Performance Evaluation

“What is expected to be delivered by an individual or a set of individuals within a timeframe. What is expected to be delivered could be stated in terms of results or efforts, tasks, and quality, with the specification of the condition under which it is to be delivered" (Kumari & Malhotra, 2012) 

Performance is an outcome, or result of an individual’s actions. An individual’s performance, therefore, becomes a function of ability and motivation (Ainsworth et al., 2002). Ngirwa (2000) defines performance appraisal as a procedure of allocating decision value to a worker's performance over an allocated time period. Employee performance evaluation is an effective tool for a measure of employee performance and implementation of strategic initiatives for the enhancement of employee performance (Lawler and McDermott, 2003). Shelley (1999) describes performance appraisal as the process of obtaining, analyzing, and recording information about the relative worth of an employee. As a primary objective, performance appraisal involves evaluating and improving the employee's real performance and future potential. Its purpose is to measure what an employee does.

As per the Zapata-Phelan (2009), the result of the performance evaluation helps administrators to motivate the workforce providing specific salary rates, take decisions of promotions, and fill the knowledge gap providing the required training.  According to that performance, evaluation has been extensively investigated inside the organizational mindset to assess employee performance. Moats (1999) clarifies that in the early twentieth century, performance appraisals of large organizations were increasingly used for administrative purposes.

Levy & Williams (2004) illustrates that performance evaluation is the most important human resource function within the company by which evaluators or managers examine and evaluate the performance of their employees. In contrast, Rao (2004) and DeNisi and Pritchard (2006) have been depicted, inaccurate and political outcomes affected the performance evaluations and it makes employee dissatisfaction. Hence it is very important to analyze the factors affecting to result of the performance evaluation method.

As per the Lansbury and Quince (1988), performance appraisal is defined as "the process of recognizing, assessing and increasing the work performance of the organization's workers in order to more effectively accomplish the goals of the organization, while promoting employees. Employees in terms of appreciation, receipt of commentaries, providing, and assistance from the carrier". In most organizations of these eras, recruit employees for revenue only. Employers always consider about effects and impacts, though not care about employees. Employees are the daily employees of the association. Hence, if the organization could take the time to recognize its contributions, provide feedback on their performance, and offer career guidance, it could have inspired them to work harder, even further. Teratanawat, Riitano, and Kleiner (2006) suggest that effective performance appraisal leads to lower levels of employee stress.

In general, performance evaluation is a process that measures the degree of accomplishment of the tasks constituting the work of an employee. It reflects the extent to which an employee fulfills the requirement of a position by assessing and evaluating people by managers. However, when considering the reasons that delay the effectiveness of performance evaluation, it is judicious to do so knowing that performance appraisal takes place in a social background in which a manager allocates a job to an employee and, on the other hand, the position and, finally, the manager assesses the employee based on the work assigned to the employee and, therefore, employees and managers have encouragement and influence on the process of evaluating performance.

The concept of performance evaluation is complex in its content and can be considered in different ways in terms of the theory, approach or process used. It is influenced not only by economic aspects but also by sociological, political, psychological, ethical, religious, and cultural values. 

Performance evaluation is considered a systematic evaluation that measures employee performance and development potential. In a specific period, performance appraisal is evaluated to measure the employee’s job performance. Work performance is different from one to another and work performance depends on many causes such as work experience, knowledge, talents, and abilities, propensity to stay in an occupation so on. Differences control the need for training/development activities. Performance appraisal alike a scorecard that managers measured their performance over an appraisal cycle. So, it is needed for the management to identify differences so that employees having better job performance skills, ability and knowledge can be rewarded on one hand, and the wrong employments of the workers may be checked over transfer or punishments on other hands. To sum up, performance appraisal delivers a measure in order to know the level of performance so that the employee may develop his/her performance.

The main objectives of performance evaluation are

• To find the gap between the expected and the actual performance.
• To assist the management in training organizational controls
• Assist to increase the relationship and communication between superior - subordinates and management - employees.
• To identify the strengths as well as weaknesses of the workers so as to identify the training and development needs of the future.
• Give feedback to employees about their past job performance.
• Provide information to support the decisions of other personnel of the organization.
• To measure the effectiveness of the other human resource functions of the organization such as recruitment, selection, training, and development.

References

Ainsworth, B. E., Booth, M. L., Pratt, M. I. C. H. A. E. L., Ekelund, U., Yngve, A. G. N. E. T. A., Sallis, J. F., & Oja, P. E. K. K. A., 2003. International physical activity questionnaire: 12-country reliability and validity. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 195(9131/03), pp 3508-1381

DeNisi, A. S., & Pritchard, R. D., 2006. Improving individual performance: A motivational framework. Management and Organization Review, 2, pp. 53–277

Kumari, N.  & Malhotra, R, 2012.  ‘Effective Performance Management System for Enhancing Growth’, Global Management Journal, 4(1/2):77-85.

Lawler, E.E. and McDermott, M., 2003. Current performance management practices. WorldatWork Journal, 12(2), 49-60.

Levy, P., & Williams, J., 2004. The social context of performance appraisal: a review and framework for the future. Journal of Management, 30(6), pp. 881-905.

Moats, J., 1999. Consequences of the performance appraisal experience. Personnel Review, 39(3), pp. 375-396

Shelley, S., 1999. Diversity of appraisal and performance-related pay practices in higher education. Personnel Review, 28(5/6), pp 439-454

Teratanavat, R., Raitano, R., & Kleiner, B., 2006. How to Reduce Employee Stress. Nonprofit World, Volume 24(3), p. 22 – 24.

Zapata-Phelan, C., Colquitt, J., Scott, B., and Livingston, B., 2009. Procedural Justice, Interactional Justice, and Task Performance: The Mediating Role of Intrinsic Motivation. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Vol. 108, No. 1, pp. 93–105