Have a question about self evaluations / reviews

[msone]

I was planning on giving 2 weeks notice at the beginning of January. I am
waiting until then due to some medical issues that I am finishing up. A Little background. I work in high tech in a team where I am about 20 years older than everyone else including my manager. I have been passed over for promotions and have been given really bottom of the barrel assignments lately whereas a few years ago was one of the key developers.

I haven't told my manager and only plan on giving 2 weeks notice, however they have sprung a self-evaluation form as part of the year end review process and the questions include my career goals for next year as well as 3 to 5 years down the road as well as my accomplishments. As well as what I think of my managers management style. I don't want to lie or burn bridges. How should I handle this?

[latexman]

Just say, "I am content in my current role and position."

[joeea]

Quote:

Originally Posted by msone they have sprung a self-evaluation form as part of the year end review process and the questions include my career goals for next year as well as 3 to 5 years down the road as well as my accomplishments. As well as what I think of my managers management style. I don't want to lie or burn bridges. How should I handle this?

Just go high.

As much as it might feel good, there is no benefit for you here to being brutally honest. You will only burn bridges.

For every question just answer as positively as you can without lying. Be brief. In a few weeks you'll be gone anyway.

[MRG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by joeea Just go high. As much as it might feel good, there is no benefit for you here to being brutally honest. You will only burn bridges. For every question just answer as positively as you can without lying. Be brief. In a few weeks you'll be gone anyway.

+1

OP realize nobody cares about what you write. Just put down whatever garbage you want in positive ways. Your seniors don't really care about your goals, they care the paperwork is filled out.

[Souschef]

Quote:

Originally Posted by latexman Just say, "I am content in my current role and position."

+1 I was in the same position, the highest paid in my group. I did not get a raise for 2 years because they gave it to the other people. They came around with one of those forms, and I responded the same way.

[pb4uski]

+1 Be candid but diplomatic.

[FireFool]

A bit of been there, done that, on my part towards the end of my working career. If you're 100% certain of your retirement planning then my advice is to put as little effort as you can in terms of creating this self-evaluation, career planning and manager feedback. While they don't know, you know that nothing from it will matter for you, so why put in any effort as I'm certain they haven't reduced any of your other daily responsibilities for the time you'd put into it. As to manager feedback and career planning there is zero benefit to providing it, so be vague and general in the least amount of remarks to fulfill the task. Your goal is to create the least amount of follow-up hassle and time wasted on this. Now after saying all this if you think at all there's a possibility of an impending lay-off, with severance, you may want to posture this all in a way that makes you look expendable.

[Mdlerth]

I will add one more voice to the same verse all the other posters are singing.

Remain professional and positive. Think of Megacorp as a primitive culture and accept this exercise as one of the colorful native rituals that you will leave behind when you depart. You don't have to believe in their stone gods or volcano virgins; simply conduct yourself respectfully while in their presence and all will be well.

[Aerides]

When it comes to the personal review part, consider it a highlight real, not a catalog. For every section or area you have to cover, 2-3 pithy bullets that show your contribution/results. That'll do.

For your 3-5 year plan: "Continue to provide excellent contributions to the organization blah blah"

As far as your manager, write your assessment (also as short as permissible) as if you planned to work for her for at least the next decade. You have nothing to gain by being negative so there is zero point.

ETA: be thankful this is new for you. I had to do it twice a year for the last 20 years at MC.

[Jerry1]

I’m still voting for “I see myself on a beach in Maui in three to 5 years.”

[OldShooter]

A comment from the other side of the table, a former megacorp manager:

I normally had my troops fill out their own annual appraisal forms. With a single exception, they were always harder on themselves than I would have been. This led to a lot of friendly and enjoyable appraisal discussions, though admittedly some did not like being put on the self-evaluation spot and thought I was just being lazy by asking them to fill out the form.

To your point about retirement, if I had an employee that was not ready to announce retirement plans I would completely understand if, in hindsight, a submitted form or a discussion was a little misleading. I wouldn't think negatively about it at all.

All the advice here about not making a stink is right on. You just never know how, when, or if you will benefit from leaving on good terms.

[Fedup]

I wouldn’t put what I always do, put in 4-hour work week for 40-hour pay. Seriously, try to go out on a high note for you, not others. You will feel good about it years later.