Initiating Performance Management Prior to Recruitment Is Crucial

When most of us hear the term "performance management", we think of performance appraisals, mentoring, learning and development - all the things that happen long after we've hired people into the organization.

But smart employers know that truly effective performance management starts before we hire someone. It starts with finding and recruiting the right employees.

Who are the right employees? People who have attitudes, behavior, mindset and goals that are in line with the organization's.

If you hire people who are closely related to the organization and the best employees, their performance will be in line with the organization's needs, goals and mission. As a result, performance management will not require a lot of heavy lifting - that is, you will not need to make extensive behavioral and performance changes or costly replacements of these people. Performance management will largely be positive and developmental, not punitive and corrective.

So how do you go about finding people who fit well into your organization and match your best employees? For many employers, talent assessment tools are the answer.

Today, there are a number of assessment tools available to employers.

Finding the right assessment solution for your organization is of course a matter of adaptation. It must meet your needs and goals, but it must also fit your company culture.

A recent article on SHRM's website, "Testing for Talent: An HR Case Study," presents an interesting case study of Barnum Financial Group and their use of an assessment tool to guide coaching, communication and teamwork. The article also provides four useful tips (which we have paraphrased below) for anyone looking for the right evaluation tool for their organization:

1. Be specific about what you want to achieve.

2. Create agreement in the management about which tool best suits the organizational culture.

3. Carry out the assessment yourself to assess how accurate it is.

4. Keep your budget in mind, as you have to make both an initial investment and an ongoing investment.

There is no doubt that performance management encompasses all the activities we carry out after we have hired an employee - conducting employee interviews, coaching, development opportunities and everything else. But if we are wise, we remember that the most effective performance management actually begins before any of these activities take place. It starts with making the right recruitment and hiring decisions.

Initiating performance management prior to recruitment sets the foundation for a positive and developmental approach, aligning employees with organizational goals from the start. Join with IceHrm today achieve those goals.