Course Highlights
This in-person performance management course for managers and supervisors will:
- Show participants how performance management works as a year-round system, not an annual event.
- Introduce the PERFORMANCE framework to outline what should happen throughout the year and why.
- Strengthen proactive supervision and earlier intervention using PEMM so issues stay small and solvable.
- Help participants translate upcoming work into clear goals, measurable standards, and skill priorities.
- Teach participants how to use Quick Appreciation to reinforce strong performance so it repeats.
- Teach participants how to use LLC to deliver course-correction feedback that protects standards and closes with next steps.
- Improve documentation quality so notes stay specific, dated, fair, and anchored in examples and follow-up.
- Clarify lane choices across informal coaching, formal feedback, and escalation so managers respond consistently.
- Build follow-through habits that make progress visible before review time.
Course Overview
Performance management is not the annual review. It is the management work that happens before the review: setting expectations, checking progress, reinforcing what is working, correcting what is drifting, developing capability, documenting fairly, and following through when improvement does not stick.
This one-day onsite course gives managers and supervisors a practical way to run that system throughout the year. The program begins with the PERFORMANCE framework so participants can see the full map: what needs to happen, when it needs to happen, and why each part protects performance, fairness, and follow-through.
From there, the course turns the map into day-to-day manager behavior. Participants use PEMM to strengthen proactive supervision and earlier intervention, then work on goals, standards, skill planning, and check-ins that keep performance conversations current. The program also builds two short conversation tools: Quick Appreciation for reinforcing strong work and LLC for course correction when standards are not being met.
The second half focuses on documentation and lane selection. Participants practice writing notes that are specific, dated, fair, and tied to examples, agreements, and follow-up. They also learn how to choose the right response: informal coaching, formal feedback, or escalation. The day closes with follow-through planning for situations where improvement does not hold after the first conversation.
Note: This program pairs well with Orchestrating Excellence: Understanding and Implementing a Performance Management System.
The following outline highlights some of the course’s key learning points. As part of your training program, we will modify content as needed to meet your business objectives. Upon request, we will provide you with a copy of the participant materials prior to the session(s).
Program Objectives
At this program’s conclusion, participants should be able to:
- Explain performance management as a year-round manager system tied to upcoming work.
- Apply PERFORMANCE as a map for what happens across the year and why it matters.
- Use PEMM to strengthen proactive supervision and earlier intervention.
- Write goals and standards that stay measurable, observable, and current as work shifts.
- Run check-ins that create follow-through and close loops.
- Use Quick Appreciation to reinforce strong performance with specific recognition.
- Use LLC to deliver course-correction feedback that protects standards and closes with clear next steps.
- Write documentation that is specific, dated, fair, and anchored in examples, agreements, and follow-up.
- Choose the right lane across informal coaching, formal feedback, and escalation based on patterns and evidence.
- Build a follow-through plan that uses checkpoints and documentation to drive outcomes.
Workshop Modules
PERFORMANCE: The Year-Round Manager System
Performance management fails when it appears only at review time. The workshop opens with PERFORMANCE as the map that connects upcoming work, expectations, development, coaching, check-ins, feedback, and documentation into one year-round approach. Participants will identify the break points that create surprise reviews and recurring misses, then build a one-page year map that ties PERFORMANCE to monthly and quarterly manager actions.
PEMM: Proactive Supervision and Earlier Intervention
Next, the course turns the map into manager behavior. PEMM frames what proactive supervision looks like in daily work: what to watch for, when to step in, and how to keep follow-through visible before problems harden into patterns. Participants will select two PEMM practices to strengthen and define what visible improvement would look like for each.
Work Forecasting: Goals and Standards That Support Strategy
When priorities shift, expectations must shift with them. This module converts upcoming work into measurable goals and clear standards so coaching stays grounded and evaluation stays fair. Participants will practice refreshing expectations without rewriting everything or letting standards drift. Each participant will draft a goal and standards sheet for one role or major work stream.
Capability Planning: Skills and Development for the Work Ahead
A gap in results is not always a choice. This part of the program separates capability from motivation and ties future work to the skills the team must strengthen to deliver. Development stays practical through targeted practice, coaching, shadowing, and checkpoints that make progress visible. Participants will create a skill plan that includes one development action, one practice plan, and one checkpoint per skill.
