Glossary of Human Resources Management and Employee Benefit Terms
Employee appraisal is a systematic approach that provides valuable insights into individual employee contributions and helps organizations make informed decisions regarding promotions, training and development, compensation, and overall workforce management.
The employee appraisal process involves evaluating various aspects of an employee's job performance, including their skills, competencies, accomplishments, and areas for improvement. It serves as a constructive tool for managers and supervisors to provide feedback, set goals, and establish performance expectations.
Employee appraisal, or performance appraisal or performance review, is a process in which an employer evaluates and assesses an employee's job performance, achievements, strengths, areas for improvement, and overall contribution to the organization.
It typically involves a formal discussion between the employee and their supervisor or manager, where feedback is provided, goals are set, and performance is measured against predetermined criteria.
Employee appraisal is important for several reasons:
When writing appraisal comments for employees, it's important to be clear, specific, and constructive. Here are some guidelines to follow:
1. Be specific: Provide specific examples and details to support your comments. Instead of general statements, focus on specific instances or projects where the employee demonstrated certain skills or behaviors.
Example: "Sarah consistently goes above and beyond in her customer service interactions. Last month, she handled a difficult customer complaint with professionalism and successfully resolved the issue, resulting in positive feedback from the customer."
2. Use objective language: Use objective language that focuses on observable behaviors and outcomes. Avoid personal opinions or assumptions.
Example: "John consistently meets his sales targets, achieving a 20% increase in revenue compared to the previous quarter. He demonstrates strong sales skills by effectively identifying customer needs and providing tailored solutions."
3. Balance strengths and areas for improvement: Acknowledge the employee's strengths and accomplishments, but also provide constructive feedback on areas where they can improve. Offer suggestions or resources for development.
Example: "Linda has shown exceptional project management skills, consistently delivering projects on time and within budget. However, I recommend she further develop her presentation skills to enhance her ability to effectively communicate project updates to stakeholders."
4. Be constructive and future-focused: Provide feedback that can help the employee grow and develop. Focus on actionable suggestions and provide support or resources to assist them in improving their performance.
Example: "Michael, your attention to detail in your work is commendable. To further enhance your skills, I suggest participating in a time management workshop to improve your efficiency and ensure timely completion of tasks."
5. Maintain a respectful and professional tone: Use a respectful and professional tone in your comments. Avoid overly negative or critical language, and provide feedback that encourages growth rather than discourages.
Example: "Jennifer, your contributions to the team have been valuable. I encourage you to further develop your teamwork and collaboration skills by actively seeking opportunities to share knowledge and support your colleagues."
Effective performance appraisals can increase employee performance by:
To appraise employee performance effectively, consider the following steps:
To conduct appraisals with employees effectively, consider the following tips:
These are short surveys that can be sent frequently to check what your employees think about an issue quickly. The survey comprises fewer questions (not more than 10) to get the information quickly. These can be administered at regular intervals (monthly/weekly/quarterly).
Having periodic, hour-long meetings for an informal chat with every team member is an excellent way to get a true sense of what’s happening with them. Since it is a safe and private conversation, it helps you get better details about an issue.
eNPS (employee Net Promoter score) is one of the simplest yet effective ways to assess your employee's opinion of your company. It includes one intriguing question that gauges loyalty. An example of eNPS questions include: How likely are you to recommend our company to others? Employees respond to the eNPS survey on a scale of 1-10, where 10 denotes they are ‘highly likely’ to recommend the company and 1 signifies they are ‘highly unlikely’ to recommend it.
When providing employee appraisal feedback, here are ten phrases that can be used as examples: