PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL

BY MADHURI BIND
 DEFINITION
Performance appraisal
• According to Flippo, a prominent
personality in the field of Human
resources, "performance appraisal is
the systematic, periodic and an
impartial rating of an employee’s
excellence in the matters pertaining
to his present job and his potential
for a better job."
 NEED OF
PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS

 Provide a review of past work performance.

 Establish lines of communication.
 Create an opportunity to discuss professional
development goals and objectives.
– Document employee performance.
– Document corrective action necessary to improve work
performance.
– It is the supervisor’s and manager’s responsibility to
monitor, evaluate and coach employees.
AIMS OF PERFORMANCE
APPRAISAL
• Give employee feedback.
• Identify employee training need

• Document criteria.
• Form a basis for personnel: salary increases,
promotions, disciplinary actions, bonuses, etc.

• Provide the opportunity for organizational diagnosis and

development
• Facilitate communication
• Validate selection techniques and human resource
policies.
 PURPOSES OF
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
• To review the performance of the
employees.
• To judge the gap between the
actual and the desired
performance.
• To help the management in
exercising organizational control.
• To diagnose the training and
development needs of the future.
• Provide information to assist in the HR
decisions like promotions, transfers etc.
• Provide clarity of the expectations and
responsibilities of the functions to be
performed by the employees.
• To judge the effectiveness of the other
human resource functions.
• To reduce the grievances of the employees.
• Helps to strengthen the relationship and
communication between superior –
subordinates and management – employees.
 OBJECTIVES OF
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
 WORK RELATED OBJECTIVES

–To provide a control for

work done
–To improve efficiency
–To help in assigning
work and plan future
work assignment; and
–To carry out job
evaluation
CAREER DEVELOPMENT
OBJECTIVES

– To identify strong and weak points and

encourage finding remedies for weak
points through training;
– To determine career potential;
– To plan developmental( promotional or
lateral) assignments; and
– To plan career goals
 OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION

• To provide adequate feedback on

performance;
• To clearly establish goals, i.e what is
expected of the staff members in terms
of performance and future work
assignments;
• To provide counseling and job
satisfaction through open discussion on
performance and
• To let employees assess where they
stand within the organization in terms of
their performance.
 ADMINISTRATIVE OBJECTIVES

• To serve as a basis for

promotion or demotion;
• To serve as a basis for
allocating incentives;
• To serve as a basis for
determining transfers ; and
• To serve as a basis for
termination in case of reduction
of staff.
 USE OF PERFORMANCE
APPRAISAL SYSTEM

Personnel
Decisions(
Identification
Raises, Merit e.g. Research
of training
Pay, Bonuses promotion, purposes
needs
transfer,
dismissal)
 ELEMENTS OF
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
Setting performance
goals and objectives

Amendment to
Determining key
goals and competencies
objectives

Measurement of
Feedback performance
of results. against the goals
and objectives
Measurement of
performance
against key
competencies,
 CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
• The philosophy, purpose, and
objectives of the organization are
clearly stated so that performance
appraisal tools can be designed to
reflect these.
• The purposes of performance
appraisal are identified,
communicated, and understood.
• Job descriptions are written in such
a manner that standards of job
performance can be identified for
each job.
• The appraisal tool used is suited to
the purposes for which it will be
utilized and is accompanied by clear
instructions for its use.
• Evaluators are trained in the use of
the tool.
• The performance appraisal
procedure is delineated,
communicated and understood.
• Plans for policing the appraisal
procedure and evaluating appraisal
tools are developed and
implemented.
• Performance appraisal has the full
support of top management.
• Performance appraisal is considered to
be fair and productive by all who
participate in it.
 OBSTACLES TO EFFECTIVE
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
• Lack of support from top
management.
 RESISTANCE ON THE PART
OF EVALUATOR BECAUSE:
• Performance appraisal demands
too much of supervisors efforts
in terms of time, paperwork, and
periodic observation of
subordinates’ performance.
• Supervisors do not fully
understand the purposes and
procedures of performance
appraisal.
• Supervisors lack skills in appraisal
techniques.
• Performance appraisal is not
perceived as being productive.
• Evaluator biases and rating errors.
• Lack of clear, objective standards of
performance.
• Failure to communicate purposes and
• Lack of suitable appraisal tool.
• Failure to police the appraisal
procedure effectively.
WHEN ARE PERFORMANCE
EVALUATIONS SUPPOSED TO
HAPPEN
HOW?
Step by step Guide to Performance Appraisals
Develop performance standards

