Performance Appraisal:“Meaningful Conversations”

Listening, Learning, & Improving

Learning Objectives

When you have completed this module you will be able to define the key concepts associated with Hood College’s Meaningful Conversations performance appraisal process and you will be able to:

• Understand the importance of continuous dialogue in employee and organizational success

• Identify the main obstacles to effective performance appraisal

• Understand the value of the performance appraisal process in employee development

Learning Objectives

• Utilize tools to promote productivity and innovation

• Understand a range of techniques that can be applied in performance appraisal

• Use these techniques as we build an effective performance appraisal system

• Explain the benefits of having an effective performance appraisal system

Strategies for our time together

Learning is a process.

There are different learning styles.

Learning is improved when goal-directed.

Active participation enhances the learning experience and retention of important concepts.

Be open to learning.

Develop an action plan.

Meeting your needs

• What questions or concerns do you want to make sure that we cover today?

• What problems do you anticipate in implementing “Meaningful Conversations”?

• How shall we measure the process?

• What does success look like?

Creating Meaningful Conversations

Focus: Employee Success

Meaningful Conversations are both Meaningful Conversations are both the the formal formal and and informal informal dialogues dialogues

held throughout year.held throughout year.

What will “Meaningful Conversations” be like?

• For supervisors?

• For employees?

• For the College?

Meaningful Conversations Process

Each stage is part of a continuous process which

takes place throughout the

year as the supervisor and the employee

focus efforts on achieving goals and developing the employee.

Dialogue is a requirement

for each stage to be successful and for the

process to be “meaningful.”

Why Have Performance Appraisals?

• Performance Appraisal offers several advantages at the level of the:– Individual

– Organization

Why Have Performance Appraisals?

• Performance Appraisal offers several advantages at the level of the:– Individual

• Enhances sense of purpose and self worth• Recognizes of past effort• Uncovers developmental requirements• Motivates for meeting new challenges• Provides information that employees want to know

– Organization• Links jobs to organizational mission • Provides for staff development • Targets achievement of key objectives• Provides focus on important priorities and appropriate utilization

of human resources

Performance Appraisal

• The benefits to the individual and organization are good reasons for having an appraisal process in place

• To maximize the benefits - the organization must support the appraisal process through:– Appropriate resources to facilitate the process– Design of a suitable process for the organization – Training of management staff in the process – Training of the personnel in the process

What is a Meaningful Conversation?

• Is it just a performance appraisal?– Connotates only

once a year soliloquy

• How can it be meaningful?– Becomes a formal

and informal process for ongoing dialogue

Both Aspects of Meaningful Conversations

• Formal– Prescheduled

meetings– Reports – Results– Annual appraisal

• Informal– Impromptu– Personal attention– Catching people

doing things right– Teachable

moments

Overview of the “Meaningful Conversations” Appraisal Process

Formal Appraisal Overview

Plan Work & Identify Skills

Plan Work & Identify Skills

Observe & Document Performance

Observe & Document Performance

Performance AppraisalDiscussion

Performance AppraisalDiscussion

Development ReviewDevelopment Review

Performance ReviewPerformance Review

Reward ReviewReward Review

ServiceProductivityInnovation

ServiceProductivityInnovation

Business PlanJob Description

Performance Goals

Business PlanJob Description

Performance Goals

PAST

PRESENT

FUTURE

The Appraisal Process

• Components– People

• Manager• Employee• Peers

– Information• Facts• Opinions

– Emotion• Positive• Negative

Preparation

Preparation

Involvement

Involvement

CommunIcatIon

CommunIcatIon

Appraisal Procedure

• Agree on objectives

• Monitor performance

• Give sufficient notice

• Prepare necessary documentation

• Prepare location

• Conduct appraisal dialoguedialogue

• Complete documentation of agreement

• Implement plans for employee development

Appraisal Procedure

Benefits of Appraisals

Overall Benefits of Appraisals

• Increased employee performance

• Greater control of work

• Improved motivation and commitment

• Increased information flow

• Better relationships within & across the organization

Benefits of “Meaningful Conversations”

• Designed by people that know Hood College – Vision/Mission– Culture

• Designed by both supervisors and employees to promote ongoing dialogue

• Designed with a focus on best practices

Manager’s Role

• Model appropriate behavior• Reinforce the process• Set Objectives with Employees• Manage process to ensure fair evaluation for

a each member of department• Offer Accurate, Timely, Regular & Specific

Feedback• Other ideas?

