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Why Appraisals Don’t Work

Sadly, for many managers and staff that annual appraisal or performance review ranks as one of the most unpleasant aspects of their job, as well as the most pointless. A few years ago a study by Investors in People found that around a third of employees think that appraisals are a complete waste of time.
The same study found that half of those appraised believed that their bosses were being dishonest during the process, a quarter thought that it was just a tick box exercise and a fifth thought that their manager did not put any preparation in before their appraisal. All of these findings are a sad indictment of a process that when used properly is an invaluable performance improvement and development tool.
But why do these issues arise in the first place and what can be done to prevent them from occurring? There are a number of reasons why appraisals do not work, and have get a bad press in organisations. For example:
• Many managers believe that an appraisal is simply an annual event. However, managing an individual’s performance and development is a continual process. . People need continual feedback and support to ensure that that they perform to the best of their ability. Formally sitting down with each member of staff on regular (e.g. monthly) basis enables both the manager and employee to have full and frank discussions about progress and performance and nip any issues in the bud before they become a serious problem. By following this approach, the annual appraisal is simply a summary of all the discussions that have taken place during the year, and consequently not a surprise to either the employee or their manager.
• Often organisations dictate that appraisals must be undertaken/completed within a specific time frame, for example, during December, in time for the end of the year. However, the problem with this approach is that a manager may have 10 or more staff that they have to appraise. This becomes too much of a burden in the time available and so the manager cuts corners to get them completed. This problem is compounded if the manager concerned has staff based in different locations nationally or internationally. To combat this problem, more enlightened organisations use other approaches such as the date an employee joined as the appraisal anniversary date. In this way the manager’s task becomes spread across the year.
• Finally, too often managers do not have the skills necessary to manage the performance of their staff effectively. Performance management training should be an integral part of a manager’s recruitment or promotion. The training should include the principles of performance management as well as providing the opportunity for the participants to practice their interview and feedback skills in a safe environment.
The study that was undertaken by Investors in People highlighted a number of important issues that need to be addressed if performance appraisals are to be seen as valuable to employees and not simply a tick box exercise.