The annual performance appraisal: time to evolve

A performance appraisal is a formal evaluation of an employee’s job performance over a specific period of time.

While business owners generally recognise the importance of incorporating some type of periodic employee assessment into their HR strategy, it’s not unusual for the process do more harm than good when it comes to actually improving individual performance.

Critics of formal appraisals list a number of concerns with the traditional annual appraisal process:

1. They cause stress and anxiety for everyone concerned
2. They’re too subjective
3. They’re too infrequent
4. They fail to improve employee performance
5. They fail to provide feedback that can be used

So is it time to give up on formally evaluating your employees’ performance? Not at all. Like many HR processes, the key to success is tailoring the process to end up with a system that people will willingly participate in and one that also drives business results and professional development.

Bare Bones Consulting’s Individual Development Plan (IDP) is a resource we’ve designed to deliver tangible results in the workplace. Our IDP not only provides a historic appraisal of the worker’s performance – so you can determine whether you’re going to reward the employee for their contribution over the defined time period – but also allows you to set future goals linking to your business objectives for each member of your team. And we’ll show you how to use the IDP as a resource to upskill both your managers and the team member under review so you grow your talent pool from within. That means lower employee turnover levels, fewer times you need to recruit and higher levels of employee engagement.

Traditional performance appraisals can be time consuming and overwhelming to managers and employees. Why continue to use a concept that not only costs you money but offers poor return on your investment?

If you’re looking for a better way to get the best from your people and grow your business, we think using our Individual Development Plan is a no-brainer. Call us today for a chat to find out why.