How to Conduct a Performance Appraisal E-Book

Sebastián Navarro R.

• Herausgeber: WS
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 198

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

"How to Conduct a Performance Appraisal: Step-by-Step Method Under the Competency Model", will teach and guide you with concrete steps, the complete process of designing, implementing, and qualifying the performance evaluation of an organization.
If you are from the Human Resources area or simply work with Human Capital, it has probably happened to you like many, that you have studied, looked for books, and even enrolled in courses on some subject, but after finishing them you still have the question of how what you have learned is put into practice. And even worse is the feeling when you are forced to implement it and do not know how to do it, or how to improve what already exists. Perhaps many times you asked yourself anxiously, "How the hell do I do it?" This book will give you concrete guidelines, step by step, action by action, that will guide you in the complete management of a project to improve the performance of people and organizations. Not theoretical terms, but purely practical ones.
For the same reason, it is rather a tutorial or manual to develop this complex process. In this way, this book will allow you to:
- Generate the design and planning of the process.
- Know which formats to use.
- Know the optimal order of implementation of certain actions.
- Understand how and with whom to work.
- Know how to train, who, and in what.
- Understand what times to consider.
- Know what skills or profiles to use.
- Improve or change what already exists.
- Choose which associated consequences to implement.
- Know ways to overcome common difficulties.
- And so on.
You will have access to real implementation steps that implicitly synthesize the teachings of Dave Ulrich on how to generate value from people management (with result indicators or KPIs), change methodologies by Jhonn P. Kotter, the Competency management system promoted by Martha Alles, the Human Resources structures proposed by Idalberto Chiavenato,  among other authors. All systematized ensure a better result since the proposed methodology harmoniously complements their positions and techniques. Again, not explained in conceptual terms, but exemplified with application exercises that you can extrapolate to the reality of your organization.

Leseprobe

How to Conduct a Performance Appraisal

Step-by-Step Method

Under the Competency Model

Sebastián Navarro R.

How to Conduct a Performance Appraisal

Step-by-Step Method

Under the Competency Model

Copyright © 2023 Sebastián Navarro R.

ISBN: 978-956-414-518-1

www.snrconsultores.com/en

Cover Design: Paulina Núñez P.

All rights reserved. The total or partial reproduction of this book or its transmission or exhibition by any means and on any platform is strictly prohibited without the prior written authorization of the author.

In this book, a great effort has been made to detail all the steps that can lead - whatever the level of expertise - to a successful design and implementation of a Performance Appraisal.

However, the success that can be obtained in carrying out the process does not depend exclusively on the information provided here, but on multiple factors in the reader's life and work, which may or may not be mentioned.

Nor does this book replace the advice of professionals from other areas, such as the legal field.

To my children and my wife,

generators of my dreams and my ground wires.

Content

A Gift for Readers

Overcoming the Stress of Not Knowing

To Whom this Book is Addressed

The Objective of the Performance Appraisal

The Step-by-step Performance Appraisal

Step 1: Define the Planning and Implementation Team

Step 2: Review the Organization's Strategy

Step 3: Establish the Measurement Model

Step 4: Design the Measurement Scale

Step 5: Define What is to be Beasured and how Important it Will Be

Step 6: Establish the Assessment of Functional Competencies

Step 7: Establish the Behavioral Competency Assessment

Step 8: Define Measurement and Tracking Forms

Step 9: Establish Policies Related to Performance Appraisal Outcomes

Step 10: Plan the Implementation

Step 11: Generate a Procedure

Step 12: Inform and Motivate the Organization

Step 13: Train Evaluators and Evaluated

Step 14: Design Goals and their Qualification Indicators

Step 15: Organizational Process Progress Status Review

Step 16: Performance Appraisal

Step 17: Meeting with the Employee for Feedback Results

Step 18: Possibility to Appeal and Request Review of Results

Step 19: Application of Consequences

Step 20: Improvement Plan Follow-up

Step 21: Final Report

Step 22: Start the Cycle Anew with New Learning

Other Problems, Resistance, Important Doubts, and Possibilities

About the Author

A Gift for Readers

To complement the reading of this book, or more precisely, to provide a basis for its implementation, I leave at your disposal the e-book for free download: “Behavioral Competency Generic Dictionary”.

As this competency-based management model is based on the skills and characteristics that account for superior performance, the Dictionary is a reliable source for defining these competencies.

Look at this diagram of Human Resources Management by Competency Model:

This "tree" shows that the model can encompass various processes related to Human Resources management; and its base, the Dictionary, provides the definitions and levels of what is understood by each of the competencies.

In this way, it is based on the Competencies defined in the Dictionary that the profiles can be designed, which will be the trunk or backbone that will later establish the different processes.

