Why are doing Performance Appraisals and Performance Management?

Friday, September 30, 2011 by John Rice
This was a key question at a recent client meeting, where the desire was to find a new way to implement performance appraisals and performance management in a way that was productive and engaging.

We often find that when talking to clients about another area of our expertise, namely, 360 degree feedback, that this question of 'Why are we doing this?' is more readily discussed and easier to identify.

This is because the concept of conducting a 360 degree feedback process is a conscious decision for the organisation; it might support a leadership development programme or be part of an assesssment centre initiative - in any case, it is evaluated with a specific purpose in mind.

However, when it comes to performance appraisals, this conversation doesn't always happen, because there are just accepted as 'something we have to do'.

As a consequence, it can become easy to focus on the process and the detail of performance appraisals, without really considering what you hope to achieve with them.

Once there is a clear understanding of what you truly want performance management and appraisals to acheive within the business, ideas as to how you can make them productive and engaging become much easier.

John
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360 Feedback Debriefs; how far should you go?

Wednesday, September 28, 2011 by John Rice
A topic that often comes up for discussion time and again with our clients is about what the remit should be of a 360 degree feedback debrief; the session where you share an individual's 360 feedback report with them (ideally for the first time).

We favour that it only goes as far as highlighting the key strengths and development opportunities for the individual; moving into 'coaching' mode and seeking to start creating actions or ways to resolve things in the report is often premature.

Coupled with this is to go at the pace if the individual concerned; sometimes they may well be able to contemplate development actions and begin planning ways to act upon the feedback, in which case you can follow their lead if the report has been fully explored.

Similarly, we often find individuals who need to 'go away and think about it' and this is equally valid.

John
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Free 360 degree feedback seminar...last few places remaining

Monday, September 19, 2011 by John Rice
 
Our popular series of 360 degree feedback seminars continues, so if you haven't already registered then we would like to invite you to reserve one of the few remaining places at our next free seminar on October 12th 2011, which is being sponsored by one of our clients, the law firm, DMH Stallard, at their central London offices.
 
To register a place & receive your invitation, just click below:
 
 
By the end of this 2 hour seminar, you will:
 
  • Understand the critical factors that will ensure success when introducing 360 into your business
  • Take away a checklist to help you work logically through the implementation process
  • Appreciate the key principles that will help you design a great questionnaire, communicate effectively to get company wide 'buy-in' and facilitate face-to-face debriefs.
Previous delegate comments include:

"Short, sharp and to the point. Well delivered by very experienced consultants. Thank you"

"Very informative and helpful, we came away with some great tips and ideas for our implementation of 360"

"Good relaxed atmosphere and very useful and practical information provided."

Go to seminar registration page

This seminar will be very interactive and allow plenty of opportunity to network with other delegates,discuss best practice and offer ample time for Q & A if you have specific issues to be addressed.

 
Places are limited to just 25 delegates with just a few more remaining.
 
We really do hope you can join us for what promises to be a great morning with stunning views across London!
 
 
Many Thanks
 
John

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The importance of employee performance appraisals in a downturn

Friday, September 9, 2011 by John Rice
News reports of a possible 'double dip' recession, with all the hand wringing and mud slinging that go with it, does raise an often thorny yet important issue for all organisations.

Accurate employee performance appraisal information is critical in helping organisations through a downturn.

Hard choices will have to be made and priorities decided upon, but they should not be to the detriment of the organisation in the long term.

A way to ensure this is to base decisions upon good objective feedback (360 feedback or otherwise) and objective performance data...or as near to that nirvana as you can get.

Taking an objective, fair but more robust approach to performance management has never been more important as companies may have to face doing more with less.

John
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Do your managers need Performance Appraisal Training?

Thursday, September 8, 2011 by John Rice
If, like most organisations consistently report, both Line Managers and employees are unhappy about the quality (and sometimes quantity) of performance appraisals, then the answer may very well be 'Yes'.

Not unsuprisingly, as with 360 degree appraisals, an online system is not enough - there has to be a good understanding of what the purpose of the performance appraisal is there for, it's essential role within the wider context of performance management, and what fundamental skills are required for a constructive outcome.

Without skilful handling, an appraisee may find that an online system has simply made a unproductive process more efficient!

There have been a number of quick polls in various HR magazines, which highlight how organisations feel that their Line Managers are poor at performance management and appraisals; the effect is recorded on the other side of the coin too, with employees feeling that their Line Managers often fall short of their expectations.

