There’s no doubt about it: COVID 19 has changed the way we live in so many ways. Not the least of those is how we work. Since the beginning of the pandemic, countless employers from all around the US and the world have allowed their employees to work from home. And while the remote work phenomenon has been a positive change in almost every way, it has presented some challenges for managers and small business owners who are trying to accurately and fairly assess the performance of their work-from-home employees. That’s why we’ve compiled this list of helpful tips on how to write performance evaluations for remote workers.

• Use a standard form or template for every review. This is absolutely essential in creating a level playing field and ensuring that each employee’s performance is judged based on the same categories and set of criteria. It’s best to share your template with the employee as early on in their employment as possible. That way, they understand what aspects of their daily tasks they’ll be judged on and can work on improving their performance over time. Examples of these categories include:
  
  • Self-assessment: Allow your workers to share what they believe were their greatest accomplishments during the review period. Ask your workers for this assessment in advance of writing the performance review so you can take their comments into consideration when writing their reviews. 
  • Overall performance: Provide employees with a general overview of their job performance during the review period. Specific areas of the review should include productivity, problem solving, time management, and communication skills, for example.
  • Goals achieved: If specific goals were set during the previous review, provide feedback to employees on their progress towards achieving those goals. Share with your employees the areas in which you believe they have met or exceeded their goals, as well as those they need to improve upon.
  • Future goals: Set future goals for your employees that are fair and obtainable, yet still encourage professional growth and skill development.
• Conduct the review using a video conferencing tool. In a perfect world, managers would only conduct reviews face-to-face, but for managers of remote workers, video conferencing is the next best thing. Take time at the beginning of the process to visit for a few minutes with your employee to “break the ice” and allow your worker to feel more relaxed before starting the review. This not only puts your employee at ease; it allows you to feel more comfortable with the process as well.
• Allow your employee to respond after the review is complete. Set aside time for your worker to discuss any aspects of the review that he/she might disagree with and/or to ask questions to clarify future goals, for example.

Writing and conducting performance reviews can be a daunting task – especially if your employees are working in a remote location. But following these steps can make it easier for everyone involved. And there’s something else that will make the performance review process easier – MySammy. In fact, the information gathered by MySammy with regard to your telecommuters’ productivity is absolutely essential in creating fair and accurate performance reviews. Our cloud-based software was created specifically for managers that supervise remote workers. We measure productivity levels with the full knowledge of the employee, and we do so without blocking websites. Take the first step in writing performance reviews for your work-at-home employees by signing up for your free trial of MySammy today!