Performance Management Process

Key Takeaways

[Music] let's take a look at performance management prerequisites there are two important prerequisites that are required before a performance management system is implemented first knowledge of the organization's mission and strategic goals and second knowledge of the job in question there's a constant back and forth between mission and vision and strategic planning strategic planning allows an organization to clearly define its purpose and reasons for existing where it wants to be in the future the goals it wants to achieve and the strategies it will use to attain these goals once the goals for the entire organization have been established similar goals cascade downward with units setting objectives and employee goals supporting the organization's overall mission and objectives if there's a lack of clarity regarding where the organization wants to go there'll be a lack of clarity regarding what each employee needs to do and achieve to help the organization get there the second important prerequisite before performance management systems are implemented is to understand the job in question given changes in the nature of work and organizations jobs are anything but static because people are asked to work on new projects participate in different teams and use new apps and technologies on an ongoing basis jobs also change on an ongoing basis understanding employees tasks and responsibilities is done through work analysis better known as job analysis which is a process of determining the key components of a particular job to understand what an employee is supposed to do on the job and how to evaluate their performance as a result of a work analysis we need to understand the tasks to be carried out in the knowledge skills and abilities known as ksas required for a particular job knowledge includes having the information needed to perform the work skills refer to the required attributes that are usually acquired by having done the work in the past an ability refers to having the physical emotional intellectual and psychological aptitude to perform the work the tasks and ksas needed for various jobs are typically presented in the form of a job description which summarizes the job duties required ksas and working conditions for a particular position analysis can be conducted using observation off-the-shelf questionnaires or interviewing the incumbent or supervisor of the position the information obtained from the work analysis is used for writing a job description if we have good information regarding a job then it's easier to establish criteria for job success once you understand strategic goals and the position the supervisor and the employee can formally meet to discuss and agree upon what needs to be done and how the performance planning discussion includes a consideration of both results and behaviors as well as a development plan results refer to what needs to be done or the outcomes an employee must produce a consideration of results needs to include the key accountabilities or broad areas for a job and what the employee is responsible for in terms of producing results this information is typically obtained through the job description a discussion of results also includes specific objectives that the employee will achieve as a part of each accountability objectives are statements of important and measurable outcomes finally discussing results also means discussing performance standards a performance standard is a yardstick used to evaluate how well employees have achieved each objective although it is important to measure results an exclusive emphasis on results can give a skewed or incomplete picture of employee performance behaviors or how the job is done thus constitute an important component of the planning phase a consideration of behaviors includes discussing competencies which are measurable clusters of ksas that are critical in determining how results will be achieved an important step before the review cycle begins is for the supervisor and the employee to agree on a development plan at a minimum this plan should include identifying areas that need improvement and setting goals to be achieved in each area development plans usually include both results and behaviors in summary performance planning includes the consideration of results and behaviors and the development plan once the review cycle begins the employee strives to produce results and display the behaviors agreed upon earlier as well as to work on developmental needs the employee has primary responsibility and ownership of the process at the performance execution stage the following factors must be present the employee must be committed to the goals that were set one way to enhance commitment is to allow the employee to be an active participant in the process of setting goals the employee needs to take a proactive role in soliciting performance feedback and coaching from her supervisor and other stakeholders collecting and sharing performance data the employee should provide the supervisor with regular updates on progress towards goal achievement in terms of both behaviors and results the employee should engage in an ongoing and realistic self-appraisal so immediate corrective action can be taken if necessary the usefulness of the self-appraisal process can be enhanced by gathering informal performance information from peers and customers although the employee has primary responsibilities for performance execution the supervisor also needs to do her share of the work supervisors have the primary responsibility over the following issues supervisors must observe and document performance on a daily basis it's important to keep track of employees in both good and bad performance examples as the organization's goals may change it's important to update and revise initial objectives standards and accountabilities in the case of results and competency areas in the case of behaviors feedback on progression towards goals and coaching to improve performance should be provided on a regular basis and certainly before the review cycle is over supervisors should provide employees with resources and opportunities to participate in development activities overall supervisors have a responsibility to ensure that the employee has the necessary resources to perform the job properly supervisors must let employees know that their outstanding performances noticed and reinforce effective behaviors and progress towards goals also supervisors should provide feedback regarding negative performance and how to remedy the observed problem both the employee and the manager are responsible for performance execution in the assessment phase both the employee and manager should evaluate the extent to which the desired behaviors have been displayed and whether the desired results have been achieved although many sources can be used to collect performance information the direct supervisor provides it in most cases it's important that both the employee and the manager take ownership of the assessment process the employee evaluates his own performance and so does the manager when both the employee and the supervisor are active participants in the evaluation process there's a greater likelihood that the information will be used productively in the future it is the discrepancy between these views that's most likely to trigger development efforts particularly when feedback from the supervisor and others is more negative than the employee's self-evaluation the inclusion of self-appraisals can also reduce an employee's defensiveness during an appraisal meeting and increase the employees perception of accuracy and fairness in sum both the employee and supervisor must evaluate employee performance the performance review stage involves the formal meeting between the employee and the manager to review their assessments this meeting is usually called the appraisal meeting or discussion although good performance management systems include ongoing check-ins the formal performance appraisal meeting is important because it provides a formal setting in which the employee receives feedback on performance in spite of its importance in performance management the appraisal meeting is often regarded as an achilles heel of the entire process this is because many managers are uncomfortable providing performance feedback particularly when performance is deficient this high level of discomfort which often translates into anxiety and the avoidance of the appraisal interview can be mitigated through training those responsible for providing feedback in most cases the appraisal meeting is regarded as a review of the past that is what was done like results and how it was done like behaviors the conversation should include a discussion of goals and development plans that the employee will be expected to achieve over the period before the next formal review session in addition a good appraisal meeting includes information on what new compensation and rewards if any the employee could receive as a result of their performance in short the appraisal discussion focuses on the past what has been done and how the present what compensation is received or denied as a result and the future the goals to be obtained before the upcoming review session consider the following six recommended steps for conducting productive performance reviews first identify what the employee has done well and poorly by citing specific positive and negative behaviors then solicit feedback from your employee about those behaviors listen for reactions and explanations discuss the implication of changing or not changing the behaviors positive feedback is best but an employee must be made aware of what will happen if any poor performance continues explain to the employee how skills used in past achievements can help him or her overcome any current performance problems encourage the employee to invest in improving his or her performance by asking questions like what ideas do you have for this or what suggestions do you have for that finally set up a meeting to follow up and agree on the behaviors actions and attitudes to be evaluated the performance management process includes a cycle which starts with prerequisites and ends with the formal performance review however the cycle is not over after the formal review it's a continuous process you