Performance Management Issues - Essay Example

Performance Management May 6, I. Explain how employee performance should be managed. The most important key to success for every organization, be it an entrepreneurial venture or a regulatory body, is the inputs and performance being contributed by its members and/ or employees. Therefore, there is a necessity for every organization to constantly check, review and implement needed changes in its manpower plan. Performance management is something that is essential for any organization to thrive. Employee performance may be managed first by properly identifying what the job is, and what it entails to be executed. There should be a thorough knowledge on what needs to be done, and what it takes for this job to be done. Appropriate skills and qualifications must also be determined to be able to put the right person for the task. Knowing what needs to be done results to better employee recruitment. Employee and performance planning means that there is a way to develop a certain Job Description for every position in the organization. A Job Description is a list of tasks that this personnel must perform while employed. It enumerates key results areas, and systematically itemizes what exactly must be performed to be considered effective. The Job Description also includes a list of required skills and even educational background for an applicant to be considered qualified. This way, the hiring officer will have a ready list of reference when screening for applicants. Only the qualified applicants will be matched to this position, making use of their credentials and previous work experiences as a way to equate them with the requirements. Doing this would help the hiring officer find the right person for the job, and would eventually help this person undertake his responsibilities once on board. Conducting a job analysis usually triggers the creation of job descriptions (Employee Job Descriptions 2010). Job descriptions can be made only when the job requirements are analyzed and the end results identified. Once appropriate employees are hired, they begin to undertake the responsibilities required of their positions. While a Job Description serves as a general tool for the employee to determine their roles in the workplace, this employee must also use his skills and abilities to look for means to improve his key results areas. To do this, he must be made to understand his roles in the workplace, and the organization should provide the needed support in order for the employee to perform these roles effectively. Next important thing to be done is to create ways to measure effectiveness of the person hired for the job. There should be a list of objectives or key results areas with which the Human Resources team could compare current performance with. This is important in gauging whether the personnel indeed meet the expectations of the job. Otherwise, there is no way of knowing if the performance is at par with what is required of the job. Assessment is an essential part of the process. After identifying the required competencies and creating a system by which performance may be rated, there should always be an effort to continuously improve on employee performance by working on developing further the job description and the key results areas. This way, the organization may become dynamic, and the employees may be encouraged to personally seek performance enhancement and improvement. Performance may be determined by three things: what the employee knows, what the employee can do and how he does it, and his motivation to actually perform. An employee’s capacity to deliver basing on the requirements is basically dependent on his knowledge of the job, and his knowledge of the skills that would aid him in performing his duties. His capacity to execute the needed actions for him to satisfy the requirements and how he actually executes these also determines the magnitude of his performance. Rating an employee may be based on three factors: traits, behavior and results. By traits, it means that the employee is being assessed for his qualifications, and how this manifests in his work style. Behavior basically means the employee’s attitude towards his job, and how these manifests in his actions. His level of commitment may reflect on his behavior. Results, on the other hand, greatly vary depending on an employee’s traits and his behavior. As such, results are often the most effective way of quantifying one’s performance. II. Based on the Job Description from your group presentation (Production Line Supervisor), include a formal appraisal process and explain how the process you recommend aligns staff performance with the organization. The appraisal process starts by knowing the vital parts of the Employee Appraisal form – there should be information on the employee’s basic qualifications, his competencies and indicators, his main roles and accountabilities, achievements and contributions, and a feedback analysis, At the end of the document, the signatures of the rater and employee must appear to signify consensus. To begin, the employee appraisal form should already be prepared by the time a qualified applicant is considered hired. The form should indicate the actual basic qualifications, which may include educational attainment and previous job experiences. Example: Product Line Supervisor is in charge of overall operations of a certain organization (e.g. Restaurant, banks, etc). A Restaurant Product Line Supervisor is in charge of ensuring the full attendance of all the staff. He is also in charge in overseeing that there is a steady supply of products being sold so that customers will never run out of choices, and will have a satisfying experience at the restaurant. He needs to ensure that the place is clean and is suitable for dining. He also oversees the daily cash flow, ensuring that collections are accurate and all expenses are recorded. On top of this, he must be in charge of overall customer service systems, giving the customers ultimate dining satisfaction when frequenting the place. A Product Line Supervisor must have at least two years experience in the same capacity in similar organizations. He must have a bachelor’s degree in Business or in any related field. He should be knowledgeable on store operations, and must have a strong accounting background. He must also possess a pleasant personality, and is sales and service oriented. The company prefers applicants not more than 25 years old. He should have relevant experience in the same industry. The product line supervisor will be evaluated basing on the following: 1. Achievement of overall sales targets for the restaurant 2. Least number of transaction errors while in the operations. 3. Zero wastage with regards to kitchen operations 4. Level of customer service rendered by the staff The foregoing evaluation points are aligned with the organization’s mission to achieve positive revenues while maintaining its stature as the preferred restaurant in the city. Two major key areas are being considered: sales and after sales service. The company is searching for a person who can run the restaurant business by having the capacity to bring in sales by ensuring utmost customer satisfaction. Satisfaction equates to customer loyalty, and loyalty equates to sales. Once a suitable candidate is hired, he is provided the list of responsibilities that he needs to perform. After signing the job description document, he then proceeds to be employed on a probationary status. His first evaluation will happen after three months as Product Line Supervisor. During the evaluation period, the Product Line Supervisor needs to prove his capacity to actually lead the whole staff and crew towards the achievement of the business objectives. He must have people skills, knowing how to connect with customers as much as he could influence his staff to perform as well. . A mix between the Critical Incident and Graphic Rating Scales Methods will be used (Performance Appraisal Methods. 2010). This method will indicate qualitative and quantitative outputs relevant to the employee’s performance. His evaluation sheet should indicate a rating system - a scale that defines his capacities under varying key results areas. The rater should then indicate his rating and compute the numerical values to come up with an overall rating which will have a corresponding evaluation description. A passing rate would mean that the employee has satisfactorily performed his tasks, but a higher rate would indicate strong capacity to lead the organization. The evaluation process should then produce valuable items and key points to improve the results areas for the position III. Explain how recommendations are based on the principles and practices in the academic literature and performance management and explain why particular techniques are chosen. Employee performance should always be measured basing on the goals and objectives of a company. Human Resource is one of the main assets of an organization, and performance management is essential for a business to succeed in a highly competitive environment. Organizations wish to look at people as the key towards the achievement of their goals. As such, it is necessary to ensure their individual professional success to equate this to the overall success of the company. Employee development is likewise necessary for a business to thrive in a changing environment. A well managed employee knows how to evolve with the company, bringing along learning and applies these to organizational processes. The method recommended is based on these concepts. As mentioned above, performance management basically starts from manpower planning, to the hiring process, up to performance evaluation every end of an appraisal period. To make the process successful, careful planning is essential. As such, a thorough study of the company goals, down to departmental goals must be first established. The Product Line Supervisor position has been created with the purpose of having an operations manager in mind. The flexibility and technical expertise of this person has must be established in the Job Description. Having a dependable job description enables the hiring officer to be more focused on finding the right candidate for the job. Effective hiring process means getting the right persons for the job. Part of effective hiring is considering the concept of Behavioral Consistency, such that past work experience and personal background matters reflect future performance (Steps to an effective hiring process 2010). Furthermore, knowing a person’s background enables to hiring officer to effectively match current qualifications to the demands of the job. The suggested procedure further indicates focus on individual needs on top of the organizational objectives, but not to the point of sacrificing corporate goals. With the method, individuals are presented the right picture of how is it going to be when they go on board, and eventually encourages them to align personal goals to that the company. Employee should ideally grow with the company. The success of the company reflects upon the success of an employee and vice versa. The failure of an individual eventually leads to the demise of the organization. The suggested method also emphasizes on the need for effective performance planning. It establishes an employee’s worthiness for the job. As indicated in the readings, effective planning leads to effective execution. And periodic performance appraisal provides both parties to regularly assess performance and end results of the efforts, thus becoming mutually beneficial. The Critical Incident and Graphic Rating Scales Methods deal with both qualitative and quantitative approaches. There is a chance to numerically rate a person basing on his job description, indicating that an overall high score reflects good performance from the employee. On the next part, there lies the chance to enumerate the employee’s strengths and weaknesses. An employee’s performance must be measurable. To do this, an employee must be aware of his responsibilities and accountabilities and must constantly be reminded of it by check and balance methods or appraisal periods. An employee’s most important tool to become effective in his tasks is having the right knowledge of his job. He must be made aware of the things he has to achieve for the company. Doing so creates some sort of empowerment, which is beneficial both for him and the organization he works for. Performance is about knowledge and understanding skills and motivation. It is about managing internal and external factors that affect an employee’s behavior. Reference List Employee Job Descriptions. Free Management Library. Retrieved May 9, 2010 from http://managementhelp.org/staffing/specify/job_desc/job_desc.htm Performance Appraisal Methods. HR Management. Retrieved May 13, 2010 from http://www.humanresources.hrvinet.com/performance-appraisal-methods/ Steps to an effective hiring process. Compensation Today. Retrieved May 13, 2010 from http://blogs.payscale.com/compensation/2009/06/steps-to-an-effective-hiring-process.html Read More