4(a) Discuss (four)(4) methods of performance appraisal that you are familiar with which can be employed by a teaching institution.
According to (Tahsildari, and Shahnaei, 2015) Performance appraisal means evaluating an employee’s current and/or past performance relative to his or her performance standards. It is designed to help employees understand their roles, objectives, expectations and performance success. Appraising performance assumes that performance standards have been set and feedback is given to the employees to help them eliminate performance deficiencies or continue to perform above par. It is an integrated process of setting goals, training and developing employees, appraising their performance and rewarding them.
The following are the different methods of performance appraisal
Ranking Method: It is the oldest and simplest formal systematic method of performance appraisal in which employee is compared with all others for the purpose of placing order of worth. The employees are ranked from the highest to the lowest or from the best to the worst.
The advantages of the individual ranking method are it is easy to understand and use, it is easy to compare job performance, and it saves money and time. The disadvantages of the individual ranking method are it is not easy to practically compare each of the employees and for large organizations, it is not applicable
A graphic rating scale (sometimes called a Likert scale) is a performance appraisal method that lists desired traits and behaviors for each role, then rates workers on each of those on a numbered scale. A score of 5 would rate the employee as excellent regarding that particular behavior.
A graphic rating scale lists the traits each employee should have and rates workers on a numbered scale for each trait. The scores are meant to separate employees into tiers of performers, which can play a role in determining promotions and salary adjustments. However, the scale has disadvantages that make it difficult to use as an effective management tool.
Advantages of graphic rating scale
Whichever method of graphic scale is used to measure performance, it should be clear and understandable by both the employee and the manager. It should have proper definitions of the terms explained in it without misunderstandings.
There should be standardization of all the comparison criteria
All the behaviors should be numerically quantified. It makes the appraisal system easy to execute and compare it with others. Also, it is easier for the organization to group employees with the same ratings in similar groups.
Some of the disadvantages include;
The differences among how people score evaluations, perceptions of ratings, a feedback block, a halo effect and a difficulty in separating employees who land in the middle.
Inconsistencies with Different Evaluators
If a company uses 15 people to evaluate personnel, there may be 15 different rating scales. Even with intense training, some evaluators will be too strict while some will be too lenient, and others may find it hard to screen out their personal agendas. A graphic rating scale works best when managers and employees agree on the definition and degree of factors included in the evaluation, and that’s difficult to achieve.
The ratings may or may not be accurate, as the perception of the judges. Every judge will have a different perspective when it comes to rating the behaviors.
Most of the time, the ratings are difficult to give since labels such as difficult or tricky since the rating scale do not exemplify the ideal behaviors.
Various perception issues like the halo effect, recency effect, etc. can be difficult to rate, and they often lead to incorrect ratings. This is primarily because of perception issues.
The graphic rating scale method is excellent when it comes to pointing out excellent or top performers and unfit employees. The extremes are categorized and separated easily, but the issue comes with differentiating average employees. It cannot distinguish between two employees who are average and close to each other but are different in performance by slight variations.
The other limitation of the graphic rating scale is that it is not effective when it comes to knowing the employee’s strengths. Different strong characteristics may be present with different employees, and these are not considered separately. This causes them to qualify for the same score despite having differences.
Critical incidence method
A critical incident appraisal focuses on the essential behaviors that determine whether a task is done well or poorly. Documentation in this case involves briefly summarizing situations (incidents) that demonstrate either successful or unsuccessful behavior or outcomes.
Advantages of the Critical Incident Method
The critical incident method has the advantage of being task-focused. It focuses on the essential duties of an employee’s job and how well she performs those duties. It is based on direct observation by the manager and not second-hand accounts.
In this approach, managers gather information over time. They keep a log of positive and negative incidents, recorded at the time they occurred. So, the annual performance appraisal is not overly influenced by an employee’s most recent accomplishments or problems.
It is an effective relationship building tool because the manager must spend more time in the work area observing and interacting with employees, rather than in her office. This gives her the opportunity to get to know each worker, to provide coaching and guidance; and to get feedback on what is working well and what is not.
