When Performance Appraisals Don’t Work

For many people the performance appraisal ranks as one of the most unpleasant aspects of their job, as well as the most pointless. A recent study by Investors in People found that around a third of employees think that appraisals are a complete waste of time.

The same study found that half of those appraised believed that their bosses were being dishonest during the process, a quarter thought that it was just a tick box exercise and a fifth thought that their manager did not put any preparation in before their appraisal.

So why do these issues arise? There are several fundamental reasons why performance appraisals do not work. For example:

· Many organisations dictate that appraisals must be undertaken/completed within a specific time frame, for example, during the month of December. The problem with this is that a manager may have 10 or more staff that he/she has to appraise. This becomes too much of a burden in the time available and so the manager cuts corners to get them completed. More enlightened organisations use other approaches such as the date an employee joined as the appraisal anniversary date. In this way the manager’s task becomes spread across the year.

· Often managers think that performance appraisal is simply an annual event, when clearly it is not. Staff need continual feedback and support to ensure that that they perform to the best of their ability. Formally sitting down with each member of staff on a six weekly basis enables both the manager and employee to have full and frank discussion about progress and performance and nip any issues in the bud before they become a serious problem. The added benefit of this approach is that the annual appraisal essentially becomes a summary of all the discussions that have taken place during the year.

· Finally, too often managers do not have the skills necessary to manage the performance of their staff effectively. Performance management training should be an integral part of a manager’s recruitment or promotion. The training should include the principles of performance management as well as providing the opportunity for the participants to practice their interview and feedback skills in a safe environment.

The study by Investors in People highlights a number of important issues that need to be addressed if performance appraisals are to be seen as valuable to employees and not simply a tick box exercise.