With this in mind, we now regularly complement our online performance appraisal solutions with a new training programme "Conducting Effective Performance Appraisals" - as with the 360 programme, it is a one day programme and marries some essential theory with some tailored role-play.

This fits with our ethos that if you can encourage individuals to have meaningful conversations, be they Line Managers with staff, Directors with the organisation or team members with each other, then ultimately better choices can be made and performance can improve.

John
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When a Strength is a Development Need in 360 feedback

Wednesday, September 7, 2011 by John Rice
We recently conducted a number of face-to-face 360 feedback debriefs and was mindful of the growing interest in 'Applied Positive Psychology' and how it promotes a different way of thinking about ourselves and others in the workplace.

In essence, it is concerned with the strengths a person displays and how they can be best deployed within their role, and potentially capitalised on beyond their current position.

The feedback people receive is always full of strengths and these can often be forgotten as the 'development areas' are sought out, with an overwhelming desire to 'fix things'.

It is important to dwell on the strengths, understand them, explore them, celebrate them and consider how they can best put to use.

We will often add these strengths into any personal development plan and encourage the recipient to consider actions which will bring these to the fore as well as address any developmental needs.

John

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Remembering what makes 360 degree feedback succeed

Thursday, September 1, 2011 by John Rice
I recently compiled this list on the basis of my experience with a few clients we have successfully supported in getting their own 360 degree feedback programme underway:
 
  1. Support the Process with Trained People

An area where I often see 360 degree feedback, and other forms of appraisal, fall over is when the process is not fully supported. The most successful are when the raters, recipients and debriefers all receive training on the role that they need to play..

  1. If it’s Complicated They Won’t Do It

Implementing any new process in an organisation is fundamentally a ‘change initiative’ and as such you need to take all possible steps to make the process easy for people to adopt. To overcome this, tailor the system as much as possible to the organisation, including not too many questions, wording that the user can relate to and plenty of opportunity for free-text replies. But most of all, make it self explanatory and the system very easy to use. 

  1. The Aim is to Move Forwards – Not Just Find Out Where You Are

Always remember why you are doing a 360 degree feedback. At the end of the day, it is to use the information to develop individuals so that tangible improvements can be made to business performance.  

The best way to do this is to repeat the cycle after the training, coaching or other such intervention, so that you can accurately assess the change, improvement and impact  of the process. 

  1. Follow Through

Some companies conduct 360 degree appraisals and but do nothing with the results. Success is created by reacting quickly to the training needs, publishing clear learning and development plans and, put quite simply, getting on with making improvements as soon as you have the results.

If  nothing happens staff engagement will decrease next time. Do something positive and the benefit of appraisals will soon gather momentum across the whole organisation.

  1. Tell Everyone What’s Going On

When you introduce or move to an online 360 degree system it can raise questions in people’s minds. Why is our company deciding to do it this way? What’s changed? How’s this going to affect me personally?

Have a plan for clear, regular communication and open channels for everyone to ask their questions. It will improve the overall success and the benefits you enjoy as a business.

 John

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A top tip for conducting 360 Degree Feedback Debriefs; how to ask questions

Friday, August 26, 2011 by John Rice
I recently ran our training programme with a client, "How to conduct effective 360 degree feedback debriefs", where we train internal HR and other staff how to share a report with the recipient of 360 feedback.

Fundamentally, we see the primary aim is to ensure the recipient understands what the feedback is saying; thereafter it is necessary to get a degree of acceptance from them before helping them determine what actions they wish/need to take as a result of the is feedback i.e. Changes in day-to-day behaviours or undertaking some other focused development activity.

As a consequence of these aims, it places the 'debriefer' firmly in the role of someone trying to 'explore' the report with the recipient.

Very often I see delegates on the programme, who ask evaluative questions during the role-played debrief sessions, rather than exploratory ones:

"Do you think you are a good leader?"
"Do you feel that you should do this rather than that?"

These questions forgo the chance to review the feedback itself, which is the main aim; better questions are more inquistive in nature:

"Have you had this type of feedback before?"
"What might have prompted someone to give you this feedback, do you think?"

The latter encourage more reflection and help the individual absorb the feedback more readily.

John
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360 Degree Feedback in the context of Talent Management

Tuesday, August 23, 2011 by John Rice
As part of my ongoing postings with regard to 360 degree feedback and performance appraisals, I want to try and keep these practices within the wider context of 'Talent Management'.

Much has been said around this term, and there are numerous intrepretations of what it means - not unsuprisingly, it varies from one organisation to another as they attempt to firstly define what 'talent' means to them, and secondly as they agree what 'managing' this pool of talent actually entails.

Without veering off into too much detail at this stage, two elements that we feel are essential within any talent management initiative, are that of performance appraisals and 360 degree feedback; in effect, a measure of 'what' someone does and 'how' someone does it.

These processes sit within a talent management cycle of attraction/recruitment, management, development, and retention.

Performance Appraisals and 360 degree feedback fundamentally underpin both management and development, but naturally feed into a sensible recruitment policy and retention strategies too. 

Properly attended to, these core processes create a virtuous circle of better retention through higher levels of engagement as individuals feel invested in and cared for, thereby reducing attrition and offering better visibility of an organisations's talent, leading to reduced recruitment costs as internal staff are effectively moved around and 'up' the hierarchy. 

This is a very broad and high level view, with other benefits to be discussed, but for now it serves to simplify what has often become seen as a very complicated process.

John
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360 Feedback in the cold light of day

Friday, August 19, 2011 by John Rice
As part of the 360 degree feedback process, there is always a 'debrief', the moment when ideally an external party sits down with the recipient and hands over the report for them to digest their feedback for the first time.

This is the most critical part of the process, as we have said many times before; without a clear understanding of the feedback, the ability for the person to really identify  what it is they need to change in their behaviour, is severely hampered.

This mis-understanding or missed understanding can be triggered by an emotional response to what has been said. I recently had a client being debriefed by an internal coach who was so incensed by what their Line Manager had said, that they discounted the report entirely.

It became clear that in the debrief, the atmosphere had become so charged that every comment from the line manager was attributed to a 'poor relationship' that existed; with the internal coach being drawn into this fruitless assessment.

However, when the internal coach read through the report again, in the cold light of day, as they say, it became clear that actually the Line Manager had been both perceptive and balanced in their feedback.

This ability to step back and have a detached view of the feedback is an essential skill for any internal coach; they cannot afford to be drawn into the emotion of the moment - consequently, we advise coaches to frame the feedback to the recipient in different ways to diffuse this emotion.

Great ways to do this might be to ask what the individual would make of the feedback if it was someone else? Or if the person giving the supposed 'negative' comments was their best friend?

360 degree feedback is challenging at times, but with a skilled, detached debrief the true value can emerge.

John
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Top 5 things a Performance Appraisal should do

Wednesday, August 17, 2011 by John Rice
As we speak to many of our clients, there is very often a discussion around their current performance appraisl form and whether it if 'fit for purpose'.

They will sometimes be unsure of the form because they feel it doesn't capture the information they need it to and ask if we have examples of other forms to show them.

However, it is very rare that we have to provide alternative examples, because instinctively they do know what their form should contain; they just need to remind themselves of the purpose of the appraisal.
  • It should review the current year objectives, because we need to 'appraise' performance against these objectives...did they complete the objective and to what degree?
  • It should reflect on whether they were any obstacles that may have contributed to a failure to meet objectives; systems, processes, organisational factors, etc
  • It should set the forthcoming year objectives, to provide clear direction going forward. These should be set against the usual criteria of being SMART where appropriate.
  • It should capture the agree training & development needs for the individual; this might be structured training programmes, coaching or on-the-job mentoring.

These are 4 things a performance appraisal process or form should achieve; it may be that career aspirations, competency assessment (as with 360 degree appraisal) and an overall performance grade are also added as the form evolves.

Notwithstanding all of this, it should be remembered that the appraisal form is a means to an end, so the most important thing a performance appraisal should do is stimulate a meaningful conversation between an individual and their line manager.

John
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360 Degree Appraisal and Psychometrics

Friday, August 12, 2011 by John Rice
I had a conversation recently with a company MD and he asked what we did; I explained about how we help organisations get feedback on individuals to help them develop and modify their behaviours through on-line 360 degree appraisal solutions.

He commented that he had already conducted a Myers Briggs (MBTI) analysis of the senior management team, citing strengths and weaknesses, so didn't have any need to run a 360 process.

I can appreciate the comment, but it made me realise that there is still perhaps some confusion as to the place of these assessments and that of a 360 degree feedback process.

MBTI in my mind, is a great tool in providing an insight into the personality of an individual; their preferences, something of how they should interact with the world and others.

However, just because that is their designated 'profile', it doesn't necessarily translate into actual behaviour; who they 'are' may not give us what they 'do'.

360 degree feedback is all about what an individual does, day-to-day, and what the impact is of those behaviours and actions on those around them.

It allows an individual to see how others perceive them and make a decision as to what they wish to modify in their behaviour and what they are happy with.

So, I think personality assessments are a neat way to raise self-awareness, but nothing quite hits home the way feedback does from your colleagues, direct reports and boss.

John
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360 Degree Feedback as a 'change' project...communication is key

Wednesday, August 10, 2011 by John Rice
A recent project had me very closely involved in not only the design and introduction of an online 360 degree feedback solution, but also in advising the client as to how such a  system should be talked about with their employees.

We are very passionate about the fact that introducing 360 degree feedback as a process or even migrating a performance review system on-line will only succeed if you manage to communicate the benefits and allay the concerns of your staff.

Implementing these new processes constitutes a significant change for many people, and as with any change in an organisation, it has to be well managed.

That means you need to consistently, clearly and regularly communicate the change; why it is happening, how it will happen, and what the benefits are to both the individual, the line manager and the company as a whole.

As soon as you look at introducing on-line 360 degree feedback and performance appraisals in this way, you are already well on your way to having a successful launch that will ensure the organisation reaps the most from the practice.

John
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360 Degree Feedback....how dare you say that!!

Monday, August 8, 2011 by John Rice
Sometimes when we are asked to participate in a tender process for an on-line performance appraisal or 360 degree feedback solution, we usually have a list of 'essential requirements' and 'desirable requirements'.

Recently, I was responding to one of these and saw to my dismay that on the list of 'essentials' was the need to provide a 'Profanity Filter' - I understand that no organisation wishes to have a 360 degree appraisal process undermined by people using bad language or writing insulting personal statements of dubious nature, but to try and have the system police that is the proverbial sledghammer to a nut.

In our experience, the use of bad language in 360 feedback is all but non-existent, and by the time you have successfully communicated the fact that a respondents comments are going to be displayed 'verbatim' to the intended recipient, any last chance that someone will swear or label someone inappropriately, disappears.

If there really is a fear that users will use bad language in this way, there is surely a bigger issue at hand; one that no online appraisal system can remedy.

John
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We do 360 degree feedback and performance appraisals...and what do you do?

Friday, August 5, 2011 by John Rice
I have just returned from a holiday and have been musing on what I think is a common scenario when meeting people abroad, or come to that in any social situation.

The opening question is often 'And what do you do?'.....as with many people, I waiver between having a 'Elevator Pitch' response to hand, which is slick and short, and trying something more elaborate and descriptive.

"We are a provider of online solutions to HR departments" went one response....then "We are a leading provider of tailored on-line performance appraisal and 360 Degree Feedback systems"....they didn't feel right...

So I thought some more, and considered the analogy of the man who goes into the hardware shop to buy a drill.....he doesn' t want a drill, he wants to make a hole in the wall...furthermore, he doesn't just want a hole in the wall, he wants to put a nail in the wall so he can hang a beautiful picture....

Likewise, our clients don't want a 360 degree appraisal system....they want to get feedback on employees....furthermore, they don't just want the feedback for the employee, they want the employee to use the feedback to have a conversation with their line manager or coach to decide what they can do differently or skills they can develop....and finally they want that development to help the organisation perform better as a whole....

So, what do we do? We help organisations perform to the best of their ability by helping them develop their people in the right way.....now that's a picture worth painting.....

John
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It's not just about the software with performance appraisals

Wednesday, August 3, 2011 by John Rice
I caught sight of another recent survey which was looking at successful initiatives within organisations which were believed to boost productivity. 

Training for Managers was highest on the list, closely followed by performance management - this is a theme I have seen emerge in many surveys, and again highlights the critcial role of this managerial practice as a means of ensuring employees work to the best of their ability.

As with 360 degree feedback though, doing it is one thing, doing it efficiently through the use of web-based technology is another, but doing it effectively requires a mindset whereby managers realise that good performance management isn't just an annual review, or a form filing exercise, but rather a series of meaningful conversations with their team members that allow them to explore how they could improve, change and develop to maximise their contribution.

John
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Giving 360 Degree Feedback a bad name

Monday, August 1, 2011 by John Rice
A recent article from the Geelong Advertiser in Australia is a prime example of where the concept of 360 degree feedback conducted inappropriately can create real problems.

As part of a team building programme, delegates were allegedly made to sit down in a circle and say what people liked and didn't like about fellow team members; seemingly chaos ensued, tears flowed, egos were bruised and anger followed.

With the little amount of information in this report, I would still argue this isn't really 360 degree feedback; yes, some elements suggest that it is providing feedback from a variety of sources, but the process is much more than just that.

360 feedback should centre on behaviours and their impact; not likes and dislikes as reported here.

Consideration of when feedback should be given, by whom and through what medium i.e. face-to-face, online, anonymised, etc, is critical.

Finally, having a suitable support mechanism or process in place to help an individual come away with a healthy, balanced view of their feedback which aids their development is everything.

What one doesn't need is 'X-Factor' style with 'Let me tell you what I think' type comments.

Whatever happened here, it isn't 360 degree feedback which should come away with a bad name.

John





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The art of meaningful conversations in 360 degree feedback

Friday, July 29, 2011 by John Rice
We are in the process of revamping our website and our marketing collateral to better reflect our 'brand' within the field of online 360 degree feedback and performance appraisals.

As we discussed this topic, it became clear that we had evolved considerably since the early days of Bowland Solutions - not just in what we could offer our clients by way of solutions, but also in what we valued ourselves.

It was apparent that we all held a deep rooted belief in the power of feedback for individuals, and that given quality feedback, individuals would on the whole make better choices - choices around how they should develop themselves and/or improve their performance in the workplace.

This then lead on to another belief, which was that it was when there was a meaningful conversation about that quality feedback, between the individual and a skilled coach, mentor or line manager, that those choices would be even better still - the process of sharing the feedback with someone who can guide the individual through from understanding the feedback to taking action was crucial.

And so, a set of statements began to crystallise, which we feel captures what it is Bowland Solutions is really about.....not just a provider of online 360 degree feedback solutions and alike, which is part of what we do, but rather a believer in the whole process of creating foucsed questionnaires, quiet systems and insightful reports all geared to make meaningful conversations happen.

John
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After the 360 feedback debrief....what next?

Friday, July 29, 2011 by John Rice
I have spoken before about the purpose of the "debrief", that is, the meeting when the 360 degree feedback is shared with the feedback recipient in a face-to-face session.

During a recent training session around "How to conduct an effective 360 degree feedback debrief", which we run with many of our clients, I noted again that many delegates approach the debrief believing they have to 'solve' the issues raised in the report, or have to get the feedback recipient to solve the issues there and then.

They move straight to resolution mode, effectively stepping through the 'GROW' model of coaching or some such equivalent.

Of course this is valid at some point in the process as you try to help them create a 'Personal Development Plan' (or PDP),  but far more valuable time should be spent doing two key things before moving to goals and actions, and they are:

Raising Self-Awareness and Encouraging Responsibility

The feedback recipient needs time to understand the feedback and then accept it - without these crucial steps, any attempt to get them to committ to an action plan is doomed to fail.

John
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360 Degree Feedback reporting; the 3 mathematicians in the woods...

Wednesday, July 27, 2011 by John Rice
I thought I would share my own metaphor about 360 degree feedback reporting which I used with a client recently when they expressed an interest in having 'averages' for the ratings.

They perceived that this would make life easy for the reader and for managers trying to get a quick handle on how someone is 'performing' against a certain competency.

However, as we talked about what the purpose of the 360 degree feedback was, which we agreed was to provide an individual with some detailed feedback that would help them change & improve, then they could see that averaging wouldn't help in this regard.

I attempted to illustrate my point with the story of 3 mathematicians off hunting in the woods one day looking for pheasant - as they saw one nearby, the first mathematician took aim, fired and missed just to the left of the bird. The second mathematician then took aim, fired and missed just to the right of the bird.

At that point, the third mathematician put his gun down, and exclaimed "Well done gentlemen! On average, I think we hit it!".

As well as getting a mild laugh (!), we agreed that averaging for the purposes of generating a meaningful conversation isn't always the best way as it just doesn't give you the real story.....

John 

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