In this lesson, you will learn about the design of a performance appraisal form and a variety of performance factors; you will also see sample evaluation statements.
In previous lessons, I discussed performance from a number of perspectives. Now it's time to develop an approach to evaluating the employee's current level of performance.
Even if you aren't involved in the design of your company's appraisal, please don't skip this lesson. There are some valuable insights to be gained even though you may be using an existing form.
Most performance appraisals ask for both numeric measures and comments. Here's an example of numeric measures:
How often does the employee meet deadlines?
| Never | Occasionally | Usually | Frequently | Always |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Comments:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
There are as many variations on this format as there are evaluation designers. Some leaders prefer a 10-point scale. They believe that the larger scale provides greater precision.
Personally, I hated teachers who used pluses and minuses (C+, C, C−) in grading. C+ was disappointing because I just missed a B. C− was distressing because I barely dodged a D. Neither of these grades evokes a positive emotion. That's one of the problems with a 10-point scale. Obviously, I am expressing a personal preference. Your preference is as valid as mine.
I prefer odd-numbered scales, five or seven points, because there is only one number that represents average performance, and that's the mean number.
Plain English
In a numerical sequence, the mean is the number that has an equal number of values above and below it. For example, in the series 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 7 is the mean because there are two values before it, 3 and 5, as well as two values after it, 9 and 11.
When you have only one number representing "average," it's much easier for the employee to understand the ranking. I prefer a five-point scale, where performance is lousy, below average, average, above average, or great. Most of us find it easy to deal with these concepts. We may not agree with the evaluator, but we understand what she's saying.
In the previous scale, the ratings range from 0 to 4. Many designers choose to use a 1 to 5 scale rather than the 0 to 4 scale. They prefer not to use a 0 rating believing that no one's performance is worthless. I've had one or two employees in 25 years who might refute that argument, but generally it's true. If you have an employee who warrants a 0 rating, I have to ask, "What's she still doing there?"
I use the one-to-five scale for the psychological effect that the "five" rating has. Over the years we've heard about five-star restaurants and five-star hotels. This is the elite class. I want people to believe that they can be elite-class performers. You may think that the employee has nothing to look forward to once she achieves a "five" rating. That's why the appraisal includes a comment section and personal development plan. I never use the "five" rating without raising expectations for future performance. There are, in fact, varying degrees of excellence. You need to make that clear in the development plan and comments.
Another issue in performance appraisal design is whether to use a one-to-five scale or a five-to-one scale, with one being the lowest level of performance and five being the highest.
Some performance appraisal designers feel that people are discouraged when the first measure they see is negative, as it is on a one-to-five scale. Others argue that the positive language of a five-to-one scale may cause the evaluator to be less objective. I don't place much credence in either argument.
Tip
Whether you like it or not, everything you do or say has a psychological impact. If you're not anticipating the reactions you'll be getting, you're setting yourself up for problems.
I do, however, believe that the evaluator saves time when using the five-to-one scale. Your goal as a people developer is to have your employees score four or five on each question. Why, then, would you want the scale to start at one?
Now that we've explored the numeric ratings, let's shift our attention to the comment section. Comments are crucial for several reasons. First, as you decide on a numeric measure you should know why you didn't give this employee a higher evaluation. You need to have a clear understanding of what the next level of performance represents before you can communicate it to your employee. Once you have this understanding, make sure that it is included in your comments.
Your comments should communicate that your employee is building on an already solid base of performance. The language you use is essential for assuring that the appraisal is encouraging, not discouraging. Choose your words wisely.
Tip
Even when you're careful in the selection of your language you can inadvertently offend your employee. If that happens, admit your mistake, apologize, and move on. Your employee will respect your integrity and forgive the offense.
The second reason for using the comment section is that it formalizes your thoughts. Let's face it, the pace of today's world makes it difficult to remember what we did five minutes ago. Don't risk forgetting key elements of your employee's future success; write them down.
Writing down your thoughts is even more important if you take my earlier advice and allow six months between the performance appraisal and the salary review. It can be a challenge trying to remember what you and your employee agreed to six months earlier. You can save yourself a lot of time and avoid the possibility of conflict by capturing your thoughts in the comment section.
