[cbanek]

> working for a company that isn't engaged with helping you to improve is far worse

I agree completely, however that is usually far different than "goal setting" in my experience. It's far more about opportunity, which unfortunately is also handed out by management.

> Even if you're motivated to improve on your own you'll be working with people who aren't and that's more stressful and annoying than any number of performance measurement systems.

Welcome to corporate life. I've worked with a lot of people who could care less about doing better, and sometimes that's right (hey, some of those people even have kids, which I would say is a better use of time!). I'd say performance reviews add more stress and strife than remove it.