In addition, the critical incident log provides the required performance or behavior documentation necessary for a manager to take disciplinary action with an employee.
Process Improvement Tool
Health care, power plants, aviation and other high risk industries use critical incidents as the starting point for improving processes and reducing risks. Critical incident documentation can identify areas where workers routinely have problems; where the work flow backs up; or where safety or security issues occur. The manager can interview those involved to collect information to supplement his own observations of the incident to help clarify the problem and identify solutions.
Narrative essays method of performance appraisal
In the essay method approach, the appraiser prepares a written statement about the employee being appraised. The statement usually concentrates on describing specific strengths and weaknesses in job performance. It also suggests courses of action to remedy the identified problem areas. The statement may be written and edited by the appraiser alone, or it be composed in collaboration with the appraisee.
Merits of narrative essays
One of the most noteworthy aspects of essay appraisals is their free-form approach to performance reviews. Whereas some employers can feel limited by rigid performance appraisal criteria, the essay method takes a far less structured stance than typical rating scale methods. In so doing, the appraiser is able to examine any relevant issue or attribute of performance that is pertinent to an employee’s job description or overall company growth.
The essay method assumes that not all employee traits and behaviors can be neatly analyzed, dissected, and rated–instead, it allows appraisers to place varied degrees of emphasis on certain qualities, issues, or attributes that are appropriate. Rather than being locked into a fixed system, this open-ended method gives supervisors the freedom of expression and critical thought.
When preparing an essay, a supervisor may consider any of the following factors of an employee as they relate to the company and employee relationship: potential and job knowledge, understanding of the company’s policies, relationships with peers and supervisors, planning and organization, and general attitudes and perceptions. This thorough, non-quantitative assessment provides a good deal more information about an employee than most other performance appraisal techniques.
However, as with all performance appraisal methods, there are a few limitations that the essay method suffers from that are worth examining.
Demerits of narrative essays
One of the major drawbacks of the essay method is its highly subjective nature–they are often subject to bias, and it can be difficult to separate the assessment of the employee from the bias of the evaluator. While the essay can provide a good deal of information about the employee, it tends to tell more about the evaluator than the one being evaluated.
Another element that essays leave out (that other appraisal methods rely heavily on) is comparative results. Instead of utilizing standardized, numeric questions, these appraisals rely only on open-ended questions. While the essay method gives managers the ability to provide detailed and circumstantial information on a specific employee’s performance, it removes the component of comparing performance with other employees. This often makes it difficult for HR to distinguish top performers.
Overall, the appraisal method’s greatest advantage–the freedom of expression for the evaluator–can also serve as its greatest handicap. Even the actual writing of the reviews can upset or distort the process of employee appraisals, as the introduction of inconsistent, unorganized, or poor writing styles can distort and upset the review process. An employee may be unfairly helped or harmed by an evaluator’s writing ability. An evaluator can also find themselves lacking sufficient time to prepare the essay, and can write an essay hurriedly without accurately assessing an employee’s performance.
(b) “Performance appraisal is a challenging activity” Explain the reasoning behind that statement.
The following are some of the challenges of performance appraisal
Inexperienced Evaluators; Sometimes, appraisal may not be conducted by skilled or trained managers. The evaluation process may not be carried out properly owing to lack of knowledge and experience of evaluator.
Defective Rating or Personal Bias; Managers avoid giving negative remarks or poor ratings as employees may not always view feedback in a positive manner. The managers try to avoid possible future conflicts or arguments with employees. Moreover, they also fear non- cooperation from employees in future.
It results in managers giving favourable ratings, so that work environment and relationships are not affected. Moreover, the evaluator’s personal relation with the employee also affects the process. Sometimes, managers may give higher ratings to favorite’s employees. They may also give low rating to deserving employees due to jealousy or fear that such employees might replace them.
Time Consuming Process; Every manager or supervisor is responsible for preparing performance report for his team members. He is required to fill up an appraisal form for every team member and note down strengths, achievements, weaknesses and other observations of his team members. The process includes lot of procedures and is a time consuming process.
Difficulty in Selection of Appraisal Method; There are number of techniques to evaluate performance of employees. The appraisal technique must be selected on basis of the nature of organization, number of employees, work policies, budget etc. However, evaluators may not always select appraisal method that is suitable for the organization. They select appraisal method that is simple, less time consuming in order to reduce workload.
Central Tendency:
Managers have the tendency to give average rating to employees irrespective of their actual performance. It means average rating is given to both, the underperformers as well as the over performers. Generally, managers resort to this kind of behaviour in order to avoid displeasing other employees, future conflicts, jealousy and tension in the team. However, it is unfair for those employees who actually deserve high ratings but are given average score.
The behaviour to look only on negative aspects and ignore the positive aspects of a person is called as horn effect. It occurs when an appraiser makes his decision only on the basis of employee’s negative attributes. For instance, the appraiser gives overall low rating to an employee because he is overly focused on employee’s lack of communication and presentation skills.
He totally overlooks the fact that the employee is proficient in his job and completes tasks within the specified time. Halo effect is the opposite of Horn effect. In this, positive qualities of the employee are overshadowed by negative qualities of the employee. It means the appraiser gives high rating to employees also in those areas where he is not proficient.
Lack of Participation from Employees:
Employees resist performance appraisal system because they consider that the whole process of appraisal is only for pointing out their mistakes and criticizing their performance. Thus, they may not be actively involved in the evaluation process.
Spill Over Effect:
The behaviour to ignore employee’s current performance and to make decision on the basis of past performance and overall impression of the employee is termed as spillover effect. For instance, if the employee had a good performance during the last year, the supervisor by default rates him high even in the current year without considering his actual performance.
Attitude of Evaluator:
Mind set of manager also affects the evaluation process. The managers who are strict and have high expectations from his employees may give low ratings to all employees in spite, of good performance from employees. The lenient managers give high rating to all employees irrespective of their performance. Such evaluations are not valuable to the organization or the employees.
Inadequate Attention to Human Resource Development:
The main aim of appraisal system is to assess the performance of employees at current job so that they can be motivated and developed further. However, the performance reports may not be actually used by the managers to achieve this goal. The managers prepare these reports only to fulfil their duties and obligation of company policy. They may not always find time to evaluate actual performances of employees and to develop their abilities.
Expensive:
The organization has to allot huge funds for setting up assessment centres. Further, technical experts are to be hired to plan and design evaluation techniques. Sometimes, organizations also have to hire professional experts from outside to conduct the evaluation process.
(b) “Performance appraisal is a challenging activity” Explain the reasoning behind that statement.
5) As a newly appointed Human Resource Manager you have found out that the employees are already demotivated. What strategies would you put in place to re-motivate them?
The following are the strategies that can be put in place to motivate employees
Offer Rewards to Employees
Maslow asserted that the two most basic human needs were physiological (food, water, shelter) and safety. Offering employees extrinsic rewards for good work as a means of workplace motivation can help fulfill these needs.
Rewards can come in many different forms, and you’ll need to discover what makes your team tick to most effectively leverage rewards as a way to motivate your people. Perhaps you could offer a prime parking spot for the employee with the best sales numbers every month. Movie passes, massage gift certificates, casual dress days, or pizza lunches are examples of the kinds of external rewards that your employees might find motivating.
Food and monetary rewards appeal directly to people’s most basic physiological needs, and a gift for a job well done reassures people that they’re safe in their jobs as it gives them physical evidence of their success.
Listening to employees challenges and complaints
Employees want to know that their opinions and insights are being heard, Listening is just as important as writing and speaking when it comes to communication skills. The act of listening does not often make its way onto the list of types of communication. Active listening, however, is perhaps one of the most important types of communication because if we cannot listen to the person sitting across from us, we cannot effectively engage with them. Think about a negotiation part of the process is to assess what the opposition wants and needs. Without listening, it is impossible to assess that, which makes it difficult to achieve a win/win outcome. Therefore it is imperative for the manager to have an active listening skill so that they are able to understand the plight of their workers an improve them accordingly. Managers who are great communicators are good listeners, they allow time for others to speak, they have a clear understanding of the organization’s vision and share it with the people in their team in a way that motivates them, and they keep their team up-to-date on what’s happening in the organization (Olanrewaju, and Okorie, 2019)..
Appreciating and Encouraging Teamwork
Managers should be in position to appreciate and encourage team work in the organization this is because working in teams enables an organization to enjoy improved efficiency, work outcomes, and individual development. Managers should support collaboration at every opportunity and mitigate toxic behavior and unhealthy competition. Good managers encourage and reward teamwork and collaboration among their teams. Workplace processes can be adjusted to complement this approach. For example, some companies still operate on a “stacked ranking” system, as popularized by General Electric decades ago. This system ranks employees, and the lowest-performing employees are shown the door. Employee rankings, in general, have been shown to be demotivating to employees. Furthermore, ranking employees against each other creates toxic relationships and reduces the likelihood that employees will help one another when given the opportunity. Companies implementing this system should consider removing it (Negara, 2019).
Enhancing the Technical Skills of employees
Technical skills involve skills that give the managers the ability and the knowledge to use a variety of techniques to achieve their objectives. These skills not only involve operating machines and software, production tools, and pieces of equipment but also the skills needed to boost sales, design different types of products and services, and market the services and the products.
Offering training opportunities to develop the Conceptual Skills of employees
These involve the skills managers present in terms of the knowledge and ability for abstract thinking and formulating ideas. The manager is able to see an entire concept, analyze and diagnose a problem, and find creative solutions. This helps the manager to effectively predict hurdles their department or the business as a whole may face.
Planning for th employees and the organization so that employees feel valued and part of the organization; Planning is a vital aspect within an organization. It refers to one’s ability to organize activities in line with set guidelines while still remaining within the limits of the available resources such as time, money, and labor. It is also the process of formulating a set of actions or one or more strategies to pursue and achieve certain goals or objectives with the available resources.
The planning process includes identifying and setting achievable goals, developing necessary strategies, and outlining the tasks and schedules on how to achieve the set goals. Without a good plan, little can be achieved.
Delegating some jobs to the supervisors so that they feel part of the organization; Delegation is another key management skill. Delegation is the act of passing on work-related tasks and/or authorities to other employees or subordinates. It involves the process of allowing your tasks or those of your employees to be reassigned or reallocated to other employees depending on current workloads. A manager with good delegation skills is able to effectively and efficiently reassign tasks and give authority to the right employees. When delegation is carried out effectively, it helps facilitate efficient task completion. Delegation helps the manager to avoid wastage of time, optimizes productivity, and ensures responsibility and accountability on the part of employees. Every manager must have good delegation abilities to achieve optimal results and accomplish the required productivity results.
Enhancing consistency and reliability in the organization
Employees need to know that their leader is stable, secure, and reliable. They will come to you for clarification regarding organizational objectives, views on their work, and advice. And more importantly, employees should feel comfortable approaching you when they are struggling and need help. Employees need to know that their manager is a level-headed person who won’t fly off the handle at a moment’s notice. Otherwise, they won’t feel able to open up to you and their trust in management will weaken.
Recognizing employees performance
Belonging, acceptance, and esteem (both self-esteem and the respect one feels from others) are higher-level human needs. It doesn’t take much effort to make people feel good about themselves and let them know that they’re doing the right things. Generous praise and recognition for good work as well as words of encouragement go a long way toward maintaining employee motivation.