Setting goals and objectives

Data collection

Performance appraisal interview

Future goals and objectives

Follow up
Rewarding performance
 A.DEVELOP THE STANDARDS
FOR EVALUATION
Performance standards are:
• Based on the position, not the individual
• Observable, specific indicators of success
• Meaningful, reasonable and attainable
• Describe “fully satisfactory” performance
once trained
• Expressed in terms of quantity, quality,
timeliness, cost, safety or outcomes
 B. SETTING OBJECTIVES

• Specific
• Performance oriented
• Realistic
• Observable
 C. DATA COLLECTION

• Sources of performance
information
– Personal observation
– Reports, documentation,
correspondence. Etc.
– Feedback (internal and external)
– Periodic discussions with employee
 D. PERFORMANCE
APPRAISAL INTERVIEW
• Review standards, documentation
and job description as well as the
appraisal form and various ratings.
• Write the appraisal ( Complete the
Performance Appraisal Form).
• Know the person’s record
thoroughly.
• Prepare the employee in advance.
 Guidelines for conducting the
interview
• Establish a friendly, helpful, purposeful tone
at the outset of the discussion. Be at ease.
• Ask for the subordinate’s opinion of his or
her performance since the last appraisal.
• Recognize the staff nurse’s accomplishments
and contributions to the hospital.
• Be ready to suggest specific developmental
activities suitable to each employee’s needs.
• Make sure that the session is truly a
discussion.
• List disagreements: if possible, disagreements
should be resolved before the end of the
interview.
• Make certain that your employees fully
understand your appraisal of their
performance.
• Discuss the future as well as the past. Plan
with the employee specific changes in
performance or specific developmental
activities that will allow fuller use of
potential.
• End the discussion on a positive, future –
improvement- oriented note.
• Document the conclusions.
 E. FUTURE GOALS AND
OBJECTIVES
• At the end of the interview, the employer should
allow some time to create a development plan.
• The employer should record specific goals,
targets or benchmarks that the employee will
attempt to achieve.
• Both employer and employee should agree on
the steps to be taken to achieve these targets,
• Both should agree on how the employee’s
progress towards these objectives will be
measured and set a defined timeframe, even if
this is simply the next performance appraisal.
 F. FOLLOW UP
• Follow up means more than simply
conducting regular formal performance
reviews once a year.
• If employers review employees and
provide feedback as part of everyday
management, both employers and the
employee will learn much more about
their strengths, weaknesses and how
employers would prefer the job to be
done.
 G. THE PERFORMANCE
EVALUATION REPORT
• Class specification and / or informal job
description.
• Job standards, procedures and regulations.
• Established goals, objectives and
expectations.
• Knowledge and abilities to perform the
job.
• Job relationships required for successful
performance, i.e supervisors, co-workers,
county employees and the public.
• Quality of work, including the nature
and consequences of errors made
during the evaluation period.
• Production rate, if applicable.
• Commendations awarded relative to
employee performance.
• Use of job skills and efforts to enhance
skills.
• Ability to work with others.
• Attendance, use of sick leave,
punctuality.
 Questions to consider when preparing
to write the performance report:

• Did the employee meet or exceed quantity and

quality standards?
• Does the employee have the skills to perform the
job?
• Has the employee increased skill level and
established value to the organization?
• If corrective action was instituted due to errors and
/or complaints that damaged the efficiency of
organizational operations, was it effective?
• Has the employee demonstrated job related
efficiency through special efforts and
capabilities?
• Does the employee follow organizational
rules and standards of the department?
• Does the employee utilize supervisory
guidance?
 Guidelines for the writing of the
Employee Performance Report

