Using Idea Mapping in Employee Evaluations

Employee evaluations are an important part of any business. The process of giving feedback concerning employees’ work performance and behavior is instrumental for both employers and employees in creating a successful working environment. Often times, employee evaluations involve the employer filing out a form containing a list of questions about the employee along a variety of evaluative criteria. This linear listing of criteria is not always the most intuitive way to present information, for either the employer or employee. A more intuitive and creative way to complete this evaluation process is to use Idea Mapping. In contrast to the traditional form, an Idea Map allows the employer to summarize the employee’s strengths, weaknesses, and core competencies in one, visually stimulating, and creative document. Thus, the employer has the ability to “map out” his or her feedback regarding employees in a way that is easier for all parties to understand.

What is Idea Mapping?

Idea Mapping is a means of organizing information using an Idea Map, which is a “colorful, single-page visual that captures [a person’s] thinking in key words and images.” Idea Mapping is widely believed to be a more effective means of conceptualizing information than traditional outlining, because it uses a spatial, rather than linear, approach to help define the information. When using an Idea Map, both hemispheres of the brain are engaged, allowing the brain to process information in a manner consistent with its natural functioning. The result is the ability to “plan, organize, communicate, remember, innovate, and learn” information quickly and efficiently.¹

Using an Idea Map in Employee Evaluations

An employer has been asked to perform employee evaluations for each member of his work team. He wants to use Idea Mapping to organize each evaluation, so that his employees can view his feedback in a way that is easy for them to process and understand. He begins each Idea Map by representing the employee’s evaluation with a central graphic located in the center of the map. He then divides the map into four sections, “Strengths”, “Weaknesses”, “Core Competencies”, and “Areas Needing Improvement”, by listing each of the sections on “branches” attached to the central topic. Next, he lists any specific feedback he has for the employee concerning each section on “child branches” attached to the “branches”. Lastly, he fills in the Idea Map using colors, key images, and pictures to make the map more associative. The attached Map diagram is an example of what an employee evaluation might look like if constructed in the manner described.

Advantages of Idea Mapping for Increasing Employee Performance

The attached described Idea Map has a couple of distinct advantages over traditional employee evaluations for increasing employee performance. Firstly, the map is laid out in a creative and intuitive manner, making it easier for the employee to internalize the employer’s feedback. The employee can clearly see how well he or she is doing in each area of evaluation in one graphic snapshot, rather than having to skim through a page or pages of words describing his or her performance. Secondly, the Idea Map provides employees with several points of visual association, making the evaluation incredibly easy to internalize and recall. The employee can, thus, relate back to the map during his her workday as a means of judging how well he or she is performing the job. Both the clarity with which the evaluation is presented, and the inherent facilitation of easy recall contained in the map, lets employees know what is required in order to perform effectively within the company. Idea Mapping, therefore, gives both employer and employees the tools to give and receive constructive feedback, and increase employee functioning within the organization.

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