Issues in Performance Appraisal, Commitment to Long-Term Staff or Policy - Case Study Example

Reflection Case 3: Issues in performance appraisal From case 3, I have learned that lack of a proper performance evaluation system can lead to poor evaluation and thus not fulfil the objective of a performance appraisal process. It is clear that Austin, the manager of Yarra Bank did not develop the performance appraisal system fairly. The system was also not applied consistently as it did not aim to evaluate the tasks performed by each employee. The system was also not hob related and was not valid according to a complaint made by James. In addition, the performance appraisal system used in the bank is generally not acceptable to other employees, as another employee of the bank, Ken Yeo, agreed with James, saying that no one has ever had an opportunity to discuss their objectives with the management and no one is informed about how their performance is measured. Further, the approach used by Austin, is not conducive to employee growth as it tends to scare away new and well educated employees. Therefore, I have learned that a good performance system should incorporate all the lacking points that I have highlighted. I have learned that a good performance appraisal system should be a collaborative effort between the management and employees. That is, the management should involve the employees to understand their organisational issues. According to Lorenzet, Cook and Ozeki (2006, p. 569), the future competiveness of firms is related to how well the workforce is trained, and how flexible and adaptable it is. This can be achieved after conducting a detailed performance evaluation that can identify the gaps in the workforce; the best way to achieved this is to ensure that the appraisal is not only relevant but also specific to each department’s task. Lorenzet, Cook and Ozeki (2006, p. 569) also note that high performance work practices allow people to be involved in problem solving and decision making processes of their work activities. That is, the employees should be allowed to say what they like or dislike about their job. This way, existing gaps can be identified and alternatives sought to deal with them. In my future job I would like to work in an environment where decision making is not a preserve of the management but decentralised to allow everyone’s participation. If I become a manager, I would like to be involving employees to identify the problems that affect them; such that when a performance appraisal system is designed it takes into consideration the input of everyone. By doing this, I will have ensured that everyone is comfortable with an appraisal process, so that they can freely express their views about their tasks. I have analysed case three by identifying the problem at Yarra Bank. After reviewing the problem, I realised that the management failed to consider the younger employees’ input in decision making, which is the cause of the James’ dissatisfaction with the performance appraisal system. To solve this problem, there is need to analyse the possible solution and hence the recommendations stated above. By supporting my reasoning with relevant literature, I came up alternatives that can be applied in any organisation to ensure that general organisational performance is improved. Reference Lorenzet S J, Cook, R G & Ozeki, C 2006 ‘Improving performance in very small firms through effective assessment and feedback,’ Education & Training, Vol. 48, No. 8/9, pp. 568-583. Case 1: Commitment to long-term staff or commitment to policy? From this case, I have learned that while employees should be committed to company policy, management should have flexible structures to determine what can be deemed unethical organisational behaviour. This is because in the case, Virginia is accused of stealing from the company, yet from her point of view, her intention was not to steal. The matter is made worse by the fact that she took an item from the company in full view of a junior employee. The case has thus taught me that managers/supervisors should act as role models to their juniors especially with regard to acting ethically in the workplace. This is because while Virginia confesses that her aim was not to steal, her junior witnessed her putting the item in her bag, and thereby believed that she had stolen the item. Thus, if things were left as they were, the junior employee (and others) would have believed that it was not bad to steal from the company after all. Hence, the company should have flexible policies to distinguish deliberate unethical behaviour from intentional unethical behaviour. In short, the company should be prepared to handle matters ethical dilemma without hurting its employees. I have learned that much as managers should strictly follow company policies, they should have mechanisms to allow those perceived to have unethical behaviours to express themselves. As Oliphant and Oliphant (2001, p. 443) outline, there is need to define clearly what constitutes employee misconduct. For instance, we cannot say that Virginia had intended to steal given that this was the first time this happened. Putting myself in Jan Norman’s (the state manager) shoes, I would allow Virginia to explain her standpoint since she is a long standing employee of the company. While it is true that unethical behaviour leads to substantial costs such as mistrust, deterioration of relationships, stifling of employee productivity and a general negative impact on employee productivity (Kantor & Weisberg, 2002, p. 688), it is not appropriate to dismiss an employee for one mistake without allowing them to state views on the matter. Along the same line, Kantor and Weisberg (2002, p. 689) state that when managers’ behaviours improves, so does that of the employees. Hence, if such a case occurs in my organisation, I would ask the person involved to prove that he or she did not steal – which in this case is true because Virginia hurriedly put the item in her bag so as assist a junior employee, which was her job. After listening to those involved, I would then make it clear to the other employees that the company is still committed to its policies and explain the situation to them so as to return to normalcy. In this case, I have analysed what constitutes unethical behaviour. I have also reasoned that whereas companies have policies, they should allow employees to express themselves when they are suspected of unethical undertakings to avoid creating inadvertent mistrust. References Oliphant, B J & Oliphant, G C 2001, ‘Using a behavior-based method to identify and reduce employee theft,’ International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. 29, Issue 10, pp. 442 – 451. Kantor, J & Weisberg, J 2002, ‘Ethical attitudes and ethical behaviour: Are managers role models?’ International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 23, Issue 8, pp. 687 – 703. Read More