Performance review phrases – Verbal communication

Verbal communication – the act of transmitting messages through spoken words.

Exceptional/Superior:

1. Thomas easily finds common ground with most clients. He is very good with words.
2. Henry is not afraid of a demanding audience. He can find the right answer for any question.
3. Jennifer is an extremely talented orator. She has mastered spoken communication skills.
4. Gloria communicates with clients and other employees in a respectful and understanding manner.
5. Monica speaks loud and clear. She takes care of her intonation, pronunciation, and rhythm.
6. Robert effectively organizes and delivers product presentations. He is a great company representative.
7. George gives very passionate and convincing speeches. He can persuade any audience.
8. Gwen is a great interviewer. He asks the right questions to find out the most important things about job candidates.
9. Bruce can handle even the most difficult conflicts with diplomacy.
10. Arnold has an impeccable diction. He has a deep and loud public speaking voice.

Exceeds Requirements/More than Satisfactory:

1. Yvonne knows how to present complicated concepts to an unprepared audience.
2. Susan watches her tongue. She thinks twice before talking to avoid misunderstanding.
3. Peter avoids filler words and uses short but informative sentences.
4. Philipp continuously improves his English language skills to become a better spokesperson.
5. Wendy always has a calm and friendly tone. She knows how to make people listen to her.
6. Harry speaks with clients in a polite tone without raising his voice.
7. Arthur finds the perfect balance between informal and formal communication with his clients.
8. Sara skips the unnecessary small talk and gets right down to the business.
9. Laura delivers public speeches with great confidence. Not a single heckler can distract her.
10. Trevor uses active listening skills to identify the most urgent concerns of a client and address them.

Meets Expectations/Satisfactory:

1. Bruce demonstrates genuine admiration for other employees. He easily gains people’s trust.
2. David makes sure that every person in the audience has understood his message by answering questions at the end of each presentation.
3. Trevor does not get too personal with his subordinates to maintain a professional workplace atmosphere.
4. George is able to express his point of view in a detailed manner without causing misunderstanding.
5. Emma does not take much time to find the best way to answer a question.
6. Jerry is able to explain a complex problem to subordinates without getting nervous.
7. Rachel has a clear and understandable voice. Our clients love her presentations.
8. Samantha always highlights central points of her presentations to make them easier to understand.
9. Michael anticipates the concerns of his clients and asks for clarifications to handle it in the most efficient way.
10. Oliver has a great sense of humor. He uses it to engage audiences of all sizes.

Provisional/Needs Improvement:

1. Harry has a quiet speaking voice. He must train to improve it.
2. Jerry gets nervous when presenting new products. He needs to overcome the fear of public speaking.
3. Marta talks too much. Her public speeches include a lot of unnecessary information.
4. Abigail fails to eliminate filler words from her vocabulary. Her presentations sound unprofessional.
5. Robert has a weak and overly quiet voice. Clients have a hard time listening to him.
6. Edward has pronunciation problems. He needs to work on his English speaking skills more often.
7. James does not know how to find common ground with the company’s clients.
8. Rachel speaks too softly. She needs to start to enunciate her words loud and clear.
9. Portia is unable to find the optimal speech rate. She speaks either too fast or too slow.
10. Zack never learns the audience before giving a speech.

Unsatisfactory:

1. James does not know how to make people listen to him. He gives extremely boring speeches.
2. Maria talks too fast. Her presentations are emotionless and boring.
3. Trevor fails to build trust with clients. He needs to learn to connect with others through empathy.
4. Ronald feels uncomfortable when delivering speeches.
5. Peter cannot focus on the main topic during public presentations. He makes many mistakes because of that.
6. Thomas does not have any respect for others. His speeches are very offending.
7. Aaron uses too many filler words. He needs to change his speech habits.
8. Monica never breaks her message into smaller points. Her presentations are hard to listen to.
9. Harry does not make any pauses in his speeches. It makes his delivery sound dull and unnatural.
10. Janet cannot answer the vast majority of questions.

Self Evaluation Questions:

1. Have you ever hurt someone’s feelings at work, either purposely or by accident?
2. How often do you fail to express your point of view to colleagues?
3. Do you always think before speaking to avoid uncomfortable situations?
4. How do you make sure your interlocutors are carefully listening to you?
5. What do you do to find the clearest way of communicating your point?
6. Is it hard for you to stick to concise and clear verbal communication?
7. What strategies do you use to break the ice when meeting new customers?
8. Do you consider yourself a good public speaker?
9. Can you discipline subordinates without making them frustrated or hurt?
10. Do you paraphrase to show other people you understand them?

The samples of performance review phrases for verbal communication is a great/helpful tool for periodical/annual job performance appraisal. Note that, verbal communication review phrases can be positive or negative and your performance review can be effective or bad/poor activities for your staffs.

If no matching phrase is found, you can also see a general list of performance review phrases and choose a more appropriate skill.