What does it all mean?
Annual performance appraisals…most of us have had them at one job or another. Often viewed as a chance for a much-deserved raise, I wonder how we really feel about them. Do they typically improve an employee’s relationship with the employer, or are they more often damaging? What are your thoughts/experiences?
29 Responses to “What does it all mean?”
Leave a Reply
Love this tool…
Goodreads
No data found
I believe performance appraisals, when presented correctly can be an effective tool for both the employee and employer. Unfortunately, the greater objective of many performance appraisals is often missed. Employees tend to see them at make or break points of conversation as opposed to approaching it from the perspective of improvement and growth. Additionally, I feel that employers have exploited the stigma behind performance appraisals and taken advantage of the fact that they are in positions of power rather than approaching it as a the time to grow along with their employees. For these reasons I believe that performance appraisals are often more damaging for the realtionships between employer and employee. I feel that they need to be approached as growth opportunities as opposed to “evaluations.” I feel that employees are more apt to be more enthusiastic about the process if they feel that are proactively playing a role in the growth of the company.
I think if a manager is taking advantage of the power given to them, then they shouldn’t be managers and shouldn’t be in the position of evaluating employees. Part of being a manager is being fair and reasonable and putting your personal feelings aside. If the manager can’t do that then they are in the wrong position!
Lets face it, there is always going to be good, bad, and ugly situations and managers. If you love your job, you’ll put up with it and hope that the manager goes away. However, if a manager is abusive of the position, pray to God and ask for another job. You know what happens when bad people takes advantage of his faithful children.
Its all about having a two-sided conversation with the employee. The feedback from the employee should be welcomed and should be an integral part of the conversation to develop a growth plan. If the employer doesn’t receive feedback well from the employee- the relationship building is mute. Nobody likes being told how they need to develop themselves and then are resistent to change themselves. Everyone needs to put away the personal and focus on achieving goals as an organization. Put the title away. Managers have to know how to do this, because the success of a company has a trickle-down effect and if its led by caring boss who works on developing themselves as well- that company will be sustainable and will grow.
Evaluations are useless. As leaders we are to work with our employees to identify areas of growth and create strategic plans for that growth. This shows that the employee is cared about, rather than just an employer telling the subordinate whats wrong with them and leaving it at that. No relationship, whether business or personal, works well in that way. It has to be viewed as a growth process to develop a person and to show that they are cared about than just determining whats their stregnth and weakness… anyone can do that by just asking another person what is felt about them.
Feedback for improvement is exactly how a relationship can grow and thrive. I would not necessarily say that evaluations are useless. I believe that they are a great milestone to have for employees and employers. It keeps things documented and also helps to see how an employee has been able to grow after certain areas have been highlighted for them. Like I had stated earlier though I believe that they should be more consistent in time and not be just an annual experience. I would also add that it would definitely have a lot to do with the conditions of the actual evaluation. Mind state and intentions of the Appraiser & Appraised.
Ideally, the evaluating process should be an ongoing thing. Everytime a new assignment or project arises, or the company shifts focus, employess and managers alike should be evaluated to make sure they are working in the vision and direction of the company. This doesn’t have to be a negative expeirence, but can be approached from a team effort with achieving the best outcome in mind.
I think that appraisals are very important but are not always treated that way. A lot of the time it feels like your manager or supervisor is just going through the motions and from my own experience, can be too apprehensive from coming across overly negative or even positive. Ideally they should be used as opportunities to help an employee identify areas that need improvement and reinforce areas that they are doing well in.
Performance evaluations do carry that stigma. Employees or employers that do not take them seriously put themselves and the company at risk. I think that they should be seen as beneficial for both parties. An employer can evaluate themselves on how the culture of the company is dependent upon how satisfied their employees are working for them. The employee can evaluate how they can make themselves a greater asset to the company.
I think as a manager you need to balance the positives with the negatives. You can’t be so one sided either way. There is always room for improvement. A manager needs to be tactful in their delivery.
Personally, I like performance appraisals, but preparing for it is a lot of work. It is very easy to give an appraisal to someone who is productive because you can point out areas to improve and it is well taken.To someone who is not as productive, but tries hard, they are also receptive and ask a lot of questions for improvement. To someone who is just going through the motions of work and unmotivated might be a little defensive. In that situation, the appraiser might give more thought and be more tactful. To someone who just does not like it, the Bible says, walk circumspectly and do it anyway. At least you got your point across and blame it on the company because it is required. I have always admired someone who would give me direction in my job or life. If it takes an appraisal at work I don’t mind it. I may say ouch, but I’ll get over it. Just as long as it is fair. However, if it is not then I’ll deal with it creatively.
I think that it is all about timely recognition. This included both good and bad and it is almost a break build type of relationship. It is more efficient to acknowledge performance immediately after either the good or bad job was done. I think that when approaching correction, it is important to really think about how it is going to be addressed in order for it to be constructive and building. Yes, Vito the Bible does give lots of warning too to managers in that a good employee will take the criticism and run with it. Now, as for an employee who is not open to knowledge- this is where the sticky situations can come into play with these appraisals. ..Correct the wise, and they will love you. (Proverbs 9:8)
(whoops! that first portion was to a reply to Elizabeths post that I had on my word doc. This reply should begin with—>[ Yes, Vito...])
Like many things in business this subject can be a double edged sword and it all falls back on the people involved in the evaluation. It can be a great motivator but if done incorrectly can be detrimental. My thoughts of performance appraisals lie significantly on the importance of communicating expectations clearly prior to the performance appraisal. This will set up the actual appraisal more realistic, measurable and objective. Annually may be too long to get feedback from your work and would think that an ongoing recognition or constructive feedback is something that should be of more frequency.
-Communication is key.
