Page 161 - Psychological Management of Individual Performance

144 performance appraisal
When the performance appraisal is combined with goal setting, it is also important to
train the superiors in defining measurable goals. As experience shows, this is easy for
quantitative goals but is extremely difficult for qualitative goals. Goals should meet the
criteria of being measurable, specific, acceptable, realistic, and time-bound.
Moreover, training is often seen as a ‘kick-off’ within the process of introducing a
performance appraisal system. Training sets a starting point and the managers see during
the training that everybody has now to do performance appraisals. Thus, training can
also be an important motivational factor.

SUCCESS AND QUALITY FACTORS FOR PERFORMANCE
APPRAISAL SYSTEMS

Which factors make a performanceappraisal system successful?Which quality assurance
has to be conducted? Of course, the success of performance appraisal systems also
depends on the specific conditions within a company.

STRONG ADVOCATES AND ROLE MODELS

Support by the upper management is a very important success factor of a performance
appraisal system. If this support is missing, the staff will recognize this quickly and will
not accept the appraisal system. Additionally, successful superiors who obviously use
the performance appraisal system and say that they find it useful can be strong promoters
for the system.

INTEGRATION AND CONSEQUENCES:REALIZATION
OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL RESULTS
Some of the questions to be answered early in the process of developing a performance
appraisal system are: What happens with the results? How are those results translated
into consequences? A clear-cut answer to these questions is an important success factor
for a performance appraisal system. There must be a clear connection between the results
of a performance appraisal and its consequences. Those who have done a better job first
come out with a better evaluation. The consequences could include a higher wage, faster
promotion, the chance for additional training, or other ways of appreciation. There has to
be an apparent correlation between the appraisal scores and the measures of appreciation.
As mentioned before, the performance appraisal system has to be integrated into an
overall personnel management concept. If the performance appraisal system is used for
evaluating performance-oriented payment, it needs to be presented at least one or two
months before the actual decision regarding the future wage is made. Appraiser and the
person to be appraised should know how specific decisions have been made, i.e., which
performance appraisal criteria have been taken into consideration.

TIME

The appropriate evaluation period can also be a success factor. Usually performance
appraisal takes place once every year. Sometimes companies make an appraisal twice