Check-In Cadence: Follow-Through That Closes Loops
A check-in is not the same as a status meeting. This module builds a short cadence anchored to progress, barriers, decisions, commitments, and the next checkpoint. Participants will build a check-in agenda and a follow-up template that captures commitments, dates, open items, and next steps.
Quick Appreciation and LLC: Reinforcement and Course Correction
Performance improves faster when managers reinforce what should continue and correct drift early. Participants will draft one Quick Appreciation message and one LLC message tied to a real scenario. The module tightens wording so reinforcement stays specific and course correction stays factual, standards-based, and clear about next steps.
Documentation Discipline: Notes That Stay Specific and Fair
If the note is vague, the record is weak. This module shows what strong documentation includes, what weak documentation omits, and how unclear wording creates confusion and disputes. Documentation stays tied to facts, examples, agreements, dates, and follow-up so managers can coach consistently and make cleaner decisions. Participants will revise a weak documentation sample into a stronger one.
Lane Selection: Informal Coaching, Formal Feedback, and Escalation
Two problems show up often: staying informal too long or escalating too fast. This module clarifies what belongs in informal coaching, what shifts a situation into formal feedback, and what triggers escalation. Each lane is tied to standards, evidence, checkpoints, and documentation expectations. Participants will build a lane-choice guide that lists triggers, the next manager move, the checkpoint, and the documentation that should exist.
Holding the Line: Follow-Through When Improvement Does Not Stick
The day closes with what happens after the first conversation. Participants will design a follow-through path that keeps standards steady when progress stalls, pushback appears, or the same problem returns. Each participant will draft a follow-through plan that includes timelines, checkpoints, manager actions, employee commitments, and documentation.
Target Audience
This workshop is designed for groups that want to:
- Move performance forward across a department, division, or entire organization.
- Reduce recurring performance problems by strengthening proactive supervision and earlier intervention.
- Tighten alignment through clearer expectations and more consistent follow-through.
- Improve coaching, counseling, and performance conversations so standards hold without drama.
- Build stronger response discipline for unproductive behaviors, difficult dynamics, and repeated misses.
- Strengthen motivation and engagement through repeatable day-to-day management practices.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is this course different from a course about annual reviews?
This course focuses on the work managers should do before review time. Participants learn how to set expectations, check progress, reinforce strong work, correct drift, document fairly, and follow through during the year so reviews contain fewer surprises.
What does the PERFORMANCE framework do?
PERFORMANCE gives managers a map for the year-round performance cycle. It helps participants see how expectations, goals, development, feedback, documentation, and follow-through connect instead of treating each activity as a separate task.
Why include PEMM in a performance management course?
PEMM helps managers act earlier. Instead of waiting until a performance issue becomes a formal problem, participants learn how to spot drift, step in sooner, and keep small issues from becoming patterns.
Does this course help managers write better goals?
Yes. Participants practice converting upcoming work into goals and standards that are measurable, observable, and current. The course also addresses what to do when priorities shift and expectations need to be refreshed.
How does the course handle employee development?
Development is tied to the work ahead. Participants identify the skills employees will need, choose practical development actions, and create checkpoints that make progress visible.
What is Quick Appreciation used for?
Quick Appreciation helps managers reinforce strong work in a short, specific way. The goal is to make strong performance easier to recognize and repeat, not to offer generic praise.
What is LLC used for?
LLC gives managers a structure for course-correction feedback. Participants practice addressing performance drift with facts, standards, and clear next steps before the issue grows.
Does the course cover documentation?
Yes. Participants practice writing documentation that is specific, dated, fair, and anchored in examples, agreements, and follow-up. The course also shows why vague notes create problems later.
How does the course help managers decide when to escalate?
The course includes lane selection across informal coaching, formal feedback, and escalation. Participants learn to look at patterns, evidence, risk, prior conversations, and progress before choosing the next move.
What should managers be ready to do after the workshop?
Managers should be ready to run performance management more consistently throughout the year: set clearer expectations, hold better check-ins, reinforce strong work, correct drift, document fairly, and follow through when improvement does not stick.