A third reason for using the comment section is as an aid in creating the employee's personal development plan. The comments form a ready reference for prioritizing improvement initiatives and establishing an approach to improvement.
Before we move on to examples of performance criteria, there is one more element of performance appraisal design I would like to discuss with you. That's the language that appears above the numeric measures. I've seen all the following:
| Excellent | Above Average | Average | Marginal | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exceptional performance | Exceeds requirements | Meets requirements | Meets most requirements | Fails requirements |
| Exceptional | Favorable | Satisfactory | Unsatisfactory | Poor |
| Always | Often | Usually | Sometimes | Seldom |
| Great | Solid | Okay | Needs improvement | Poor |
To me, the captions used for numeric measures are second in importance only to the comment section in appraisal form design. If you doubt that, ask yourself these questions: "How do I feel when my boss says that my work is satisfactory or that it's average? Do I immediately translate the performance evaluation into a personal evaluation? In other words, do I feel that my boss is saying that I'm average or satisfactory?" I'll bet you do. Your employees feel the same way.
My preference is to use the terms always, often, usually, sometimes, and seldom. These terms are specific to behavior. I've never known them to be used in judgment of an individual as a person.
Caution
Some employees are more sensitive than others. These employees tend to view judgments about their performance as judgments of them. You need to be very specific in your language when dealing with these folks.
Now that we have a sense of the form that most appraisals take and the reasoning behind their design, let's look at some of the things you need to evaluate.
In Lesson 1, "The Goals of Performance Appraisal," I discussed four aspects of performance: speed, quality, service, and value. These are not the only factors we might measure, but they form a good foundation on which to build. Let's look at some criteria that can be used to evaluate an employee's performance in each of these areas.
Tip
The more clearly you define the various aspects of performance, the easier it is for your employees to understand what's expected of them. To help them become successful, be specific when defining performance.
Note: In the interest of saving space, I will not be listing the scale for each of the criteria considered. For the remainder of this lesson, please apply the following scale to the criteria being measured.
Speed is vital to your company's competitive advantage. Here are some statements to help you evaluate your employees' understanding of the importance of speed:
The employee's actions indicate an understanding of the importance of speed in today's competitive environment.
The employee does a good job of balancing speed and quality in the performance of his work.
The employee completes tasks ahead of schedule.
The employee looks for ways to accomplish routine work more quickly.
Quality cannot be sacrificed for speed. How well do your employees understand this concept? The following statements help you make that determination:
The advantages of speed and quality are easily lost to poor service. You can evaluate your employees' service attitude with the following statements:
The employee's actions indicate an understanding of the importance of serving both internal and external customers.
The employee demonstrates the desire to serve others well.
The employee responds to customers in a timely fashion (within two hours).
The employee provides customers with more than requested.
Understanding value is vital to buying decisions, goal setting, establishing priorities and work effectiveness. Are your employees good at identifying value? The following statements will help you make that judgement:
The employee's actions indicate an understanding of the concept of value.
Value is something the employee considers in her decisions.
When the employee doesn't see value in an effort she makes the appropriate authorities aware of her concerns.
Obviously, there are many more statements that you can use to evaluate these performance criteria. I hope these examples provide you with a good starting point in the development of your evaluation statements.
Next, I'd like you to take a moment to reflect on the previous statements. Did you notice a common thread running through them? They are all positive, aren't they? The language of these statements attributes desirable qualities or behaviors to the employee. The numeric rating indicates the level of quality or consistency of behavior achieved.
Performance appraisals must be encouraging, otherwise the employee will have no desire to improve. The language you use will determine whether your employee leaves the appraisal feeling good and wanting to do better or disappointed and wondering why she should bother trying. The choice is yours. Choose wisely: Your employees' success and your reputation as a people developer are at stake.
There are factors that influence employees' performance that aren't directly related to the work they do. These factors are just as important as the factors mentioned above, which means they should be given equal weight in the evaluation process.
The phrase "playing nice with others" is often used in conjunction with "interpersonal skills." With the following statements, you will be evaluating your employees' ability and willingness to consider the needs of others—co-workers, bosses, subordinates, customers, and vendors:
"Is the glass half-empty or half-full?" Do your employees "believe" that they can succeed or do they "hope" they can succeed? Here are some statements that will help you evaluate your employees' attitudes toward success:
The employee possesses a can-do attitude.
