Performance Appraisal and Coaching: Improving Results with Feedback

To survive in these tough times an organization must perform at the highest level of effectiveness. Companies have to execute strategies efficiently and effectively and they would need their employees to perform at high levels in a rapidly changing business environment. At the same time, employees have high expectations that work should be satisfying and fulfilling.

To become more successful, companies would require all employees to be engaged in their work and feeling positive about their job.

 As managers we probably know who among our employees achieve goals and who do not. We probably also know who are satisfied with their jobs and who are not. Those who are achieving their goals and energized in their work are probably in the right job, have the skills to do the job, and given the recognition for it. Others who are not performing very well may be the right person in the wrong job and may either be lacking in skills to do the job or may be bored because they are over qualified for the job.

It is important for us to know the basic reasons why certain employees are engaged while others are not because it would help shape the way we would coach and appraise their performance. As managers we would like our employees to be high performers and fulfilled in their jobs because other than that, they could be a drag to our operations in the short term and be a liability for us in the long-term. We may therefore end up filling positions rather than executing strategies.

Coaching

So, for those employees who are not performing well because they are in the wrong job or are too bored with a job they are overqualified to do, the coaching task would be to discuss the situation with the employees and review with them our expectations and our observation of their behavior and ask them for their perspective on our expectations and observations. And based on our discussion with them we can agree on a plan to find jobs within the company that fit the qualification of these people. If that is not possible then the task would be to help them find a job outside the company. This would allow us to hire replacements that could become more productive and improve the results for our company because the new recruits fit the available jobs.

Now, in coaching the rest of the remaining employees, managers need to be aware of the employee’s development level because each employee would need different types of coaching at each stage of his development. If the coaching approach does not fit the development level of the employee, he or she may end up more demotivated rather than motivated to perform.

For those employees who are lacking in skill, either because they are new or have just been moved to a new job, as a coach we could provide the kind of training that would help them learn the skills that they need. A new employee or a newly promoted employee may lack the knowledge for the job that may have been assigned to him or her and may be ignorant about his or her own performance and they would appreciate any help they can get. Under this situation, a manager has to provide clear and specific directions, information on when and how the results will be measured, data to show why the results are achievable, context by sharing knowledge about the business to show the relevance of his job, and a clear timeline to produce the results expected of him. A manager may even have to provide strong guidance and direction by looking over his or her shoulders while he or she is doing the job. And a manager must also be prepared to accept some failures from the new or newly promoted employee while he or she tries doing the kind of work expected of him or her.

Coaching for new employees or employees in new positions are done on a daily basis, to look at their performance and identify the skills and capabilities that the employee has and encouraging them to use them to the best of their ability. This activity is very important because at the back of the mind of each employee is the question: “How am I doing?” Employees would like to know how their efforts are being considered and whether there are things that could still be improved. If a new employee has to be successful he needs to be trained on work-related skill, techniques and knowledge and it has to be nurtured on a daily basis.

To coach, it would be best to document our observation about the specific behavior of the employee and the results achieved on a daily basis so that there is credibility in the way we will coach. If we fail to document our observation the possibility of us forgetting the details is great. Without proper documentation, we could become vague and our discussion with the employee may end up in a difference in opinion and a debate as to what really happened resulting in disgruntled feelings.

In coaching the employee, it would be helpful to always begin by explaining the purpose of the conversation so that the employee understands what is going to be discussed and it prepares him to respond properly. It must be followed with a review of our expectation about his job and our observation about his behaviors/skills and the results achieved. It would be good to ask for his perspective on our expectations and our observation because we could learn a lot from his body language and tone of voice how he feels about the work he is doing and how he is progressing. Based on our evaluation of his reaction we can then agree on an action plan to maintain or improve performance within a certain period of time and the kind of support we can give to help him or her on the job.

As the employee progresses and learns his job and achieves the kind of results expected of him he may still not have the kind of confidence that would make him more successful in his job. Your coaching job may then have to provide more support rather than directives. Rather than telling the employee what to do, it would mean asking more questions on how he or she plans to achieve the goals and offering some favorable and encouraging comments or offering some helpful observation about the plan. This change in approach would provide the employee a measure of recognition for the ability he has gained and is signaling to him the opportunity to become more independent.

And as the employee becomes confident and an expert on the job he had been assigned to, the kind of coaching provided further changes into just clarifying your expectations and letting him know that you rely on his experience to get the kind of results expected of him. You may also like to remind him or her that you are available in case he needs your support. But most of all you will have to make it clear to the employee that you would still like to be informed of the results. This would allow the employee more freedom in how to do the work and give him a measure of fulfillment in his job.

There is no one best way to coach an employee. It would have to be adapted to the employee’s development level based on his goals in order to provide him the kind of help that he needs to get the best out of him or her.

Performance Appraisal 

While coaching is done to look at the performance and identify the skills of an employee on a daily basis and advising and encouraging him or her to do their best, a performance appraisal is done to review and score the work of an employee within a certain period of time based on the goals that had been agreed upon and on the resources that had been provided. Coaching is done to address and solve a problem, whereas performance review is done to manage and improve the performance of individual employees, so that it would lead to enhanced overall organizational efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity.

The success of a performance appraisal depends a lot on whether standards or clear goals had been established and agreed to between the supervisor and the employee at the beginning of the period being reviewed. The observation and documentation of the behavior and results achieved by the employee compared to the employee’s goals and expectations should be used in evaluating the performance of the employee.

 As a first step, the manager should inform the employee of the scheduled performance review and the purpose of the review so that the employee can prepare. Needless to say, the manager should also take time to review his documentation of the work of the employee and the overall result achieved by the employee.

In the performance review meeting, the manager should state the purpose of the meeting and review with the employee the agreed upon goals. Once the goals are clarified, the manager should allow the employee to comment on his assessment of his own performance against his goals for the period. Once the employee is finished with his evaluation, the manager can then tell the employee his own evaluation based on his observation and documentation. If the documentation and observation is accurate, getting an agreement on the overall performance of the employee would be less difficult. It will also help prevent the attribution error where an employee would attribute negative results to outside forces and positive results to his or her own skills. And in discussing the performance of the employee, the manager must see to it that the self-esteem of the employee is maintained and the meeting ends on a positive note.

Performance appraisal is another way by which managers get results. It is used to shape employees’ behavior by engaging and aligning individual and group effort to accomplish the goals of the company. After the performance appraisal, the results may be used for decisions on salary increases, training and career development, promotion and recognition, or disciplinary action.

Improving Results with Feedback

When performance appraisal is used together with coaching the right people who are in the right job, the performance of people are expected to improve because of their desire to learn and improve their craft and earn the respect of their peers.

Of course, the system and culture of the organization could not be ignored when it comes to getting better results. Most work is the product of a group of people working within a system of interdependent processes and reflects the cooperation of all individuals and processes. Therefore, in addition to coaching and performance appraisals managers must also see to it that a system or culture of high productivity and teamwork is built into the organization.