MSG Team's other articles

12702 The Challenges of Managing Attrition in Contemporary Organizations

The Reasons for Attrition In recent months, there has been a spate of news items about how attrition is taking its toll on many organizations in Asia and especially in the IT sector in India. Whereas in the west, because of the recession and the gloomy economic conditions, attrition is no longer an issue and […]

9540 HRM: Hiring in the Shadow of Stagnating Growth

How the times have changed for potential recruits There was a time in the late 1990s and early 2000s when the software companies were hiring anyone with some basic computer skills. A popular joke that did the rounds was about a leading software company having the message of “Trespassers would be recruited”. Such was the […]

10077 Job Description & Job Specification – Definition and Purpose

Job Analysis is a primary tool to collect job-related data. The process results in collecting and recording two data sets including job description and job specification. Any job vacancy can not be filled until and unless HR manager has these two sets of data. It is necessary to define them accurately in order to fit […]

12636 Career Management – Meaning and Important Concepts

Career management is conscious planning of one’s activities and engagements in the jobs one undertakes in the course of his life for better fulfilment, growth and financial stability. It is a sequential process that starts from an understanding of oneself and encompasses occupational awareness. An individual’s career is the sole source of one’s natural expression […]

12014 Why the Rule of Law is an absolute Necessity for Businesses to Prosper

Difference between the West and the East Why do businesses in Europe and the United States prosper when compared to the ones in Asia and Africa? Why do businesspersons find it easier to do business in the West when compared to the countries in the East? Apart from natural geographical advantages and availability of resources, […]

Search with tags

  • No tags available.

Introduction

We have discussed the performance appraisal process in earlier articles. In this article, we discuss the performance appraisal interview and its importance in the performance appraisal cycle.

The performance appraisal interview is the first round in the performance appraisal process and this is the round in which the manager communicates his evaluation of the employee’s performance during the appraisal period or the time that the employee’s performance is being evaluated.

What is a Performance Appraisal Interview?

A performance appraisal interview is the first stage of the performance appraisal process and involves the employee and his or her manager sitting face to face to discuss threadbare all aspects of the employee’s performance and thrash out any differences in perception or evaluation.

The performance appraisal interview provides the employee with a chance to defend himself or herself against poor evaluation by the manager and also gives the manager a chance to explain what he or she thinks about the employee’s performance.

In a nutshell, the performance appraisal interview precedes the normalization process and is subsequent to the employee filling up the evaluation form and the manager likewise doing so.

The interview is the stage where both sides debate and argue the employees’ side of the story as well as the manager’s perception.

Objective Evaluation versus Personal Biases

Though management theorists like to propound the benefits of objective evaluation, it is a fact in contemporary organizations that an element of personal bias enters the evaluation. This is evident from the studies and surveys done by HR consultants like Hewitt that point to the employee’s dissatisfaction with the performance appraisal process as one of the main reasons for leaving the company.

To curb the incidence of biases and heuristics playing a role in the appraisal, HR managers typically conduct orientations and trainings to both the Managers and the Employees to sensitize them to these dangers that are sometimes inherent in the process.

On the other hand, the employees’ should approach the process without unrealistic expectations and expect the Manager to agree to whatever they write on the performance evaluation form.

Hence, there is a need for both sides in the interview process to approach the same with an open mind and be as objective as possible. However, this is easier said than done and hence organizations expend resources on making the process as transparent and objective as possible.

Performance Appraisal Communication

The Right and Wrong Way to Approach a Performance Appraisal Interview

The performance appraisal interview must be taken seriously and both the employee and the manager must set aside time to go through the process. The manager cannot arbitrarily change the time or the venue and must not approach the interview in a haphazard manner.

Despite all these injunctions, it is often the case that the manager has to be reminded about the interview and then he or she hurriedly arranges the meeting. This is definitely the wrong way to approach the interview.

Further, the manager must make the time to go through the employees’ self evaluation and rate the same objectively.

Though there is no right way to conduct the performance appraisal interview, it is incumbent upon the manager to avoid the pitfalls described above.

A rule of thumb would be set aside a few days to conduct all the interviews with members of his or her team and ensure follow-ups to the process.

The follow-up is needed when the employee is not satisfied with the interview discussion and hence requests for additional time to debate the rating.

In some cases, the HR manager may need to step in to ensure that the process is concluded to the satisfaction of the employee and the manager.

Conclusion

Surveys have shown that nearly 70% of the employees who leave organizations cite the bad rating that they have got as the reason for quitting and often voice their disappointment at the process in the exit interview.

Hence, there is a need for organizations to smoothen the performance appraisal process and since the performance appraisal interview is the first step; the beginning must be made well.

Since the career progression of employees depends on the ratings that they get, the whole process must be taken seriously by all the stakeholders.

Article Written by

MSG Team

An insightful writer passionate about sharing expertise, trends, and tips, dedicated to inspiring and informing readers through engaging and thoughtful content.

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Articles

The Challenges of Managing Attrition in Contemporary Organizations

MSG Team