The Need is for More Effective Personal Reviews

The Need is for More Effective Personal Reviews

There is an increasing tendency to do away with annual performance reviews and it is interesting to learn that IBM is another global organisation going down that path. That is as it should be, for performance assessment should be an ongoing activity. It is also one that is most honestly done by the employee when the pressures of measurement and its consequences are removed, including the link to remuneration.

Career development, however, is a different matter. This is not something the person can address unilaterally: it calls for a conversation. Managers still need to sit down with employees and ascertain to what extent they are growing and developing as people, how their work is contributing to that, and what needs to be done to provide and sustain that self-development.  You have to wonder to what extent this is being addressed, and whether this new trend will improve the situation or make things worse.

The inherent flaw of nearly all HR and OD initiatives: is that they start from the organisational perspective. And how can you look at an employee’s career profile without addressing the employee’s personal aims and aspirations?  

Any employment relationship begins with the mutual assessment of two fundamental elements, depicted in the chart below.

Inherently 2 dimensional, this still fails to adequately address the individual’s career. This is because:

  • A career is a journey and not a point in time;
  • The individual and the organisation are two entirely different entities whose aims and aspirations are not necessarily aligned.  
  • The employee is currently filling a role which is part of that journey and is looking at these elements with a longer term lens. On the other hand the employer is usually looking at them in the context of their current role and more specifically as a basis for assessing their performance in that specific role rather than the context of their career.  

Despite being more personal this still has a predominantly organisational bias from the employer perspective and that is what ultimately shapes the relationship. Over time a third dimension comes into play: application. This is where the rubber hits the road and attitude and ability combine. This then becomes the dominant factor in performance appraisals, but still the organisational perspective dominates. It is hardly any wonder then that performance reviews, which have generally been little more than an unpleasant bureaucratic exercise for employees, are increasingly being seen as futile by employers too.  

Yet the shortcoming has only been in the different perspectives of both parties. Attitude, Ability and Application are the 3 essential elements of personal assessment for both and key to the Zealise Triple A performance methodology which is an integral part of the ‘Every Individual Matters Model. ’ They provide the core for individual development and personal growth and so underpin career development.

To be effective, however, you only need to stop viewing things from a totally organisational viewpoint. This requires a mechanism for aligning the individual, their personal and career development and the organisation. And that is the other facet of the ‘Every Individual Matters Model.’ It provides the catalyst for common purpose and a longer term framework that aligns individual development with organisational strategy to create a win-win for both parties.

The conversation described earlier should no longer be a performance review but rather a personal review. The focus is on the individual, with the organisation providing the context. This makes it more all-embracing and compels both parties to recognise and address the work-life integrity of the individual, both immediately and in the longer term.  This cements a collaborative effort – a partnership – that inevitably benefits both parties. 

Votes: 0
E-mail me when people leave their comments –

You need to be a member of DPG Community to add comments!

Join DPG Community

Get Involved

Start a discussion in one of the following Zones