Preparing for Your Year-End Review

It’s near the end of the year, and you know what that means: In addition to getting ready for the feasting, the parties and the gift giving for the holiday season, it also means (drumroll), your performance review.

But don’t worry. Your year-end review with your supervisor needn’t be the coal in your holiday stocking. Read the tips below to prepare for your review and sail right through it.

• Your supervisor may give you a self-assessment form to fill out prior to your one-on-one review meeting. Take this assessment seriously. It’s your chance to sit down with yourself and really assess your strengths and weaknesses, the things you enjoy about your position and what you dislike. It’s also your chance to think deeply about what you need to improve upon and also to dream about where you want to go.
• As you prepare for your review, write specific examples of where you excelled during the past year. What projects did you take on that went above and beyond your job duties? What skills have you improved? How did you bring value to your department?
• You need to have concrete examples of these successes and it may be hard to remember them. That’s why it’s wise to write them down when they occur.
• It’s also a great idea to send these successes to your boss regularly throughout the year. These can be presented to him or her as a regularly quarterly, monthly or even weekly report.
• At your review, discuss your goals. You’ll also want to bring up the things you know you need to improve upon. Still, don’t be surprised if your supervisor has some additional areas for improvement. He or she may not – employees tend to be harder on themselves when it comes to self-evaluations than their supervisors are – but it might occur. Be prepared.
• Even if you receive a glowing review from your supervisor, be ready to discuss areas in which your supervisor feels you need to improve. No one is perfect. Welcome these suggestions.
• Prior to the review, you should come up with some professional/at-work goals for 2013. Discuss these, as well as the goals your supervisor may have set for you. Come up with a timeline and also guidelines that will tell both you and your supervisor when the goals will have been met.
• If one of your goals is a raise/promotion, bring this up with your supervisor and have a list of things you will do to warrant the raise. Request your manager’s input on your goal and set goals/parameters together.

If you feel you’ve gone as far as you can in your current pharmacy position and are looking for a new challenge, send your CV/resume to a recruiter at Rx relief®. We can help you find temporary and direct-hire opportunities with pharmacies, hospitals and other healthcare facilities all across the country. We look forward to hearing from you.