Case Study
In January of 2020, you were hired as the HR Director by your close friend, the President of Technological Innovation and Practice, Inc. Technological Innovation and Practice, Inc. is a large, growing information technology company that serves businesses around the globe. Currently, the company employs over 40 full-time IT professionals, 15 customer service agents, and 11 administrative assistants. In February of 2020, the company projected that by January of 2021, it would employ over 480 full-time professionals. While the organization has a strong employee handbook in place, the performance management system is lacking. It appears that performance appraisals have been conducted once a year; however, employees often feel shocked by their appraisal.
Scenario
Mohammed, who has worked for the organization since its inception, has explained that the formal meetings, which take place annually, are problematic. He has informed you that upper-level management provides feedback to employees; however, employees are not allowed to contribute during the feedback process. In fact, Mohammed stated that employees are only present for the meeting and cannot provide any rebuttal if they do not agree with the rating given. Furthermore, the assessment used does not allow for comments and only utilizes a four-point Likert-type scale. In the assessment, all employees, regardless of position/roles and responsibilities, are assessed based upon three factors: (1) communication, (2) problem-solving abilities, and (3) ability to work with teammates.
Based upon the information provided by Mohammed, address the following:
What are the benefits and drawbacks associated with the annual performance review process, as it currently stands? What recommendations would you make to improve the annual performance review process?
What information should be considered when creating a strong performance evaluation form? What are some of the issues associated with the current form? What recommendations would you make to improve the current performance appraisal form? Why?
What is the relationship between an organization’s annual performance review process/evaluation assessment and employee motivation?