Performance Appraisal

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Description of Performance Appraisal. Explanation.

Definition Performance Appraisal. Description.

A Performance Appraisal is a method and a process to identify, observe, measure, evaluate and develop individual employee performance, providing employee feedback, and (indirectly) to improve the effectiveness of the organization as a whole. An appraisal normally consists out of the assessment by a qualified person of the performance and of a discussion of the development and training needs of an employee. It is important to realize there are two sides to any appraisal:

1. Judgment (Historic). Actual performance is compared against performance targets and feedback (both positive and negative) is given. This may or may not include the determination of a pay increase. Generally, including pay in the Appraisal has the major disadvantages that honest and open communication becomes almost impossible, and the judgment part of the Appraisal becomes too dominant.

2. Development (Future-oriented). The needs of the employee are evaluated in terms of the training requirement to improve skills and knowledge in line with future performance objectives and the direction the employee wants to grow. Furthermore Employee Objectives (SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic/Relevant, Time-related) are agreed. Compare: Career Management.

Any Performance Appraisal should be:

3. Documented.

4. Delivered in a face-to-face meeting.

Any Appraisal should be well prepared for by both the manager and the employee. Although normally the line manager of the employee is best positioned to be the appraiser, in some organizations it can be a special Personnel Manager. The advantage can be that this specialized person has more experience, special skills and knowledge on doing employee reviews. An issue is that the Personnel Manager must be aware of how the employee is functioning in his work environment. This can be supported by Peer-Appraisals and/or by 360-Degree Feedback.

Steps in a Performance Appraisal. Process

Typically a an appraisal of performance is comprised of three main steps:

1. Definition of the expected duties and the job standards. By line manager, together with employee.
2. Conduct of the performance appraisal, comparing the actual performance of the employee with the performance standard that were previously defined.
3. Feedback and follow-up: line manager provides feedback to the employee and plans are made for future development.

Performance Appraisals Special Interest Group Special Interest Group (123 members)

Performance Appraisals Forum   Recent topics   Obsession with Quantifying Human Performance In his book Tyranny of Metrics (2018), Jerry Muller describes the dam...           Tips for Ensuring Performance Appraisals Hold Up in Court One inherent risk in the use of performance evaluations is that they may become the basis for or evidence in workplace discrimination or wrongful term...           Appraisal for Future Job? I am currently studying Project Planning and management . Can a performance appraisal be done to appraise an employee on a job they are not currently ...           Consider the Job Situation in Appraisals It is not only the performance that is to be studied but the situation where the job is being carried out needs to be studied. We human are always car...           Appraise the Past, Develop for the Future As described in the summary, performance management has a dual role: 1. Feedback on past performance, and achievement of agreed upon goals...           Decentralized Performance Appraisals In my opinion, performance appraisal should be done at the small units (branches), especially in large corporations. In such organizations, employees ...           Performance Appraisal Quotes My quote for the day not related to this topic but willing to add here "use less people instead of useless people" in the performance appraisal...           Disparaging Appraisal Terms I recently heard the following terms referring to some office workers: they are "do nothings" and "non-performing investments"....           Avoiding Biases in Performance Appraisals My experience indicates that while an employee is being appraised, there are certain cognitive biases wh...           Theory of Performance Appraisal? Are there any theories regarding performance appraisals?...           Bonuses.. what is Fair to All Within Large Corporations What is fair to all in a large corporation when bonus time rolls around, quarterly, and yearly. Should all employees be entitled to a bonus bas...           How to Deal with Very Good Performers? How to manage very good and top performing employees? What is the best way to reward employees that are ever hitting targets? Thanks for your ide...           Double Purpose of Employee Appraisals Basically there seem to be two reasons / goals of appraisal systems. 1. To give a feedback to appraisee so that he/she may improve and follow the...           How Role Clarity and Employee Performance Management can help with Strategic Focus Leadership teams often face the challenge that the majority of jobs in the business defaults mainly in the first level or other lower levels in the or...           Mismatch in Performance Appraisals: Actions from Last Year are Rewarded/Punished This Year It has always been my concern that the traditional way of determining the compensation of an employee is on the basis (almost always) of what he has d...           Subjectivity in Performance Appraisals There is a general feeling that performance appraisals are subjective and that when managers rate their team members, a certain bit of           Value System Appraisal Performance evaluation is a function of any value system. Thus, efficient performance appraisal should deliver valuable results to organization. Anyth...           Deloitte’s New Performance Management System Deloitte redesigned their employee performance management system. In Deloitte’s new system there are no cascading objectives, no once-a-year reviews, ...           New Performance Appraisal System for Teachers in the Philippines? What is the new performance appraisal for teachers being used here in the Philippines?...           How to Receive Personal Feedback? Tips Even if we know intellectually that feedback from other people has many advantages (like helping us to avoid making certain mistakes again, helping us...           Annual Confidential Report (ACR) Systems In performance appraisals, employees are evaluated over a certain time and given feedback for future development. I think 360 Degree Feedback is the b...           How to Deal with Poor Performers and Non Performers? How does one manage poor performing employees and how do you deal with someone that comes to work that is not productive at all (being drunk, hangover...           Comparing Appraisals with Examinations Appraisals are to employees what examinations are to students. Examinations have undergone several changes and so have appraisals. I try to list ...           How to Conduct Appraisals in Project Organizations? What is the best type of appraisal for organizations where work is organized around tasks or projects that take a short time to complete after which a...           Tips on Performance Management of Employees I'd like to share some important tips on employee performance management: Define and Communicate Company Goals and Performance Objecti...           The Best Methods of Performance Appraisal System in Government Sector I am currently working on finding out the best methods to conduct performance appraisals in the government sector wherein the state government is run...           Appraising the What and the How In my organisation a semestral (semi-annual) appraisal of performance is held to all employees. We evaluate WHAT they did and did not accomplish. ...           Feedback Should be Like a Mirror: Neutral As we can see in various documents on feedback, it is often seen in terms of 'good' or 'bad'. However, feedback is neutral and should be give...           The Meanings of Performance Evaluations The employee evaluations that I have had for the past 15+ years are for the most part reiterations of previous evaluations with slight improvements - ...           Methods for Evaluation of Employees Let's collect methods and tools, old and new for the evaluation of personnel used by the management of human resources. If you can also give a short s...           Performance Appraisal and Salary Determination The performance appraisal process should be based upon an assessment of the employee's value to the company. This value should be based upon the emplo...           From Business Objectives > Department Deliverables > Employee Objectives > Performance Appraisal Each year, an organization determines business objectives and these objectives are cascaded into set of action items. Each department, b...           Performance Appraisals are not Fair I don't believe in performance appraisals. Because it is not fair system for employees due to it's such a very complicated system. Just look at how ma...           Difficulty of Conducting Performance Apprasals in an R&D Organisation The work of an R&D organisation cannot be defined precisely at the beginning of a year. This poses challenges for mid year and end of year asse...

