The document discusses the importance of reviewing teams, rather than just individuals, during performance reviews. It notes that individual reviews do not provide the full picture of how people contribute to and drive the success of their teams. Reviewing teams allows you to evaluate individual contributions and impact within the context of team dynamics, goals, and output. The document recommends including peer feedback and using review systems that allow comparing individuals within teams in order to better understand each person's contribution to the overall team performance.

1. Want better performing teams? Review them as such.
Businesses ultimately depend on the success of teams, but performance
reviews focus on the strengths and weaknesses of individuals. How do
you bridge the gap?
Performance Reviews:
Go Team or Go Home
The whole picture
Looking at individual contribution without team context can paint an incomplete picture:
a person who doesn’t hit sales targets or have extensive product knowledge might
actually be the facilitator who makes her whole team run smoothly. Ultimately it’s the
team’s output, not the individual’s, that benefits the organization most.
The team view
It’s easy for us to draw comparisons when considering a team: he’s better at sticking
to his budget, she comes up with the most creative ideas, he lands the biggest
clients. But when it comes to performance reviews, they require us to look at people
individually instead of as a team, which makes it harder to paint an accurate picture.
Reviews that allow you to look at people as a group - to see them in their teams and
evaluate how their individual contributions drive success for the entire team - can
provide better insight into their true performance and impact on the organization.

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Peer feedback
Which hurts more? Your manager telling you you’re a 2, or your team telling you
you’ve let them down? Peer feedback should be included in reviews because it comes
from the people you work closely with every day, not from a manager who might only
interact with you once or twice outside of your annual performance review.
Review team dynamics, get dynamic teams
Teamwork is dynamic: brainstorming, creativity, innovation and collaboration, all of
which can be greatly enhanced (or undermined) by the combination of people and
personality types. Team-based reviews can help you make the most of those positive
group dynamics: it’s easy to see which teams are working like a well-oiled machine,
and which need a little extra support. We should really try to understand contribution
to team dynamics as part of an individual’s review.
Reviewing teams doesn’t need to be any more difficult
than reviewing individuals
• Use a review system that lets you compare people within teams.
• Consider team dynamics as part of performance reviews. Measure
interpersonal and cooperative competencies as well as team objectives.
• Collect peer feedback. 360 degree programs are great, but even better:
create an environment where people give and receive feedback frequently.
• Manage teams as teams rather than as a bunch of individuals scrabbling for
the same limited rewards, and enjoy the benefits: more open communication,
better working relationships, higher trust levels, increased productivity,
improved cohesion.
See how Cornerstone OnDemand’s learning and performance systems enable managers to review teams
for what they really are…teams. Visit us at CornerstoneOnDemand.com today to learn more and sign up
for a demo.