Advantages to Managers

Through Performance Appraisal, Managers can :• Translate business goals into individual job objectives

and standards• Monitor performance and offer feedback• Communicate and seek agreement on objectives• Coach employees on how to achieve their performance

objectives• Identify employees strengths and areas for growth• Generate and agree development plans to best serve

the organizations and individual needs

Employee’s Role

• Set Objectives with Manager

• Review current job responsibilities

• Improve Performance

• Be actively involved in their Development

• Suggest ways to improve departmental efficiency

• Be personal advocate

Advantages to Employees

Through Performance Appraisal, Employees can:– Openly discuss performance with managers– Be provided with a development tool– Reinforce and sustain performance– Improve existing performance– Determine career progression goals– Identify training needs– Be engaged in meaningful work – Be empowered to take initiative

Meaningful Conversations Promotes Empowerment

“Empowerment is the process of enabling or authorizing an individual to think, behave, take action, and control work and decision making in autonomous ways. It is the state of feeling self-empowered to take control of one's own destiny.”

http://humanresources.about.com/od/glossarye/a/empowerment_def.htm

And employee engagement

• “…is a positive attitude held by the employee towards their job and the organization. The three components of an engagement are beliefs, emotions and behaviors.” http://www.hrvalid.com/eei1.htm

• Research says :– Senior mgmt has sincere interest

in employees’ well-being– Organization provides

challenging work– Opportunity for development– Resources to do the job– Opinions that matter– Appropriate decision-making

authority– Safe work environment

Why are empowerment and engagement important?

• Highly engaged employees are less likely to leave

• Individuals who are empowered and engaged are more– satisfied, motivated, committed, productive,

innovative, and service-oriented– Have higher morale– Less burnout

Communication Skills

Communication: A Critical Tool

• Sender and Receiver

• Questioning and listening

• Clarifying and responding

• Understanding and summarizing

Questions promote dialogue

Design your question to close an information gap

OpenOpenOpenOpen ProbingProbingProbingProbing ReflectiveReflectiveReflectiveReflective

HypotheticalHypotheticalHypotheticalHypothetical ClosedClosedClosedClosed

Listening

AvoidingMaking

Judgment

AvoidingMaking

Judgment

Keepingan

Open Mind

Keepingan

Open Mind

Taking theTime

to Listen

Taking theTime

to Listen

Not Interrupting

Not Interrupting

Shift fromTalking

Listening

Language

• Choose language which the employee will understand easily – Talk to get your point across not to show that

you are a ‘gifted orator’

– Check for understanding if the topic is technical

– Watch out for • jargon• acronyms• ‘big words’• ‘trigger words’

Common Mistakes

• Halo Effect• Pitchfork Effect• Contrast Effect• Spillover Effect

• Recency Effect• Comparing• Mirroring• Nice Guy/Gal

The Appraisal

The Formal Appraisal

Appraisal Areas

Preparation

Writing the Appraisal

Do’s and Don’ts

Goals

Self Esteem

Structuring the Appraisal

Appraisal Areas

• Performance (What)– Job responsibilities/duties– Accountabilities– Business targets– Key performance

indicators (KPI’s)– Objectives– Key result areas

• Skills & Knowledge (How)– Technical– Managerial– Interpersonal– Professional – Business– Product

Preparation

• Preparation includes– Reflection - before completing document

• Information gathering – from a variety of sources– Collect all relevant information, not just what will confirm your own

views!

