Performance Management

Performance Management

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CHAPTER 9

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Performance management reqires the wilingness and commitment to focus on improving performance at the level of the indivdul or team every day. Like a compass, an ongoing performance management system provides instantaneous, real time information that discribe the difference between the current and the desired course. To practice sound performance management, managers must do the same thing provide timely feedback about performance, while constantly focusing every one’s attention on the ultimate objective (e.g. world class customer service).

At a general level, the broad process of performance managemnet requires to do this three things well:

1. Define performance

A manager who defines performance ensures that individual employees or teams know what is expected of them, and that they stay focused on effective performance by paying careful attention on three key elements: goals, measures, and assessment.

2. Facilitate performance

Manager who ae committed to managing for maximum performance recognize that one of

their major responsibilities is to eliminate roadblocks to successfull performance. Then, the next step is to provide adequate resources – capital resource, material resources, or human resources. A final aspect of performance facilitation is the cerefull selection of employees. After all, the last thing any manager wants is to have people who are ill-suited t o their job.

3. Encourage performance

To encourage performance, especially repeated god performance, it’s important to do three more things well: (1) provide a sufficient numbe of rewards that employees really value, (2) in a timely fashion, and (3) in a fair manner.

Fairness is a subjective concept, but it can be enhanced by adhering to four important practices: voice, consistency, relevance, and communication.

PURPOSE OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL SYSTEMS

In general, appraisal serves a twofold purpose: (1) to improve employees work performance by helping them realize and use their full potential in carrying out their firms mission, and (2) to provide information to employees and managers for use in making work related decisions. More specifically, appraisal serves the following purpose:

Figure 9-2

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Employment decision

Diagnosis of organizational problems

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PURPOSES OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL SYSTEM

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Employee Feedback

Objective for training programs

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criteria in test validation

1. Appraisals provide legal nad formal organizational justification for employment decision

2. Appraisals are used as criteria in test validation

3. Appraisals provide feedback to employees and thereby serve as vehicles for personal and career development

4. Appraisals can help to identify developmental needs of employees and to establish objectives

for training programs

5. Appraisals can help diagnose oraganizational problems

Requirement of Effective Appraisal System

Legally and scientifically, the key requiemens of any appraisal system are:

• Relevance

• Sensitivity

• Reliability

• Acceptability

• Practicality

Figure 9-3

Relationship Of Performance Standards To Job Or Work Analysis And Performance Appraisal

JOB OR WORK

ANALYSIS

•describes work and personal requirements of a particular job.

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PERFORMANCE

STANDARDS

•Translate job requirements into levels of acceptable/ unacceptable performance

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PERFORMANCE

APPRAISAL

•Describes the job reevant strenghts and weaknesses of an individual or team

PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL

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There is a rich body of case law on performance appraisal, and multiple reviews of it reached similar conclusions. To avoid legel difficulties, consider taking the following steps:

1. conduct a job analysis to determine the characteristics necessary for successful job performance.

2. Incorporate this characteristics into a rating instrument.

3. Provide writen instruction and train supervisors to use the rating instrument properly,

including how to apply performance standards when making judgement.

4. Establish a system todetect potentially discriminatory effects or abuses of the appraisal process.

5. Include formal appeal machanism, coupled with higher level review