“Why do appraisals if the company isn’t giving a raise?” This was the question from a participant in a middle management training class. Before I could answer several other managers agreed with him. A better question is, Why call yourself “Manager” if you don’t manage? I’m not being sarcastic here. This gentleman has lots of company. In my twenty years of consulting/training experience I find most managers are really coordinators or event planners. Many do not see staff development as a high priority, not even a responsibility at all.Â
 Why should they see it differently? Their job is to get the iron out the door, deal with customer expectations, squeeze out efficiencies, ensure compliance with regulations and safety codes, etc. These are measured and have a huge impact on the business not to mention their pay check. Even if they wanted to where are they going to get the time. Isn’t development HR’s job anyway?Â
• Ensure all employees understand the organization’s mission and strategy
• Provide strategic human resource planning Identify the A positions
• Ensure top talent is assigned to roles where e value is created (A Positions)
• Ensure development of a highly skilled and motivated workforce
• Ensure expectations are being met
• Provide consequences for exceeding, meeting or failing to meet expectations
• Constantly communicate organization’s strategy and strategic needs
• Leader managers don’t just manage, they change things.
Performance Appraisal Criteria:
Most appraisals use traits such as: leadership, team work and communication to describe job standards for all jobs. One size fits all appraisal format. Every employee shares the same appraisal form. So, the actual appraisal form doesn’t measures actual job performance. It measures the manager’s opinion of the employee’s performance. Traits are open to interpretation. Different managers may have different opinions over the same employee’s performance. Usually there is little if any relationship between the appraisal items and strategy. This commonly referred to as “finger in the wind appraisals”. Examples include,
Poor Example of Phrases for Performance Appraisals
Examples Taken From Working Appraisals
Customer Service - The ability to anticipate the customer’s needs and seeks to find solutions and solve problems related to customer satisfaction.
Decision skills - Refers to the ability to make appropriate well-informed decisions in a timely manner, balancing competing needs, dealing with complexity and confusion, and being decisive but not impulsive
Team Building - Finds out and suggests meaningful ways of improving the operation of the department and constantly looks for ways to improve efficiency when carrying out key responsibilities. Builds and exhibits effective team spirit to foster organizational goals and objectives, by utilizing the skills of all team members to achieve both business and individual results
Set Direction - Fosters the development of common direction, provides clear direction and priorities, and clarifies roles and responsibilities, sets goals.
