- Every member of our team should be invested in helping each other learn and grow.
- In everything we do there is room for improvement. Critical feedback is OK and honest criticism is encouraged, but we should be fair, never mean or personal.
- Acknowledging what works is just as important as discussing what doesn't. Reviews should have a balance of both.
- Feedback conversations should begin by clarifying what our goals are — what problem are we trying to solve and/or what is the expected outcome of the review?
- "I'm not sure this is effectively accomplishing our goal(s)," is better than, "I don't like this." Be prepared to answer why.
- We are not our work, our work is not us. Criticism should be about how to make the work more effective, and we should all practice letting go of our darlings and ego-driven attachments.
- When we do offer criticism of each others' work it should always be in the spirit of making things better and we should offer suggestions for improvement rather than just tearing each other down.
- We should also celebrate the good things that our team does and recognize our teammates' accomplishments any chance we get.
All INN employees receive annual reviews from their immediate supervisor. These reviews are an opportunity to discuss progress made towards your goals for the year and to set goals for the next year. Each employee will complete a written self review and then your supervisor will review your performance and discuss their evaluation with you. Finally, you will have a chance to respond to this evaluation.
Additionally, new employees receive a review at the end of their 60-day probation period. This review is intended to evaulate your performance to date but also to set goals for your annual review.
Outside of the normal yearly reviews, anyone can request an informal review at any time. These reviews will typically be 15-30 minutes in length.
- Some questions to ask:
- Do I like my job? If not, what's changed?
- Am I meeting the team's expecations?
- What, if anything, am I doing that makes other team member's lives difficult?
- Am I on a path leading to personal, professional growth?
- Other things about the team:
- Any big ideas to bring up?
- Anything about the way the team works that doesn't work?
- Who participates:
- Probably a rotating schedule or tap the people you would especially like to solicit feedback from
- Sometimes it will be helpful to get the perspective of someone other than your manager. This is encouraged.
- Any team member can call a code/design review at any time
- Add to the team calendar and post in the team hipchat room
- Voluntary for the team but required for people working on the project (check their schedules and make sure it's ok before adding them to the calendar invite)
- Person requesting the review is responsible for inviting the people they would especially like to solicit feedback/input from
See: Project retrospectives.