• Establishing objectivity in written performance

evaluations by avoiding vague subjective
terminology.
• Use specific job related terms and clearly define
intent of comments.
• Avoid the use of personal “traits” such as integrity,
loyalty, honesty, initiative, etc. Measure employee
performance against the job specifications.
 H. REWARDING PERFORMANCE

• Rewarding performance means

providing incentives to, and
recognition of, employees for
their performance and
acknowledging their
contributions to the agency’s
mission.
• Outstanding ( Level 5): Eligible for an
individual cash award up to 5% of base pay; a
Quality Sleep Increase; Time Off Award ; or
other appropriate equivalent recognition.
Additionally, may be eligible for a salary
increase of up to 5% from the Human Resource
Fund or as per organization’s policy.

• Exceeds Expectations (Level 4): Eligible for

an individual cash award up to 3 % of base pay;
Time –Off Award, non-momentary award or
other appropriate equivalent recognition.
• Competent (Level 3): Eligible for
awards such as monetary, non-
momentary, Time –off, or other
appropriate equivalent recognition,
given for reasons: other than sustained
performance tied to the rating of
record.
• Minimally Successful (Level 2):
Ineligible for any performance
recognition.
• Unsatisfactory (Level 1): Ineligible
for any performance recognition.
METHODS OF APPRAISING
PERFORMANCE
Traditional methods of
performance appraisal
 1. Essay appraisal method
 This traditional form of appraisal, also known
as "Free Form method" involves a description
of the performance of an employee by his
superior.
 The description is an evaluation of the
performance of any individual based on the
facts and often includes examples and
evidences to support the information.
 A major drawback of the method is the
inseparability of the bias of the evaluator.
 2. Straight ranking method
1. This is one of the oldest and simplest techniques
of performance appraisal.
2. In this method, the appraiser ranks the employees
from the best to the poorest on the basis of their
overall performance.
3. It is quite useful for a comparative evaluation.
Professional Performance Standard 3:
Education: The oncology nurse acquires and
maintains current knowledge in oncology
nursing practice.
Criteria: Rating
1 2 3
1. Participates in ongoing
educational activities (including
inservices, continuing education,
formal education, and
experientatil learning) to expand
oncology knowledge of
professional issues
2. Seeks experiences to develop
& maintain clinical skills
 3. Paired comparison
• A better technique of comparison than the
straight ranking method, this method
compares each employee with all others in
the group, one at a time.
• After all the comparisons on the basis of the
overall comparisons, the employees are
given the final rankings.
 6. Checklist method
• The rater is given a checklist of the
descriptions of the behaviour of the
employees on job.
• The checklist contains a list of
statements on the basis of which the
rater describes the on the job
performance of the employees.
 4. Critical incidents methods
• In this method of Performance
appraisal the evaluator rates the
employee on the basis of critical
events and how the employee behaved
during those incidents.
• It includes both negative and positive
points.
• The drawback of this method is that
the supervisor has to note down the
critical incidents and the employee
behavior as and when they occur.
 5. Field review
• In this method, a senior member of
the Human Resource department or a
training officer discusses and
interviews the supervisors to evaluate
and rate their respective subordinates.
• A major drawback of this method is
that it is a very time consuming
method.
• But this method helps to reduce the
superiors’ personal bias.
 7. Graphic rating scale
• In this method, an employee’s quality and quantity
of work is assessed in a graphic scale indicating
different degrees of a particular trait.
• The factors taken into consideration include both the
personal characteristics and characteristics related to
the on the job performance of the employees.
• For example a trait like Job Knowledge may be
judged on the range of average, above average,
outstanding or unsatisfactory.
 8. Forced Distribution
• To eliminate the element of bias from the
rater’s ratings, the evaluator is asked to
distribute the employees in some fixed
categories of ratings like on a normal
distribution curve.
• The rater chooses the appropriate fit for the
categories on his own discretion
 Modern methods of
performance appraisal
 1. Assessment centres
• An assessment centre typically involves the
use of methods like social/informal events,
tests and exercises, assignments being given
to a group of employees to assess their
competencies to take higher responsibilities
in the future.
• Generally, employees are given an
assignment similar to the job they would be
expected to perform if promoted.
• The trained evaluators observe and evaluate
employees as they perform the assigned jobs
and are evaluated on job related
 2. Behaviorally anchored
rating scales
• Is a relatively new technique which combines the
graphic rating scale and critical incidents method.
• It consists of predetermined critical areas of job
performance or sets of behavioral statements
describing important job performance qualities as
good or bad.
• In this method, an employee’s actual job behavior is
judged against the desired behavior by recording and
comparing the behavior with BARS.
 3. Human resource accounting method