According to these, you will be able to know the characteristics required to hire someone (Selection being part of one of its branches), you will understand what you need to train, and so on. Thus, all the processes will be well articulated and working cooperatively (the foliage of the tree, in the diagram), if this model is done well from its base.

In other words -and continuing with the tree simile-, if you work with a poorly elaborated dictionary, it is likely that the trunk and all the rest of its processes will start "crooked" from its gestation.

In the following link, you will be able to access the free download of a solid base for the management of your Human Resources processes, according to the Behavioral Competency Model.

https://snrconsultores.com/en

Overcoming the Stress of Not Knowing

In your job, have you ever been confronted with situations where you don't know how to act or how to carry them out? Do you remember the feeling?

Currently, I work as a senior consultant and I teach undergraduate and graduate courses. As an expert, I am very confident in the topics in which I work as a consultant, but this was not always the case.

I remember the anxiety I felt in my first job. And this, even though I was lucky enough to join a company where that had never had an internal organizational psychologist before. Therefore, the company's experience was as new as it was for me. And I say lucky because no one was likely to realize that, in reality, in practice, I didn't know how to do a lot of things. And this was what stressed me out: had I studied them? Yes. Had I gone to courses? Yes. But this was different.

The university had been quite theoretical and the courses, to a large extent, as well. I remember the feeling of insecurity when I left, saying to myself as I faced the job: "I don't know anything". And it wasn't that I didn't know anything. I knew a lot, I had read too much and had studied hundreds of hours. The problem was feeling that I didn't know how to do things concretely.

So, little by little, making mistakes, I was learning "on the fly" about this new job. There were even times when I managed to realize, after doing something, that I had done it wrong, but that is also part of learning. The disadvantage is that I had no one to teach me how to do the job, so I resorted to books to fill those gaps, however, after reading them I said to myself: -well, now how do I do this?

It was not the last time or the last job where I asked myself that question.

As time went by, in different organizations where I worked, and in different tasks and projects I carried out, that question was repeated several times.

I imagine that this may have happened to you too, you may have been faced with a task or a project that you did not know or do not yet know how to face, and you would like to have a new vision to know how to approach it; or, before getting into trouble, you would prefer to have more tools so as not to feel overwhelmed.

This book will help you become more confident and, promptly, gain concrete knowledge on everything related to Performance Appraisal. It will provide you with a complete step-by-step of what you and others will need to do to carry it out.

Therefore, if you master the process, you will be able not only to implement the model, but you will find yourself in a position where you will be able to serve as a consultant, that is, as a person capable of advising an organization to carry out a successful process.

External or internal consultant, why not? You could become an internal consultant, a person in charge of implementing the process or supervising others to develop it optimally, as part of an organization. Or you could offer your services to other companies.

How do you feel about your job today? Are you an operative who does what he or she is told; a person who struggles to try to do things right, but with doubts; or an expert who contributes confidently to the organization?

Study this book, follow its steps, and implement them and you will be closer and closer to being an agent that delivers value from your knowledge and experience.

To Whom this Book is Addressed

Like many people, I imagine that you have ever searched the internet: "How to do..." or "How to do...". This is because you think -or feel- that you do not have the necessary knowledge to perform such a task.

If you have found yourself in this situation or, at least, you have thought about it concerning some topic or the whole of Performance Appraisal, this is the book you were looking for.

The following e-book is written to be a practical rather than an academic tool; as a guide (tutorial-style), to successfully conduct a Performance Appraisal.

Since this is a manual rather than an academic book, I will try, as far as possible, not to refer to theories or to be satisfied with conceptual explanations only.

Unlike most of the bibliographic material on performance appraisal -including courses associated with the subject-, this book includes the explanation of concrete steps and detailed actions to carry out its design, planning, execution, control, and evaluation. Therefore, this book is aimed at people who want to know how to do an appraisal concretely, rather than discussing or problematizing the subject.

Professionals and technicians who have to start implementing this type of process, or who must improve the existing one in their organization, will benefit the most.

As an employee, this book will allow you to generate your Performance Appraisal or, failing that, to supervise its correct management. Then, if you master the method, you will be able to work as an internal or external consultant and/or control those who are implementing it.

Students can also benefit by gaining a concrete view of what is often a rather theoretical and underdeveloped subject in the classroom.

In summary, this e-book will help you to:

Design and implement with high quality, a Performance Appraisal process considering the Competency Model or, even, abstracting from this model, since it is not restrictive to it.

Oversee the design and/or implementation of a Performance Appraisal process if you have outsourced it.

Provide you with the necessary knowledge to decide whether to perform the process internally or outsource it. The latter can be in its entirety, restricted to some phases, or even consider associated tools.

Have basic Performance Appraisal forms, suggested here or on the website

https://snrconsultores.com/resources/

.

Among these:

Minutes

Appraisal Forms.

Follow-Up Formats.

Lessons Learned

Etc.

