Revise Your Perspective on Performance Management

Employers have a great influence on the employees' development process. Employee reviews are a must to ensure a healthy workforce, but what you do with the results of the employee review has a greater impact on employee development. In order to get positive results from employee interviews, employers must change the way they view the process. The organizations must create a connection between the employee interviews and the employees' development.

Change the process for employee interviews

Employee interviews are only a fraction of what a performance management system can be used for. Many employees expect a performance appraisal, but they are not concerned with the development that will occur as a result of it, but with the usual 3% salary increase.

Instead of allowing employee interviews to become stigmatizing, you should change the way your team thinks about employee interviews. A staggering 58% of companies say they are not spending their time on performance management effectively. This must be changed.

Organizations must change the way they convey attitudes to employee interviews. The employees simply want to develop. Almost three quarters of the employees would rather have corrective feedback than positive confirmation. The problem is that managers are reluctant to give the feedback employees need to develop professionally. How can you change this? By making the employee interview mean something again. Use the information you have for the benefit of the employees. Lead them!

Change the performance management

Employers understand the need to change their performance management systems. Today, 70% of organizations are in the process of evaluating or have recently reviewed and updated their systems. It is a good start, but the development must be more than systematic. More than 90% of managers are not satisfied with the current evaluation systems. However, the management has the opportunity to change the way of thinking. Managers must be trained in how to give feedback, both negative and positive. Managers want training on how to give feedback, and 46% of them actually want guidance in these sometimes stressful conversations.

An important factor for employees' development after a performance assessment is how the manager gives the feedback. We find it telling that those who find it difficult and stressful to give negative feedback were also significantly less willing to receive it themselves. On the other hand, there was a tendency for those who rated their managers as highly effective at giving them honest and direct feedback had a significantly higher preference for receiving corrective feedback.

See results in your team

Both the manager and the employee must have a hand in the game when it comes to career development. Although employee development is largely in their own hands, they can only do so if they have the right tools - and feedback is one of those tools. Effective performance management starts with thorough employee interviews and gives employees the guidance and support they need to develop. In order to see the performance results of employees, it is recommended that managers receive training in:

• Develop a close collaboration with the employees
• Create continuous opportunities for constructive feedback
• Be proactive in addressing marginal performance
• Ensure that employees understand the company's performance standards

Although 90% do not believe that performance appraisals actually increase performance, they can if conducted in a different way. Start by training managers to provide meaningful and regular feedback. Companies that see employee interviews as something more than a formality and conduct them more often have 15% lower turnover.

Employee engagement is key to a healthier workforce. In order to bring about a change in the way employees work, you need to change the stigma attached to employee interviews in the organization. A large proportion of companies are today dissatisfied with their performance management systems. To change this, management training and employee interviews are required that contain constructive (not just positive) points.

In conclusion, transforming perspectives on performance management is paramount for employee development. IceHrm offers insights on reshaping the process, fostering a culture of constructive feedback, and maximizing the impact of employee interviews.