• Human resources are valuable assets

for every organization. Human
resource accounting method tries to
find the relative worth of these assets
in the terms of money.
• In this method the Performance
appraisal of the employees is judged
in terms of cost and contribution of
the employees.
• The cost of employees include all the
expenses incurred on them like their
compensation, recruitment and selection
costs, induction and training costs etc
whereas their contribution includes the
total value added (in monetary terms).
• The difference between the cost and the
contribution will be the performance of the
employees.
• Ideally, the contribution of the employees
should be greater than the cost incurred on
them.
4. 360-Degree-performance-
appraisal method
• 360 degree feedback, also
known as 'multi-rater
feedback', is the most
comprehensive appraisal
where the feedback about
the employees’
performance comes from
all the sources that come
in contact with the
employee on his job
 360 degree appraisal has four
integral components:

1. Self appraisal
2. Superior’s appraisal
3. Subordinate’s appraisal
4. Peer appraisal.
„Management by Objectives‟
(MBO)
• Clarity of goals – With MBO, came
the concept of SMART goals i.e.
goals that are:

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic, and
Time bound
 ERRORS IN WRITING
PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS

• The “ halo effect”

• The “pitchfork effect” or “ recency
effect”.
• “Stereotyping”
• “Comparing”
• “Mirroring”
• Managers and supervisors want to
avoid being the “ bad guy”.
 EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL

• The system should be simple, effective, efficient and

administratively feasible.
• The procedures and uses of the system should be
understood and agreed on by line management and
the employees being rated.
• Factors to be rated should be measurable and agreed
on by managers and subordinates.
• Raters should understand the purpose and nature of
the performance review.
• They should be taught to the use the
system, observe, and write notes, including
critical incident file, organize notes and write
evaluations that include examples of
evidence, edit their reports and conduct effective
review interviews.
• Raters should understand the meanings of the
dimensions rated, including the dimensions’
relative weights. Managers are reported to be
able to distinguish among only three levels of
performance: poor, satisfactory, and outstanding.
• Criticism should promote warmth and the
building of self esteem for both rate and rater.
• The process should be organized and used
to manage employees on a daily basis
according to their needs to be coached.
• Praise or suggestions for improvement
should be done at the time of the event.
• Standards of performance should be set
and modified at the time of the event.
• Performance standards should be valid,
reliable and fair.
• Managers should be rewarded for good
performance evaluation skills.
QUALITIES OF A GOOD
APPRAISAL
It is Factual

It is Fair

It describes the Whole Period

It describes the Whole Job

It has no Surprises
BENEFITS OF PERFORMANCE
APPRAISAL
 Benefit for the individual:
• Gaining a better understanding of their role
• Understanding more clearly how and where they fit in
within the wider picture
• A better understanding of how performance is assessed
and monitored
• Getting an insight
• Improving understanding of their strengths and
weaknesses and developmental needs
• Identifying ways in which they can improve performance
• Providing an opportunity to discuss and clarify
developmental and training needs
• Understanding and agreeing their objectives for the next
year
• An opportunity to discuss career direction and prospects.
 Benefit to the line/
manager/supervisor/team leader:
• Oppurtunities to
– hear and exchange views and opinions away
from the normal pressure of work
– to identify any potential difficulties or
weaknesses
– An improved understanding of the resources
available
– to plan for and set objectives for the next period
– to think about and clarity their own role
– to plan for achieving improved performance
– to plan for further delegation and coaching
– to motivate members of the team
 Benefits to the organization
• A structured means of identifying and
assessing potential
• Up-to-date information regarding the
expectations and aspirations of
employees
• Information on which to base decisions
about promotions and motivation
• An opportunity to review succession
planning
• Information about training needs which can
act as a basis for developing training plans
• Updating of employee records (
achievements, new competencies, etc)
• Career counseling
• Communication of information
 PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL FOR
EMPLOYEES AT DIFFERENT LEVELS

