I had my annual appraisal discussion recently and it was virtually an ambush. I thought I had done really well and handled my previous project in the best way possible. However, during the discussion my manager focused mainly on my negatives and brushed all the positives under the carpet and acted as if it was nothing worth mentioning.
I am planning to quit the organization and I had almost made up my mind much before the appraisal discussion. What happened only helped strengthen my resolve.
My managers main point of contention was that I did not go the extra mile and said said no to several incoming requests for change. (The project requirements were changing even while final testing was going on). I did it with the assumption that the delivery date could not be extended and so I had to take a call what went in and what did not. I actually considered this an essential part of my role. Apparently, my manager didn't seem to think so.
[Edit] To clarify the above statement, I made it clear that some of the changes would be difficult or time consuming and would be difficult to get done in the schedule we had. However, most of the items were taken up in the end and completed although the schedule had to be extended to accommodate this.
During the discussion I was shell shocked by the feedback and did not say anything during that time. However, now that I have had some time to think about it, I have several things to say in my defense. With my experience with several managers before this, I am more or less certain that the discussion may not serve to change anyone's mind but I do not want them to take my silence as agreement.
On the other hand, since I am planning to quit anyway, I could suffer through the time I have left and leave without saying anything.
Which would be the better approach?