The web contains other released access formats that are not necessarily linked to this book.

To provide indications for the elaboration of a manual or your Performance Appraisal procedure.

Generate the initial technical capabilities for you to be an internal or external consultant.

The Objective of the Performance Appraisal

"What is not defined cannot be measured.

What you don't measure, you can't improve."

Lord Kelvin.

Today, there are still many organizations that believe, think, and even feel that things are either good or bad. They make interventions on what they think is wrong and, after having done so, they have the feeling that it has improved, worsened, or that it is simply hopeless.

Performance Appraisal is a possible answer to the previous problem. It is a tool that allows quantifying and establishing parameters for the management and work of people. In this way, it allows the establishment of improvement plans and strategies to know quantitatively if there were advances, improvements, or progress. Thus, we stop thinking or feeling that things have improved or worsened, to know and demonstrate how and how much.

From the perspective of this book, quantifying as much as possible is fundamental: it reduces individual differences in perception, leads to a fairer evaluation, and provides shared parameters of performance.

Performance Appraisal is part of a larger system, which we can call "Performance Management": the set of strategies and actions with which the high performance of the individual and, in escalation, of the entire organization is promoted, monitored, and improved.

Ensuring the "Organization Performance" system is the ultimate goal of Performance Appraisal. Having clarity on this is fundamental to starting its design and defining its different aspects.

The Step-by-step Performance Appraisal

In the following chapters, I present the general step-by-step outline of the Performance Appraisal. However, the implementation of the process does not necessarily imply the application of all the steps or actions detailed below.

Which steps and actions to follow will depend on the organization's objectives, the level of "progress" in the application of the process, the number of people available to implement it, the time available, etc.

The content of this book is structured according to project and change management. Looking at its presentation, it might seem that some steps are missing, such as the Feasibility analysis phase (then implicitly appearing Planning, Execution, Monitoring/Control, Evaluation/Closing). Also, it is not elaborated on how to make evident and urgent the need for the project. This is because in this e-book I start at the point where the need and feasibility of the Appraisal have already been decided, and action begins.

I established a fairly extensive number of steps and actions, even though most people are more comfortable understanding processes in a few phases. I have designed it this way since my intention was to detail as much as possible each of the possible concrete actions that you can perform in this process. Performance Appraisal requires more precision and length, rather than conceptual simplification, and this book thoroughly addresses almost every activity, relieving you as the reader from having to guess or figure out what to do concerning the process.

During the review of the steps, you will appreciate the inclusion of several examples, tables, and calculations; for their use, you must adapt them to the reality of your organization, even in the instances in which I mention different positions.

Beforehand, I clarify that certain sub-processes are not covered in detail due to their level of complexity concerning the space available in the book format. Much more would be needed to explain how to elaborate and analyze databases, together with other applications specific to other disciplines, such as the legal aspect and communications.

In these aspects, I recommend that you get advice from experts in these matters to have better results. Although through books and other means, I will make available to you some relevant knowledge about these and other topics.

Step 1: Define the Planning and Implementation Team

One of the first considerations you should take into account when carrying out an important project is the need to define a team that will lead this process. Or at least, to clarify the responsibilities of the different people involved.

There is a step that could be even before, or just after the team definition, which relates to the organization's job profiles.

I suggest you check if these profiles are well elaborated according to the Competency Model; at least the qualitative assessment, as you will see, is based on this model.

If the profiles are well developed, as summarized in Steps 6 and 7, you can continue with peace of mind. If not, or if doubts arise, evaluate whether you need to develop them well beforehand, or if you decide to work with the ones the organization already has, to adapt them later.

At the web address on the cover of the book, check the status of other guides such as this e-book on How to Design and Build Job Profiles, so you can be sure if your profiles have what you need to move forward in the process.

Action 1.- Plan and generate an initial meeting with the main promoter or mobilizer of the process.

Chances are that someone has asked you to develop the Performance Appraisal; if so, the first thing you should do is meet with that person. This may be a manager or even the CEO, or another figure who assumes the leadership of the organization.

Request a meeting with one or both of them (ideally the top management should be present). In this meeting, they will make clear - explicitly - the following:

Performance Appraisal Objectives.

It may seem obvious, but it is not always the case; for example, it may be the case that you want to implement the assessment for terminations.

According to your position within the organization, evaluate whether it is prudent to change the focus of the process concerning the objectives of the process.

The objectives for the implementation of the Assessment are very relevant since they allow us to know where to place the emphasis, and even whether to accelerate or prioritize some processes over others.

Some reasons for this may be: to boost performance, to fire people, to train in a more "objective" way (with a well-implemented process for choosing courses and not only the perception of the management), to retake a forgotten process that has generated a bad environment in the organization, etc. There can be several at the same time and -as I mentioned before- knowing them will allow you to prioritize.

