Imagine if you had a doctor or a nurse who gave patients medicine but didn't make a notation in their chart. Or if you had a bank officer who let you do transactions with your bank account but didn't make a notation in your bank records. Or you had an insurance agent who paid claims without documenting it. Imagine a waiter or a waitress who doesn't write down your order; a lot of times they get your order wrong. If you want to keep track of something, you've got to write stuff down. Think about anything that really matters to you, anything that you really care about. You write stuff down.
And the same is true when it comes to managing people. If you really care about managing your employees, you've got to keep track in writing. The first reason is if you keep track in writing you'll be a whole lot better able to keep track of all the details especially if you are managing a lot of people.
The second reason is you can refer to your notes on an ongoing basis and then you're driving the conversation because every conversation you say, "Gee, last time we talked about A, B, and C, now let's talk about D, E, and F." Or you might say, "Last time we talked about A, B, and C. How did that go? Now let's talk about D, E, and F." So it helps you stay in control of the conversation.
The third reason to write stuff down is you and your employees may have different recollections of what was said last time, but if you wrote it down that trumps your different recollections.
The fourth reason is of course, is if you have to impose detriments or if you want to reward somebody specially, you're going to have to make a case for that. And if you have written notes you're going to be a lot better able to make a case. And if you ever have a legal dispute then you are going to need to have your written documentation.
Have you ever called HR and asked for help and they say, "Send down the file" and you say, "Uh, I don't have a file." And then they tell you, "Well, you've got to document performance if you want our help." You call down to HR and ask for their help and they say, "Send down the file" and you say, "I've been keeping detailed contemporaneous notes about all my interactions with all my direct reports; of course I will send down the file." You know what happens in HR? "We've got one! We've got a manager who is documenting performance!" Bells and whistles go off. They have a pizza party! The reason is, because if you write stuff down HR can help you. If you do that part of your job, if you document performance every step of the way, then you're going to be all over the details and the really good news is HR can help you.
BONUS MANAGEMENT BEST PRACTICE
Help your employees earn more! For each direct report, revisit that person's tasks and responsibilities. Look at the list of concrete goals. Now look at the check-lists of concrete actions for each goal. Revisit the price/worth of each check on the checklist. Now can you describe ways to "go the extra mile" on each concrete action in exchange for extra rewards? Consider the extra "worth" or "price" of going the extra mile on each check. What would the "extra mile" price/cost list look like in terms of extra rewards for going the extra mile at every stage of the game? Can you make a scale of extra rewards that you could actually help each person earn, quid pro quo, for going the extra mile on their daily tasks/responsibilities?
To the extent that you really could provide such extra rewards, from now on, in your one-on-ones with direct reports, consider explaining that scale of "extra mile" to "extra rewards" to each person and consider making reference to it on a regular basis. Even if you can't tie each person's actual compensation to those checks, you might find it a useful reminder of the ongoing earning process.