Nurturing team work in the organization
Managers should be in position to appreciate and encourage team work in the organization this is because working in teams enables an organization to enjoy improved efficiency, work outcomes, and individual development. Managers should support collaboration at every opportunity and mitigate toxic behavior and unhealthy competition. Good managers encourage and reward teamwork and collaboration among their teams. Workplace processes can be adjusted to complement this approach. For example, some companies still operate on a “stacked ranking” system, as popularized by General Electric decades ago. This system ranks employees, and the lowest-performing employees are shown the door. Employee rankings, in general, have been shown to be demotivating to employees. Furthermore, ranking employees against each other creates toxic relationships and reduces the likelihood that employees will help one another when given the opportunity. Companies implementing this system should consider removing it (Negara, 2019).
Fostering a Pleasant Work Environment
Make your workplace a happy place to be. Keep a positive attitude yourself and find ways to maintain good energy and positive vibes. Good-spirited competitions, welcome breaks in routine, and structured social interaction are all effective ways to motivate employees and make them feel they belong. The physical environment makes a difference in employee motivation too. Invest in good lighting, comfortable work stations, and pleasant break rooms. Paint and decorate in cheerful colors. Remember, this is your employees’ home away from home, and it should be a pleasant place where they can look forward to spending time every day.
One of the best ways to help your employees feel fulfilled is to let them do their jobs.
As obvious as this statement sounds, sometimes it’s easier said than done. Managers and business owners have such a vested interest in the company’s success that they can have the tendency to over-manage. You hired your people because they had the skills to do their jobs, so let them rise to the occasion and even find ways to improve processes and results. By doing so, you’ll find that this is one of the best ways to increase motivation in the workplace.
Employee Training and Development
The advantages of training and development for an organization can be enormous, especially when it comes to adopting new processes, technologies and business models. Despite that, in today’s rapidly-changing business world, training employees in a one-off manner is not enough. To get the full benefits of employee training and development, organizations need to upskill the workforce continuously. This enables employees to adopt the latest technological developments, which they can use to accelerate development in processes and products.
Keep Pace with Changes in the Industry
Today, organizations need to be nimble enough to keep up with new technologies and ways of doing business. This is why continuous employee training is essential. Further, industries are constantly evolving, along with the rules and regulations they need to adhere to. In order to stay competitive, business leaders need to ensure that their employees are kept up-to-date on the latest developments in their respective industry.
Increase Job Satisfaction and Morale
While training and development provide businesses with many benefits, enabling career growth is one of the best ways to motivate your employees. When people feel that their employer is working to help advance their skills and knowledge, they feel valued. This is a tremendous way to increase morale and ensure that employees are satisfied with their job.
Enhancing transparency in the organization
The primary benefit of transparency in business is that it produces trust and goodwill while safeguarding the firm’s reputation among investors, partners, employees, customers, and other stakeholders. Other benefits of transparency in business include: Increasing employee morale. Once upon a time, it was acceptable to keep things on a need-to-know basis with a company’s employees, however in the modern error, Employees expect a manager to be transparent with them. They want to know what’s going on with their company and how they are doing. They want direct and honest feedback regularly, and a manager who won’t patronize them by sugarcoating the truth or hiding difficult realities from them.
A great manager needs to tell the truth and not to say alive to protect employees since they are capable of facing their own challenges. Employees want the truth, and good managers know how to be transparent, authentic, and direct. Transparency and an ability to be honest and open are skills every manager and human resource executive needs to improve employee engagement.
Possession of Excellent Communication skills
Communication can be defined as the act of transferring information and messages, from one place to another and from one person to another. Managers need to be excellent communicators, which means maintaining regular contact with everyone on their team, providing frequent feedback, and delivering rewards and recognition for excellent performance. Communication doesn’t only happen face-to-face it happens via email, chat applications, body language, and much more. Managers need to communicate with their employees in ways that make them comfortable. It’s about getting to know your employees and understanding what they need to get them to perform well it isn’t all about communicating in a way and on a schedule that suits the manager. In the modern world there are different types of communication which include; Formal Communication, Informal Communication, Downward Communication, Upward Communication, Horizontal Communication, Diagonal Communication, Non Verbal Communication and Verbal Communication, for someone to be a great manager must be conversant with these types of communication though not perfect in all of them.
