Adaptability: 40 Useful Performance Feedback Phrases

Adaptability is the ability to cope with and adapt to unexpected situations in any environment and staying connected with a great attitude.

Adaptability: Exceeds Expectations Phrases

• Easily adjusts priorities, activities, and attitude to meet new deadlines and information and to achieve objectives
• Plans ahead, but always has an alternative option in case things go wrong or unexpected
• Thinks quickly to respond to a sudden change in information and draws conclusion from it
• Anticipates and responds with energy to new challenges, the unfamiliar and the urgent
• Takes new challenges and looks for a new way to solve problems at short notice
• Quickly bounces back from setbacks, and maintains a head high positive attitude
• Thinks of ways to make changes work, rather than identifying why changes will not work
• Shows initiative and self-reliance when making suggestions for increasing the effectiveness of a changing environment
• Not frightened to improvise. Can comfortably move into action without a plan and plan on-the-go
• Keeps an open mind and shows willingness to learn new methods, procedures, and techniques that embrace change

Adaptability: Meets Expectations Phrases

• Incorporates feedback effectively and deals positively with praises and criticism
• Understands, negotiates and balances diverse views and beliefs, particularly in multicultural environments, to reach workable solutions
• Pushes aside the work planned for the day to respond to an emerging problem
• Encourages others to take the initiative when new projects come along and to quickly adapt to situations
• Offers to cover the responsibilities of a colleague while he/she is on vacation
• Shifts attention to a client entering the facility even though immersed in detailed task
• Volunteers to take the lead for an important presentation when a colleague comes down with an illness
• Works overtime to help a colleague meet a deadline for a certain proposal
• Tailors a sales pitch to meet unique needs of a certain client
• Surveys clients about their experience with the company and modifies service delivery based on the findings

Adaptability: Needs Improvement Phrases

• Gets overwhelmed when multi-tasking. Feels overloaded when juggling several tasks or when under pressure
• Not able to stay poised and calm when presented with a dilemma or a sudden troubling event
• Does not show confidence when working with teams or clients that may have a different way of thinking
• Tends to be so consistent following own job description thus being resistant to change
• Always late in executing a new plan or project and neglects tasks that need priority
• Rarely helps other colleagues to accomplish tasks that require meeting deadlines
• Gets easily depressed when things go wrong or projects do not work out as expected
• Hardly attends training, workshops or any other research-based activity meant to increase self-efficiency
• Adapts well to small changes, but struggles when there is a larger issue that affects the whole office or department
• Shows reluctance when asked to take over others in the same office or department when necessary

Adaptability: Self Evaluation Questions

• Do you prefer an environment with a structured routine or one with new experiences?
• Can you describe a project or situation which required you to remain open-minded and flexible in order to succeed?
• Were there times you had to take in a new task when you were still heavily involved with another one?
• If you were given a new project to lead without prior knowledge, what steps would you take to tackle it?
• What is the biggest change you have dealt with and how did you cope with it?
• Can you think of a time when your task or project suffered a setback? How did you react?
• Is there a time you had to adjust to a colleague's working style or technique in order to meet a deadline or achieve an objective?
• Give a situation where you had to present to a group of clients with little or no preparation. What challenges did you face?
• When have you been forced to attend to an emergency in an unusual way and what was the outcome?
• Can you describe a situation where you had to move into action without a plan when solving a difficult problem?