As someone who works with performance management, I’ve noticed that many organizations aren’t in tune with the need to improve their current system. Sometimes the hardest part of solving a problem is knowing you have one; but when you pinpoint these issues, it’s easier to find the perfect company-wide solution (no matter the organizational size). Here are a few things companies might not know about their performance management… aspects that really need to be upgraded.
Your Old Structures Don’t Work
Although it might be difficult to turn a cruise ship, doing so avoids the proverbial icebergs. Many large companies are resistant to change; when they make the change, however, these companies avoid catastrophic issues down the road. Take Microsoft for example: a Fortune 500 company with a flawed performance management system. They turned their performance management ship around, eliminating stacked ranking to evaluate employee performance. Although it was a hefty challenge, they’ve seen some drastic results because of it.
What’s more, many traditional methods of performance reviews can be skewed with regards to gender. Studies have shown that women in the workplace receive about 30% more critical feedback than men. This brings to light just how non-objective these evaluations can be, and details outside of performance that can affect an employee’s review. The fact is, current performance management needs to change for the sake of standardization across the board.
Your Employees Don’t Like It
The current performance management practices many organizations use aren’t favored among employees. This year, only 55% of employees felt as though their performance appraisals were effective. So while executive leadership sees the functional need for performance reviews, managers hate giving them, and employees don’t think they’re effective, no one is on the same page… and that’s a good signal for adjustment.
If you want employees to value your feedback, you may want to consider pulling it from multiple sources. Since 80% of employees see crowdsourced feedback as more indicative of their performance, they might just be more inclined to pay attention to it. Try 360-degree reviews in which data is gathered by a third party and then given to the employee.
You Have to Keep Up
Performance management needs a rude awakening. And not just one – it’s a constant evolution in order for companies to improve their processes. Fifty-eight percent of companies have called their performance management “weak.” Companies need to regularly look at their processes from the ground up and figure out where the root problems are and how to fix them.
Every year should be a chance to look at how you’re evaluating your employees, and see if you can do it better. You can consult, advise, and tell employees about the obstacles they could face when revamping the process (such as budget). But when your employees bring you advice on how to change certain aspects of your performance management, don’t take it personally. Take it into account, build on it and find avenues every year to improve your process.
But trust me when I say it’s worth it. Your performance management is outdated and your managers try their best to work around it in order to offer employees better feedback about how they work. When you invest in new performance management, you’ll save wasted productivity, increase performance and allow employees to become better at their jobs.
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