From All Sides: The Validity of Performance AppraisalsDecember 10th, 2009 |
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At first I was surprised to see the very first question in our new HR Raging Debates Forum. “Should you even do performance appraisals” seems like a slam dunk to me, and likely to most of you reading.
But the experts had some great opinions that made me pause and dig more deeply into the issue. Consider this from Ed Lawlor:
Having a poor performance appraisal system is worse than having none at all. It can drive employees away, waste valuable time and lead to poor talent management decisions.
And this from Laurie Ruettimann:
Performance appraisals are a dated way to think about the employee/employer relationship. They deliver neither value nor harm. They are silly and mismanaged conversations that occur in the absence of a thoughtful employee communication strategy.
Strong statements certainly, but I think what they do is crystallize what many of the other experts spoke to, about how performance appraisals need to be not an event, but an ongoing process that takes place in real-time during the entire employee work cycle.
I like how Josh Bersin puts appraisals in their place:
Performance appraisals are only one tiny step in the entire process of managing people… really a record-keeping step used to provide the organization with a consistent way of evaluating and comparing people against each other. It also provides compliance and record-keeping when employees are not performing and they need to be moved; and it gives the organization written justification for compensation decisions.
And Richard Hadden offers managers a roadmap for making positive connections through the process of employee appraisals:
Leaders should approach performance appraisal as a process, not an event. But the traditional, periodic sit-down discussion between leader and employee to discuss the “results” of the performance appraisal can be very helpful for a variety of reasons. First, it gives both leader and employee a concrete point in time by which time-bound performance goals are to be met, and it sets aside a time and a place to have an important discussion that, without a specific performance appraisal might never actually happen, even with the best of intentions. But most importantly, using an appraisal instrument, and setting aside a time to focus on delivering “the performance appraisal” sends the message that performance is important, and that as your leader, I want to take the time to do all that I can to support you through feedback and coaching.
There’s no doubt about it - we think performance appraisals should absolutely be done, and that (when done properly, with the right tools) they offer tremendous value- competitive advantage even - to an organization. That’s why it was so refreshing - and in some ways reaffirming - to see what our experts had to say on the validity of performance appraisals, as well as a variety of other “Raging Debates” - lets us know we are on the right track, and considering the most crucial business elements in play today.
What is your opinion about performance appraisals? Is there a viewpoint we missed? Share your feedback here!
(And we’ll be back in days to come to look more closely at some of the other hottest Raging Debates.)
Tags: employee performance appraisal |
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3 Responses to “From All Sides: The Validity of Performance Appraisals”
By Heather Villa on Dec 11, 2009 | Reply
I believe performance reviews are necessary. However, they are worthless if not done properly. Employers and employees need a way to evaluate and communicate not only the areas that need improvement, but also how good a staff member has been performing. It’s so easy to get busy that we forget to praise and reward good work. Scheduled performance reviews also give employers the chance to really communication with the employee one-on-one.
By Dan McCarthy on Dec 13, 2009 | Reply
Heather –
I’ve enjoyed reading about performance appraisals from the expert panel. Both sides make a strong case, for and against.
Instead of leaving the issue up the courts (HR), I propose settling the debate through referendum. Let’s let our employees and managers decide.
- Acme Co. referendum #4862: Should we stop doing performance appraisals? Vote yes or no.
Based on informal polls I’ve conducted over my career, I suspect the vote would be a loud “YES”, and there would be dancing in the streets.
By Pascalis Claudius Lotinggi on Dec 30, 2009 | Reply
Heather -
I have the strange feeling that with the many comments that are not supportive of performance appraisal, we tend to lose focus on why we do it in the first place and how to do it best.
Is it that we are forgetting the human factor involved in performance appraisal? If it is human weakness that may be the reason why performance reviews are done poorly, we cannot put the blame on systems. After all, people devised these systems.
I believe that it is people, managers and employees alike, who make performance appraisal work.