Best Practices - Performance Appraisals   Checklist of Common Errors in Performance Appraisals I was asked to make a list of common mistakes by managers in performance appraisals. G.T. Milkovich and J.M. Newman report the following ones (Co...           How to Achieve Fair Performance Appraisals? It's important that a fair method / system of feed back must be implemented in every organization. This means the appraiser has to verify and c...           No Routine Annual Performance Appraisals Performance appraisals in my opinion should not be allowed to become a routine annual exercise, but should be used to improve the performances of all ...           Concerns not Previously Discussed During Performance Reviews I am always worried that there has not been enough upfront review. When my supervisors complete a performance review I also review it prior to sharing...           How to Give Constructive Feedback? Models and Tips I would like to gather methods and best practices on giving constructive feedback... Perhaps you are using a particular feedback model, or do you have...           How to Deal with Average Performers? Managing Average Performers They did deliver, if only a mediocre, standard performance. So they can not be dismissed on a non-performance ...           Open Communication? Try Coffee Talks I my view, the main problem with annual performance evaluations is the lack of open honest communication. I have found that having regular open con...           Wrong Use of Employee Appraisals My personal view regarding appraisals is that it has become a penalty tool to fight personnel vendettas and not for the purpose it was designed...           Three Types of Performance Appraisals In employee performance management, performance appraisals are an important method to detect the strengths and weaknesses of employees and improve tho...           Broken Confidentiality of Performance Appraisals Hi, my problem is related to behaviour of my boss, who is a causing trouble, especially between employees, because he is spreading info gathered fr...           Don't Forget Appraisal Follow-up I came to realise that some appraisals take long to bear any effect. Some data is compiled about the employees but no effort is made to update the ...           Outcomes of Performance Appraisals The performance appraisal process in practice seeks to develop the human capital of the organisation. However, an indirect outcome from the pro...           Conditions for Successful Performance Appraisals Performance appraisals are a vital action in HR systems. But it will not be a successful program, unless we teach employees to ask the following quest...           How to React When You are Undervalued? How can you succeed when your tumultuous efforts are not recognized by your superiors and your performance is rated on personal grudge?...           How to Prepare for a Performance Appraisal as Appraiser It is wise to put yourself in the position of the recipient of the appraisal you are about to give to someone else. How would you receive the informat...

Expert Tips - Performance Appraisals   3 Suggested Changes to Improve the Performance Review Process       The Focus of Improving Appraisal Systems       Fairness of Managers and Leaders: are Fair Leaders More Effective?       Solutions for Top 50 Problems Faced in Performance Appraisals

Resources - Performance Appraisals How to Give Successful Feedback to Employees   Effective Employee Performance Appraisals: Purposes, Characteristics, Sources and Methods   Employee Performance Management and Performance Appraisals (In depth)   10 Common Mistakes in Giving People Feedback   The Role of Supervisor | Skills of Supervisors   You Cause Poor Employee Performance   The High Performance Development Model   Multitasking and Ways to Avoid It   Bullying: Workplace Performance and Preventive Strategies   Guide Toward Coaching your Employees   How to Get a Raise. 5 Negotiation Secrets   Introduction to Performance Appraisal of Employees   Work-Family Conflicts and Work-Life Policies     News about Performance Appraisals         Videos about Performance Appraisals         Presentations about Performance Appraisals         Books about Performance Appraisals         More about Performance Appraisals

Compare with: Self-Appraisal  |  Peer-Appraisal  |  Behavioral Observation Scales  |  Competency-based Approach  |  Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales  |  360-Degree Feedback  |  Management by Objectives  |  CSFs and KPIs  |  Result Oriented Management  |  Pre-Employment Screening

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This ends our Performance Appraisal summary and forum.