Confidence
A famous quote by Douglas MacArthur cited in Anderson (2015) states that ‘A true manager has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a manager, but becomes one by the equality of his actions and the integrity of his intent’ (Anderson, 2015).
Trustworthiness
Good managers are trustworthy, and they respect confidentiality. Employees need to have faith in their leaders and know that their managers have their employees’ best interests at heart. If your employees feel like you don’t support them, it’ll lead to a toxic work environment, reduced collaboration, and unhealthy competition in your workplace. Employees also need to be assured that management is telling them the truth. Your trustworthiness is built on respecting the privacy of your employees and offering honest advice based on what aligns best with your company’s goals.
The Drive to Set Goals
The new trend in goal setting is empowering employees to determine their own goals. Doing so gives employees more ownership over their goals, which results in more work being done (and to a better standard). Being goal-driven is one of the most impactful qualities of a good manager. While employees should be placed in the driver’s seat, managers still play an important role in goal setting. Good managers need to be able to understand how to form motivational and realistic goals, then guide the process to align with organizational objectives. These goals also need to be challenging, so leveraging this soft skill is a delicate balance managers must maintain to keep employees engaged and motivated.
Managers must make Decisions (and Accepting Responsibility)
Managers sometimes struggle to make decisions especially important ones. Some suffer from a concept known as “analysis paralysis” (over-thinking a decision) or “bikes shading” (focusing on insignificant details). Other managers obsess over possible negative outcomes, no matter how unlikely, and some might rush into a decision despite lacking the right information. Learn to make decisions and accept the consequences of your actions as a leader. Managers need to make decisions for the benefit of their team and company, taking a structured, logical approach to decision-making while keeping a cool head. Managers also need to be able to make difficult decisions with regards to performance issues. Employees need to believe you’re on their side, but as a manager, you also need to put your foot down. If an employee is exhibiting behavioral or performance issues, managers need to have the confidence to step in and risk being seen as the bad guy.
Managers must have Empathy and Sensitivity
Emotional intelligence, which encompasses sensitivity and empathy, is a soft skill all modern managers need to have. Emotional intelligence is a key quality of a good manager. Emotional Intelligence can make all the difference between an engaged employee and one who is burned out, frustrated, and unmotivated. Managers need to pick up on signs that an employee is pushing themselves too far, which can cause depression and disengagement More often than not, good managers will pick up on signs of these conditions in advance, before the employee approaches them to discuss the situation. Sensitivity is certainly needed when it comes to issues like anxiety. Managers need to be able to put the right provisions in place. This could include putting flexible working measures in place, being understanding about mental health breaks, and being mindful of anxiety during the goal setting process. Taking measures like this shows employees that they are not alone and that the company is able and willing to help them.
References
Röckmann, C., Kraan, M., Goldsborough, D. and van Hoof, L., 2017. Stakeholder participation in marine management: the importance of transparency and rules for participation. In Conservation for the Anthropocene Ocean (pp. 289-306). Academic Press.
Olanrewaju, O.I. and Okorie, V.N., 2019. Exploring the qualities of a good leader using principal component analysis. Journal of Engineering, Project, and Production Management, 9(2), p.142.
Tahsildari, A. and Shahnaei, S., 2015. Enhancing organizational effectiveness by performance appraisal, training, employee participation, and job definition. European Journal of Business and Management, 7(12), pp.56-63.
Murphy, K.R. and Cleveland, J.N., 1995. Understanding performance appraisal: Social, organizational, and goal-based perspectives. Sage.
Negara, K.P., Lamari, F. and Trigunarsyah, B., 2019. Exploring public client project manager competencies in Indonesia. Malaysian Construction Research Journal, 28(2), pp.39-49.
Tahsildari, A. and Shahnaei, S., 2015. Enhancing organizational effectiveness by performance appraisal, training, employee participation, and job definition. European Journal of Business and Management, 7(12), pp.56-63.
