For all their faults performance appraisals still are helpful to organizations in knowing and understanding employee performance and taking steps to improve that performance and make the organization successful. Advancements in technology and the pace in HRM understanding have made us realize just how ineffective traditional processes are. If a well-thought out and well-implemented appraisal program can be highly beneficial to your organization, a badly-managed appraisal process ends up wasting everyone’s time and demotivating them. Here are some tips on improving the effectiveness of your appraisals.
Be flexible with the frequency and time period
The first step is to think of performance management as an ongoing activity instead of one that comes once a year. To do so, the frequency of appraisals needs to be increased. Instead of conducting annual appraisals, try making them quarterly or even bi-monthly. Some organizations even do their appraisals after the end of each project so that they will have more data points to analyze and a well-rounded program to implement.
Setting the right expectations and objectives
With it being a one-off activity, many employees complete their appraisals without clear expectations as to the process and the outcomes. This results in inconsistent employee engagement and appraisals that are done just for the sake of it rather than for the required outcomes.
Therefore ensure that you clearly communicate to employees at all levels what is expected of them and what they need to do to make the entire approval process a success.
Use technology
As mentioned earlier, advancements in HR technology have revolutionized the way we manage our human resources. Same is the case with performance management. Performance management software can be used as a standalone application or a module in the HR software platform to collect and analyze data effectively. It allows for extensive report generation and easy sharing with peers and senior management. The software helps save time for HR professionals and employees by digitizing and automating the tasks.
We wish you a productive, engaging, and effective appraisal program.
