Annual individual interview: how to pass it?

To be sure of a successful annual individual interview, a few key elements should be taken into account.
These are moments not to be missed because they are an opportunity to take stock of the year, your achievements, your development projects and your skills. In fact, it is important to know how to structure the preparation of this interview to make it a fruitful and effective dialogue.

At Talentis, our professional coaches support hundreds of managers and employees every year in preparing for their annual individual interviews. In this video, we share with you the main elements that will make this moment a success.

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The importance of properly preparing for your annual individual interview:
objective achievements

First of all, remember to prepare for this interview in terms of objective achievements.
Remember goals that were set at the beginning of the year, but also goals that may have emerged during the year.

For each of the goals, make a reasonable, fair and accurate assessment of what you have been able to achieve and what has not been achieved. For what has been achieved, value what you have been able to develop as a new skill. During this year, you have learned and these learnings have brought benefits to your team, your customers or your business.
For what you didn't realize, avoid justification at all costs! Especially if you don't have good reasons for not realizing it. Give the objective reasons why it wasn't done and just be honest by saying, “I didn't do it, I know it's my responsibility, that's what I'm committed to doing next.”

Continue your interview with the assessment of your learning

Once you have prepared a summary of achievements, what is also interesting is to reflect on what you have learned in terms of team cooperation, the ability to organize yourself, as well as in terms of expertise. You should always think about the three elements, and not only about the job, but also about how you collaborate with the team, how you organized yourself, you managed your priorities, these three angles are very important in preparing for your annual individual interview.

Take stock of your learning, but also of what you need to continue learning to improve your skills in your job. You understand that you have to arrive proactively, prepared to make this interview a rich and adult interview.

Succeed in entering into a fluidity of exchange

Once you are well prepared and have arrived at your annual individual interview, have a smooth exchange, speak up, ask questions, and preferably, start presenting your balance sheet in such a way that your manager is in exchange for what you have built rather than the other way around. Ensure that the exchange is always on an equal footing and that there is no justification system.

This interview also aims to verify your commitment, your motivation, your desire to stay in the company or, on the contrary, to highlight certain points of dissatisfaction. Play fair with your manager and be as open as possible to make the next year a successful one.

Female talents: three pitfalls to avoid during your annual individual interview

Sometimes, female talent tends to fall into certain pitfalls, some men are also affected, but these pitfalls are found quite often among the women we support in our coaching programs:

- Tendency to be too modest: to think that there is no point in valuing certain achievements. If it is honestly something that you have succeeded in, know how to say it and learn to say it.

- Tendency to always want to talk about the team and not about yourself: distinguishing between what the team has achieved and what you yourself have contributed to is important.

- Tendency to have trouble talking about money: if you need or want a raise, check that it is legitimate to be given one. Check your salary level compared to other people who do the same job. Check if your contribution goes beyond what was expected and therefore legitimizes this increase. Not as a claim or complaint, but as an adult request, be prepared for a yes or no and get ready to bargain. It is crucial to know how to talk about money during your end-of-year interview.

Last step: Take the opportunity to give and ask for feedback

Finally, for the annual individual interview to be perfect, consider giving feedback to your manager on what you enjoyed about the year in working with him, what you might like things to change about. Take the opportunity to ask him for feedback as well. What did he like? What does he recommend for the following year? To be even more effective in your collaboration, in your job with the team... It's really a very important feedback sequence. Consider asking, receiving, and giving.

We have shared with you some keys to make your annual individual interview a learning moment that looks to the future! If you want to put your talents to work on the preparation and success of their interview, contact us! Together with you, we will build the best coaching program adapted to your challenges!

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