Performance Appraisals
Performance Appraisals: Advantages and Disadvantages
BUS303: Human Resources Management
Instructor: Rhonda Bunce
8/13/12
When doing anything meaningful, humans have a natural desire to know how they are performing. In particular, if they are doing a job, they need to know if they are doing horrible, great, or somewhere in between. One of the best potential ways of providing this feedback is through the use of performance appraisals. By definition, “performance appraisal is the process through which employee performance is assessed, feedback is provided to the employee, and corrective action plans are designed.” (Youssef, 2012) If properly designed and administered, a performance appraisal can provide a great benefit to the employee, supervisor, and the company itself; however, one must be careful when giving appraisals. Bias, whether intentional or unintentional, can be detrimental at all levels. Though it may seem simple, there are a variety of implications with the entire appraisal systems. There are strategic advantages of performance appraisals, forms of bias within these appraisals, and effects on the achievement of strategic objectives from appraisals. Performance appraisals can provide strategic advantages at a multitude of levels. “PM [Performance Management] identifies organizational goals, results needed to achieve those goals, measures of effectiveness or efficiency (outcomes) toward the goals, and means (drivers) to achieve the goals. This chain of measurements is examined to ensure alignment with overall results of the organization.” (McNamara, N.D.) In order to properly administer a performance appraisal, there must be a comparison between performance and organizational goals. This allows the employee the opportunity to completely understand what the company is expecting from that employee. By understanding goals, an employee can focus on ensuring those goals are met. From the viewpoint of supervision, performance appraisals forces a
BUS303: Human Resources Management
Instructor: Rhonda Bunce
8/13/12
When doing anything meaningful, humans have a natural desire to know how they are performing. In particular, if they are doing a job, they need to know if they are doing horrible, great, or somewhere in between. One of the best potential ways of providing this feedback is through the use of performance appraisals. By definition, “performance appraisal is the process through which employee performance is assessed, feedback is provided to the employee, and corrective action plans are designed.” (Youssef, 2012) If properly designed and administered, a performance appraisal can provide a great benefit to the employee, supervisor, and the company itself; however, one must be careful when giving appraisals. Bias, whether intentional or unintentional, can be detrimental at all levels. Though it may seem simple, there are a variety of implications with the entire appraisal systems. There are strategic advantages of performance appraisals, forms of bias within these appraisals, and effects on the achievement of strategic objectives from appraisals. Performance appraisals can provide strategic advantages at a multitude of levels. “PM [Performance Management] identifies organizational goals, results needed to achieve those goals, measures of effectiveness or efficiency (outcomes) toward the goals, and means (drivers) to achieve the goals. This chain of measurements is examined to ensure alignment with overall results of the organization.” (McNamara, N.D.) In order to properly administer a performance appraisal, there must be a comparison between performance and organizational goals. This allows the employee the opportunity to completely understand what the company is expecting from that employee. By understanding goals, an employee can focus on ensuring those goals are met. From the viewpoint of supervision, performance appraisals forces a
References: Business Management Daily (2012) Block Inadvertent Bias from Creeping into Reviews Retrieved August 13, 2012 from http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/13283/block-inadvertent-bias-from-creeping-into-reviews McNamara, C. (N.D.) Performance Management: Benefits and Concerns Retrieved August 13, 2012 from http://managementhelp.org/performancemanagement/benefits.htm Youssef, C. (2012) Human Resource Management. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.