What is performance management?
Performance management is the act of having frequent conversations and discussions between the employee and manager to accomplish company objectives. In the past, performance management wasn’t much more than looking back at history once a year to change things accordingly. However, this way of thinking always leaves you a step behind because everything is constantly changing throughout the year—data, people, and situations. If you’re still doing employee evaluations like this, it’s time to step out of the past and into what has proven to be the way of the future for the growth and success of businesses from every industry—performance management with data-point assessments. Using a performance management system with data-point assessments allows a manager to correct the course of action in real-time. Gone are the days of using best guesses based on hindsight. With the continual evolution of technology, this way of measuring performance with data points is the preferred choice for many successful organizations.
Why is performance management important?
Most managers and employees immediately feel uncomfortable when they hear the term “performance management”. They automatically jump to those awkward thoughts about enduring a 15-minute meeting where the ill-prepared manager singles out areas where the employee needs to improve. When managers continuously communicate with their employees about performance and productivity, there really shouldn’t be any surprises at the year-end evaluation. The manager and employees need to work together to make changes as they go, and monitor the effects regularly. Regular performance management also aids employee appreciation, and, as we know, every employee wants to feel appreciated for what they do. Having a manager involved with the day-to-day actions of an employee makes them feel valued. It shows that the manager and the organization care about the success of the employee. When there is this type of relationship, the employee will be more comfortable giving their opinions and will be more accepting of constructive criticisms.
What is data science?
Data science is a field of study that uses different processes and systems, along with scientific methods, to pull information and insights from a wide variety of data.
How to measure data science?
A performance management system uses data-point assessments and data triangulation to measure data. In the business sense, this data to be measured would be an employee’s progress or lack thereof. The data can determine what your employees need to continually increase their productivity. Businesses use data science all the time in their data-point assessments.
What are data-point assessments?
Data-point assessments provide several pieces of key information that give employers some insight into how their employee is performing. Data points can determine what resources your employees will need to provide the business with optimal growth and success. Data points are like pieces of a puzzle. The more you fill in, the more you’ll see an accurate picture. To get the full picture of your employees’ performance and productivity—whether it’s lacking or exceeding target metrics—you need data triangulation.
What is data triangulation?
When assessing an employee’s performance, you can’t just look at the target numbers and give a pat on the back or negative criticism. There need to be ongoing discussions with employees, meaningful feedback, and a monitoring presence. Data triangulation makes this process easier by using multiple sources of data or multiple approaches to reading the data, to look for patterns and consistencies that will enhance, affirm, or denounce the projected outcome. Most organizations strive for continuous improvement, which leads to overall growth. But employees won’t always know what they need to become more productive. This is where a performance management system can use data triangulation to determine the required resources for improvement in all areas, not just productivity. There are, of course, advantages and disadvantages to data-point assessments, but the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Advantages of data-point assessments
1. Insight into the need for coaching One aspect of performance management is that you get a clearer picture of the need for conversations and additional coaching concerning individual employee performance. Ongoing conversations and coaching encourage employees, let them know you’re paying attention, and that you care about them. That is one of the best ways to promote change in attitudes and behaviours, leading to professional development. 2. Tools to aid employee development Using data-point assessment and data triangulation, you can really pinpoint what an employee needs to succeed and develop. Most employees aspire for more responsibilities and with this system, you have the tools to help them with their ambitions. 3. Data for rightful and consistent encouragement When managers take the performance management approach and deal with issues as they arise, there is little to no discomfort going into an evaluation meeting. This is because when you address issues of concern throughout the year, the appraisal is more focused on your employee’s accomplishments and the progress they’ve made, which makes them feel more encouraged. 4. Better performance with incentives Money has always been the reason people get jobs. When you combine bonuses, commissions, or raises with a performance review, it gives employees extra incentive to make and attain higher goals. 5. Data to weed out employees who can’t or don’t want to improve Some jobs just aren’t for everybody. There will always be somebody that, no matter how much training or coaching they get, just won’t make it. Using a performance management process, you will have many discussions and documentation regarding each employee’s issues. This makes termination the obvious outcome with no hard feelings if need be. It also makes it very easy to get rid of an employee who blatantly doesn’t follow the training and coaching provided. With the incidents well documented, there won’t be any recourse from the employee when terminated. 6. Ability to see the full potential of each employee A performance management system will assist with the growth and development of an employee, allowing their full potential to shine. Successful companies who use data-point assessments take pride in the developmental journey of both their employees and their businesses. 7. Insight into accurate history of performance Keeping good documentation of employee performance is another essential piece of the performance management system. It creates an accurate history of progression and what your employees need to get there. Any time you hire a new manager, they’ll have this as a resource to give them a feel of how things have developed.
Disadvantages of data-point assessments
1. Wasted time or time well spent? No matter how you look at it, the process is time-consuming. The average time a manager puts into writing an employee assessment is approximately 1 hour. Individual meetings to go over the assessment can run anywhere from ½ hour to 1 hour. The time spent on day-to-day observing, discussing, note-taking, and listening can add up quickly—depending on how many employees you have. 2. Loss of confidence The performance management process is only as good as the manager makes it. Expect your employees to feel discouraged if you only discuss negative issues. They most likely feel nervous going into this meeting and will need to hear the positive traits as well. When there are negative issues to discuss, the best approach is to start with positive feedback. Discuss any negative issues after the positive reinforcement, and end with more positive encouragement. 3. Conflicting messages We’ve all had this happen to us—only hearing about negative issues without a word about our accomplishments. We all know the feeling of not being appreciated. So, try to maintain balance when pointing out things (good or bad). 4. Favouritism and emotions How you feel about someone shouldn’t come into play when assessing their performance. You need to remain unbiased, like a judge in court. It takes a great deal of maturity for a manager to look beyond their emotions and give a fair evaluation to someone they don’t like. The same goes for an employee you like, keep things fair and true to the data-point assessment process.
The future of performance management
Performance management systems that use data-point assessments are the future for successful businesses and organizations. However, without continuous and genuine feedback, the data points are likely to have missing vital information. So, if you want to adopt this system, remember that the key component in making data-point assessments work is having skilled, well-trained managers who provide calm, mature, and clear communication.