If a manger is only giving feedback once a year, then you are right, it is too long. Employees deserve to hear back routinely on their work and get constructive critisim so they can correct it before it has gone to far. I think we need to leave the evaluations for the time to reflect on last years goals and write new goals for the upcoming year.
Feedback should always be given as warranted. It should never be just once a year. Give credit when credit is due and encourage development always. The manager that just watch and does not communicate can be misunderstood even when the motives are well intended. Appreciation for a job well done is always welcomed, and so is a job that did not fair well, as long as the effort to do well was apparent (minor setbacks). Besides, we receive appraisals whether we like it or not. We might as well go with the flow and work.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>to the best of our ability. If we get in a bind, ask for help!
I feel that giving the appraisals when necessary is especially important instead of sticking to a set routine or period. Sometimes issues can be remedied quicker by taking immediate action rather than letting them compound just because it’s not an employees specific evaluation time. As an employee I know I would appreciate this.
I never looked at it from that point of view. I guess some employees look at it as “time for another evaluation”. Some may not agree with a mandated schedule for them.
I agree that anually is a long time. Over the course of the past year, our company has added an appraisal system that we can update continually so that when the performance appraisal time comes around both the employer and manager can reflect over the past year. I really find this beneficial in the process, because it is really hard to remember all of the effort you have made over such a long period of time.
I think that overall performance evaluations can be a good thing if done correctly. I think my company does them poorly. We do all employees between Feb and March. For departments with hundreds of people that can be a very daunting task. When you have that many to squeeze into a short time period I think the Supervisors often rush and don’t spend the quality time needed to make the feedback valuable. I also think that the structure of evaluations is important. The structured sentences that you are grading the employee by need to be relevant to the person’s position. I am of the belief no evaluation should be a surprise to the employee. A supervisor should be giving constant feedback throughout the year and the evaluation should just reiterate what has happened throughout the year and be a time to set new goals for the coming year.
I think there should be performance appraisals more often then annually. I think it is a good thing and can be informative by knowing where you might need improvement. It just depends on how the information is given on whether it is positive or negative. My job does not do anything like this and I think it could really be a good thing for our company. We really lack communication in our management area and I think that’s where a lot of our problem lies. Our turnover rate is ridiculous and that has a lot to do with poor performance. If we had these performance appraisals things could improve.
That’s a good point Desiree. I think employers tend to look at performance appraisals as employee failure as opposed to thinking of how they as employers may have failed their employees. I think when employers refuse to evaluate themselves first, employees certainly lack a sense of loyalty to the company.
Usually when my employeer gives out performance appraisals it is when we have just had an employee evaluation. And it is usally once a year I believe that it is a good motivator to keep employees positive and productive within the work place. I bleieve that a comany should do evaluation adn performance apprasisals more oftern. Mabye in smaller ammounts but more ouften, i think that more emlpyees would be more productive if they were reconized and prasied more about the way they are wroking.
I think that it is all about recognition- in a timely manner. This included both good and bad and it is almost a break build type of relationship. It is more efficient to acknowledge performance immediately after either the good or bad job was done. I think that when approaching correction it is important to really think about how it is going to be addressed in order for it to be constructive and building.
I totally agree, with you Erica! I personally feel a sense of self gratification when my hard work is recognized and praised within the organization. I have also noticed the relationship between foremans and employees when it comes to the employees wanting to work “harder” for their foreman when the employees are recognized for their hard work.
I feel the relationship between an employer and employee can be improved if the performance appraisal is not completelely one-sided and if the employee can avoid being defensive and actually work with the employer to determine their areas of weakness that need to be improved, but also if the employer can work throughout the appraisal to identify areas where they can help and guide the employee or provide a working condition that will foster the necessary growth. Its better if its a two-way street. From my experience, I have felt that appraisals have been really good for me to identify areas i need to work on in my position. From my last appraisal I have a list of goals to work on taped above my office cabinet for me to view and work towards. So it has been effective for me, but I would say i have experienced in an appraisal situations in which I felt i could have been better at certain tasks if i had more guidance and help from my employer, but my employers have been defensive and not listened well to the frustration coming from my perspective. Again- better if its a two-way street, because I feel i have a variety of goals to work through, but my relationship with my employer is no better, because there’s things i do want to tell them that hinder our working relationship, but i have felt nothing but defensiveness when i discuss working hours, too much responsibility, etc.
There have been some really good points made here. The benefits of a performance review are all up to the employee and the manager. It is so easy for an annual review to go badly, but a beneficial one takes a few key ingredients. Both the employee and the manager must go into it with an open mind, as a closed, one sided review isn’t beneficial for either of the parties if metaphorical walls are put up that prevent growth. An employee should want to better their own performance at work, but the motivation for self-improvement is often fueled by the culture that management establishes. Also, as mentioned earlier, it takes both a receptive manager and employee to ensure that the criticism is constructive and well received, on both sides of the table.
I believe they’re beneficial. They should improve upon the work an employee does. I can see an employee being offended by a bad evaluation. However, this shouldn’t reflect poorly upon the manager. This is a personality problem with the employee, by taking things too personal. An evaluation is meant to be constructive criticism. Some may not interpret this, but they should understand this going into the evaluation. An employee may not agree, but they should take it in stride. They should reflect upon themselves and the work they do.
I truely believe performance appraisals do benefit an employee and an employer when theren is a well established culture. For example, if the employees have a clear understanding of its duties, and are appreciated, than i believe in general that most employees will try to be more productive and take the constructive criticism as beneficial. Although if an organization has a bad culture and employes “unfit” candidates, then i believe performance appraisals may be disastruous. Employees may feel defensive, and may be closed minded. In addition, to giving performance appraisal i believe that an organization must also have the “Right Management” in giving performancde appraisal. What good does it do to an organization if the employee doesnt mind the performance appraisal?