– Documentation• Make sure the participant and you have the appraisal

documents completed correctly

– Organizing a venue• Somewhere neutral and undisturbed• Make sure the phones are off• Put a ‘Do not disturb’ sign on the door

– Scheduling a time• Plan it into your diary and block it from interruption

Writing the Performance Appraisal

• Review the employee’s performance over the last year & your file of past performance discussions

• Identify in particular areas for praise and also areas for improvement

• Ensure completeness

• Make sure the documents are clearly written and used in a way to encourage the employee’s participation

Writing the Performance Appraisal

• Be Specific

– Where Outline Major Accomplishments of the Past Year

– Illustrate how they supported the overall success of the team/company

– Select areas for improvement and show how they impacted on this year’s performance

– Give Examples– Quantify

Writing the Performance Appraisal

• Note Key Strengths– Key Areas where the employee excels– Describe areas of strength

• Note Areas of Development– Areas of Growth & Improvement– Skills/Competencies to be developed

• Summarize Overall Performance Effectiveness– Describe overall effectiveness in terms of team and

organization

Appraiser Activities

• Mentoring/Coaching

• Information Provider

• Encouraging

• Advising

• Clarifying problems

• Questioning

• Seeking Agreement

• Summarizing

Appraisal Fundamentals - Do’s

• Focus on Behavior

• Be Specific

• Be Sincere

• Be Honest

• Consider Your Timing

• Check For Understanding

Appraisal Fundamentals - Don’ts

• Blame or Attack

• Offer Unsubstantiated or Unsupported Feedback

• Become Emotional or Reactive

• Label or Judge the Employee

Appraisal Fundamentals - Self Esteem

• Do– Make positive

comments– Display acceptance– Reduce negative

feelings– Share experiences– Indicate

understanding and empathy

• Don’t– Devalue person– Use negative verbal

and non-verbal behaviors (e g , sigh)

– Show impatience– Be condescending

Goal Setting

• When setting performance or development objectives apply the SMART criteria– Specific– Measurable– Achievable– Relevant– Time Bound

Objectives set in this manner have an improved chance of being realized

Structuring the Appraisal

• The Appraisal has 3 distinct phases

BeginningPhase

BeginningPhase

MiddlePhase

MiddlePhase

EndPhase

EndPhase

Structuring the Appraisal

• The Beginning Phase– 3 Parts

• The Rapport Building– Short and personalized Set the employee at ease

• The Review of the Purpose– Outline the reason for the meeting and indicate that you

will be taking notes Invite the employee to take notes as well

• The Building of the Agenda– This is a shared process so as to develop ownership with

the employee It also recognizes their right to be consulted

Structuring the Appraisal

• The Middle Phase– Use the agenda which has been jointly

developed to guide the process • Stay focused on the point • Finish each point on the agenda and agree

actions that have been decided during the discussion

• Control the process

Structuring the Appraisal

• The End Phase– Signal that the process is ending

• Check if there are any additional matters that the employee wants to raise

– Summarize the action points that have been decided upon

• It can be useful to get the employee to do the summary• Check for understanding and acceptance

– Conclude the meeting • Try to end on a high note and thank the employee for

their contribution

The Appraisal Discussion

The Appraisal Discussion

Discussion

Framing

Disagreement

Criticism

Feedback

The Performance Appraisal Discussion

• Actively Listen– Don’t interrupt– Do Clarify– Do Paraphrase– Do Problem Solve

• There should be no surprises!– Regular performance meetings with employees

will ensure that surprises are avoided

The Performance Appraisal Discussion

• Make sure that it is a discussion not a lecture!

• Make sure that the employee participates

• Make sure that there is clarity in terms of the issues discussed and the action points that come out of them

• Get Signed Agreement on the Appraisal and on any action plans

Positive Framing

• Dependent upon– Tone & Pitch

– Body language

– Language

– Structure of the sentence

If There is Disagreement

• Listen to the Employee’s Opinion

• Assess Any New Information as Appropriate

• Should the Employee not Agree to sign the Appraisal - document this fact

• The Employee can choose to add an addendum or rebuttal - this should be signed also by your manager and HR representative

• Sign and date the Appraisal including any rebuttals

Giving Criticism

• Constructive criticism– Collect the evidence on what you are to give constructive

criticism on

– Ration the criticism so that it will be effective

– Prioritize the criticism

– Avoid going over old ground

– Balance between criticism and praise

– Compartmentalize the criticism

Receiving Criticism

• The appraisal process may offer the employee a chance to criticize you as a manager so you need to be able to take criticism as well

– Listen to the critic, then repeat back the criticism

– Ask the critic to specify the problem

– Search for a solution to the problem

Feedback of Results

• Types of Feedback Interviews–Tell and Sell

–Tell and Listen

–Problem Solving

–Coaching

Feedback of Results

• Tell & Sell

– The feedback is designed to • Tell the participant what is wrong • Show the participant what must be improved

• Sell the improvement process• Motivate the participant to change

Feedback of Results

• Tell & Listen

– The feedback is designed to • Tell the participant what is wrong • Show the participant what must be improved

• Listen to what the participant intends to do to generate the required changes

• Motivate the participant to change

Feedback of Results

• Problem Solving

– The feedback is designed to • Identify the problem

• Clarify what the root cause of the problem is

• Design a solution that will eliminate the problem

• Agree on an implementation plan

Feedback of Results

• Coaching– The feedback is designed to

• Identify the challenges faced by the participant

• Decide on what type of coaching (directive or non-directive) best suits the situation

• Assist the participant to design their own solutions to the challenges

• Provide a source of advice through the activity of implementing the solutions

Listening to understand- Reflecting- Paraphrasing

SummarizingAsking ‘good’ questionsMaking suggestionsGiving feedback

Offering Guidance- Giving advice

Instructing- Telling

PUSHsolving someone’s problem for them

PULLhelping someone

solve their ownproblem

Directive

NonDirective

Directive & Non-directive Coaching

Problems with Appraisals

Appraisal Problems

• Appraisal problems can arise due to

PeoplePeople

ProcessProcess

PreparationPreparation

What problems are you expecting?What problems are you expecting?

People Problems

• The performance appraisal can run into problems that are centered on people due to:– Lack of trust in the appraisal process– The appraisal process is seen as generating

negative experiences based on past activity – Focus on personality rather than performance– Poorly trained people conducting the appraisals

• What can you do to make this a positive experience for your team?

Process Problems

• Process problems can arise due to:

– Poor process design– Complex process– Poor fit with the capabilities of the organization– Lack of training– Little or no co-ordination of the activities– Little or no real support for the process from the

senior management level – No credibility

Preparation Problems

• These can arise due to:– Lack of time allotted to carry out the process in a

professional and complete manner – Lack of a support structure– Unclear objectives– No value assigned to the process therefore it has no

priority in terms of preparing – Poor training in the process

• How will you ensure that you and your team are prepared for “Meaningful Conversations”?

Common Appraisal Problems

• Time consuming

• Can de-motivate

• Retrospective

• Can cause frustration and confusion

• Stresses disagreement

• Inaccurate results

Problems with Appraisals

• Unclear goals

• Unrealistic goals

• No attention paid to goals

• Fear

• Criticism is avoided

• No link to overall strategy for the company

Problems with Appraisals

• Poor communication

• Bad or no preparation

• Interruptions

• Postponement of the appraisal interview

• Lack of trust

• Linked to pay

Preparing your Action Plan

• Scheduling frequent formal discussions– How– When– What

• Capitalizing on informal discussions– Demonstrate your ongoing interest in the

employee and his/her work– Capture the information for future review

Meaningful Conversations Forms

– Mostly narrative – Adult to Adult interaction

– Progress, Accomplishments, Strengths, Innovation

– Development, Mentoring– Future planning

• Goals

• Changes

– Rating person on the same factors as the supervisor

– Rating of competencies and Professional Characteristics

– Conversation Points– Accomplishments and

Commendations– Recommendations

Supervisor Form

How does the structure of these forms help to facilitate Meaningful Conversations?

Employee Form

Summary

• Preparation is vital• Meaningful Conversations is a two way process• Communication skills are vital• Clear and positive language is required• Objective setting should be smart• Know the pitfalls and observe them• Your participation is important to the

success of this process• Feedback will be used to continuously improve

the process

Feedback

• Additional concerns

• Questions

• Other information