• For top level management

• Degree of organizational growth and
expansion
• Extent of achievement of organizational
goal
• Contribution towards the society
• Profitability and return on capital
employed
• For middle level managers
• Performance of the departments or teams
• Co-ordination with other departments
• Optimal use of resources
• Costs Vs. revenues for a given period of
time
• The communication with superiors and
subordinates
 The following are the major discrepancies found in
the performance appraisal processes being followed
at the government organizations.

• Most of the indicators used for measuring the performance

the employees are not quantifiable in nature, making it
difficult to measure the performance.

• Due to the lack of accountability and job security, most

government employees have a laisser faire attitude towards
their work.

• Unavailability of the job descriptions for many employees

• For front line supervisors
• Quantity of actual output against the
targets
• Quality of output against the targets
• Number of accidents in a given period
• Rate of employee absenteeism
 PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL IN
GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS
• The most common method of Performance
appraisal that is used in most of the
government organizations is Confidential
report (popularly known as CR) written by
the superior of the employees.
• Most of the objectives in government organizations are unchallenging,
unrealistic and not timely reviewed and updated.

• It is difficult to measure the average performance of the government

employees.

• Unprofessional and unstructured approach towards the process.

• There is often a lot of bias and subjectivity involved in the ratings

given by the superiors.

• Lack of complete information on appraisal forms due to expertise and

relevant training; often, the appraisals are not conducted on a regular
basis.
• In government organizations, team appraisal
is often not possible.
• Other HR decisions like rewards, training or
promotions are not directly linked to the
results of the performance appraisal
process.
 ROLE OF ADMINISTRATOR
IN PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
• Manage and supervise the work of others, directly
and through subordinate managers.
• Appraise performance.
• Counsel and train employees, directly and through
subordinate managers.
• Monitors smooth functioning of performance
appraisal in the department.
• Understand, interpret and apply laws, rules,
regulations and policies related to
Performance appraisal.
• Develop and implement disciplinary actions
as necessary.
• Collect, interpret and evaluate narrative and
other data pertaining to Performance
appraisal.
• Marshburn, D.M. et. Al. (2009) in her study, examined the
relationship between 265 new nurse’s perceptions and
measured performance based clinical competence in an
academic medical care centre in Greenville, using
Descriptive co-relational designs to examine the
relationships. Performance based clinical competence was
measured by the Performance Based Development System
developed by Del Bueno (1990). She reported that nurse’s
who scored high on perception scores also scored high
performance scales. There was a relationship between new
nurse’s perceptions of clinical competence and a
performance based measures of clinical competence.
• Prepare complex reports and other written
materials of Performance appraisal.
• Analyze and resolve complex problems related to
appraisal.
• Communicate clearly and concisely, both orally
and in writing; present findings, of Performance
appraisal to employees.
• Provide excellent interpersonal relations with
employees.
• Maintains performance appraisal records and
reports of all employees working under her/him.
 RESEARCH RELATED TO
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
• Harcourt M. & Narcisse S.(2008) conducted a study on Employee Fairness
Perceptions of performance appraisal. The researcher identified the essential
factors which influence employees’ fairness perceptions of their
performance appraisals, and determined the applicability of these factors to
the experiences of employees in a Saint Lucian public service organization.
A qualitative case study method was used to gain understanding of employee
perceptions of the fairness of their performance appraisals. Data obtained
from both completed appraisal forms and interviews with 20 employees was
transcribed and assessed using a thematic analysis. Overall, results showed
that justice factors influence employee perceptions of fairness in their
appraisals. Results suggested that employees also consider four additional
justice factors, the consistency in reward distribution,
• appraisal frequency, job relevant criteria and rater and rate training.
 THANK YOU
A good process is the foundation of
your success”