The employee is looking for ways to expand her knowledge.
The employee is looking for ways to broaden her experience.
The employee is realistic in her assessment of her abilities.
Many people resist change, others accept it willingly. What are your employees' attitudes toward change? Here are some statements that assist in answering this question:
Creativity can take many forms. Some people are most creative when working with a "blank canvas." Others are very creative when improving existing systems. Still others find their creativity best suited to problem situations. Whatever the arena, creativity is a vital component to your employees' success. Let's look at some statements that are designed to identify your employees' creative talents:
In Lesson 6, "Improving Communication," you learned how problems are easily created through poor communication. Here are some statements to use in evaluating your employees' communication skills:
Do your employees initiate improvement efforts or do they wait for someone to assign those efforts to them? Your greatest success, as well as that of your employees, comes when they demonstrate initiative. Here are some statements that will help you evaluate your employees on this vital trait:
The employee makes herself available to help others when her work is complete.
The employee seeks involvement in new projects.
The employee works on skill development outside the workplace.
The employee is a source of ideas for performance improvement.
Do your employees plan their futures or react to what the future brings? Can they readily find what they need or do they lose numerous hours each week trying to locate things they need to do the job? The answers to these questions will give you insights into your employees' performance. Here are a few statements that help you assess your employees' planning and organizational skills.
The employee creates a personal work schedule.
The employee works the schedule.
The employee decides on the approach to task before beginning work.
The employee can easily locate information in her files.
Tip
People who don't have good organizational skills may be in the wrong job. Take a look at their skills and see whether they can be better used in less-structured work.
I hope these criteria and sample evaluation statements will generate even more ideas that you can use in the design of your performance appraisal.
For those of you using existing appraisal forms, I suggest that you evaluate the appraisal language. You may have to alter your verbal communications and write more comments to overcome the appraisal's negative language. Here's an experience I had with an existing appraisal form.
Do you remember my story about the employee who was formulating questions when she should have been listening to instructions? Well, the appraisal form had a statement that dealt specifically with the issue of instructions. The evaluation statement said, "Employee readily understands instructions." I had no choice but to rate her low on this statement. Her failure to listen frequently caused me to repeat instructions.
In the comment section I noted that she needed to listen more carefully and that when she listened to instructions, she had no problems understanding them. When she saw my comment, she thanked me. She said, "This rating makes me sound like I'm retarded, but your comment let me know that you don't feel that way."
Frankly, the word retarded is the one that came to my mind when I read the statement. That's why I had so much trouble deciding on a rating. If I hadn't written the comment she would have mistakenly thought that I considered her dim-witted.
Emotions are powerful and they surface very quickly when we feel we're being criticized. When you're completing an appraisal, look for language that might offend your employees. If you find offensive language, use the comment section to remove the sting from poorly designed statements.
Many companies today are using an appraisal technique called 360° feedback.
Plain English
The appraisal system called 360° feedback is one that elicits appraisals from your boss, your peers, and your subordinates. The term 360° refers to the fact that you are being evaluated by people all around you. Your boss is above you, your peers are at your side, and your subordinates are below you.
The primary advantage of the 360° feedback system is that it allows multiple perspectives on performance. It also makes it difficult for the employee to dispute her failings when they are being observed by a number of people rather than just her boss.
Everything we discussed in this lesson can be applied to 360° feedback. You may need to make slight adjustments in the wording of the evaluation statements to reflect differences in perspective between bosses, peers, and subordinates. Otherwise, the approach is the same.
The two most important design components of the performance appraisal are the comment sections and the captions above the numeric measures.
The captions always, often, usually, sometimes, and seldom make it more difficult for the employee to translate performance ratings into personal judgments.
The use of odd-numbered scales makes it easier for both the evaluator and the employee to visualize the concept of "normal" or "average" performance.
Evaluation statements should incorporate language that indicates success.
If you are forced to use an existing appraisal form, look for statements that generate negative emotions. Use the comment section to overcome the negative tone of these statements. You may have to adjust your verbal communication as well.
360° feedback systems require only slight modifications in the evaluation statements to reflect the differing perspectives between bosses, peers, and subordinates.