mission.
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Purpose of Performance Reviews
- Performance reviews carry extra weight because they impact pay and promotion.
- They should be designed to extract and deliver value, not merely serve as legal records.
Brazil Foods Review Overhaul
- A CEO at Brazil Foods cut their 100-question review to under 20 by clarifying key objectives.
- This streamlined process improved communication and reduced organizational conflict.
Pain in Feedback
- People dislike reviews because of interpersonal conflict when feedback clashes with self-image.
- This conflict causes pain for all parties, deterring genuine engagement with the process.