These objectives can be reformulated after Step 2 when reviewing the organization's strategy.

From this point on, you should prospect what you will consider a successful implementation. Some examples might be:

Increased productivity.

Increase in profits.

Improved customer or user perception.

Improvement of the work environment.

Cultural change.

Employee participation.

Market share.

Depending on what you have defined, you will have to establish measurement criteria, since, thanks to these, you will be able to define the impact that the process had at the end.

If you define, for example, productivity, you have to establish some parameters and instrument(s) to measure it at the beginning of the process and then at the end of the process.

If you can demonstrate that productivity increased, you will be able to demonstrate the impact that the Performance Appraisal had, and even more so, if in this case the improvement is linked to other indicators that could be associated: profitability, project awarding, etc.

Keep in mind that what you define at this point must be associated with the strategic objectives of the organization; for this reason, your review is very relevant at this point.

Discussion of possible responsible parties for:

Promote and encourage people.

Design the process.

Support implementation.

Select potential suppliers.

Approve its phases.

Training.

Define estimated times (feasible to modify).

Establish different types of coordination.

Supervise the process.

The following is a list of positions that can be included to define the above:

Depending on the number of positions, people, and complexity of your organization, one person - probably yourself - can take on several or almost all of these roles and responsibilities.

The last four groups may not be included, but the reason for involving them has to do with the quality of what they can contribute, and with the fact that they have a point of view that will most likely be complementary to yours. They can help you visualize the best way to carry out the process -without losing sight of the fact that the "expert" is the area or the person who is carrying it out. In addition, they are also constructively and actively motivated to be part of it.

My experience has shown me that people tend to participate more willingly in what they feel they own and helped to build, as opposed to how they get involved with something they feel has been imposed on them, or does not belong to them.

Request support as a "Sponsor"

.

A fundamental part of the success of the process is that the CEO, Director, or the equivalent of the organization, actively and evidently supports the Performance Appraisal process.

As people see your support, they will take the process more seriously, feel more committed to completing its phases, and can see that there is interest and commitment from top management in employee development.

Therefore, it is necessary to ask this person to make certain interventions -especially in the communication and chiefs meetings- showing the need and the importance of the positive contribution of everyone throughout the process. If, in addition to communicating, he/she notoriously set an example, the more powerful his/her call will be.

Another aspect where this high position can play a more active role, and in which his participation should also be made known to him very concretely, is in the discussion of the possible delivery of cash bonuses as part of the policies associated with the results of the Appraisal.

It is possible that, at this point, you can request from this moment onwards a study of the feasibility and limits to deliver this type of "reward" to the finance area. You can see the details of this aspect in Step 9.

Budget and resources

.

As far as possible, the resources available to carry out the entire process should be made clear at this point (without considering the cash bonuses). Consider:

Money to finance the whole process.

Work team.

Tentative planning and design times for subsequent implementation.

Equipment and materials.

An important element that encompasses all these levels is the decision to hire an external person or company to carry out the process.

This e-book will provide you with enough knowledge to be able to perform the entire assessment on your own, however, it may not be enough to do it due to time and/or the capacity of you and your team to be able to do it.

If you have knowledgeable staff and enough time, you will be able to develop it internally. If not, you should evaluate the possibility of outsourcing.

Access to a software is also another important decision you can make at the beginning.

These systems have the advantage of helping considerably in time, workload, and accuracy (they have analysis, calculations, databases, communications, control, reports, etc.). However, they often have a high cost, so it is very important to consider whether to purchase them or not. In addition, to make the decision, it will be important to know the real dimensions and the level of work involved in this process.

In Step 8 we return to the choice of whether or not to contract a software, after the analysis of this and other manual assessment systems, together with the fact of having at that point more information on the real dimensions of the process as a whole.

Keep in mind that not all programs may fit your style, model, or scheduling of Performance Appraisal. This is important to consider so that you do not hire a system that is incompatible with what you have planned and designed.

Establish and conduct meetings with the potential new Planning and Implementation Team.

Preliminary Communication Step: after the initial meeting, inform the selected individuals about the process and their roles in it, ideally in person. If you cannot, by e-mail.

Remember: always send your communications by e-mail so that there is a backup. Here consider the following:

Sender:

ideally from the "Sponsor" -the CEO, or similar-, to generate greater commitment.

Participants:

all those selected at the Initial Meeting.

Content:

mention that this is a meeting about the beginning of a new Performance Appraisal process. It is important here to communicate with emphasis the relevance of their participation - as representatives of different areas - and their contributions to making this process as beneficial and fair as possible for the staff and the organization.

Agenda:

a meeting day and time should be established or tentative dates should be proposed. The more the person in charge of the organization's CEO (

Sponsor

) sends the mail, the easier it will be to coordinate the meeting.

Consider the following format for the content of the meetings: