The variety of responsibilities within your organization, the amount of time you have to devote to the review process, and your goals for conducting the reviews play a part in determining which approach is best for your organization.
Additionally, you can include components of each methodology in your review meetings. For instance, management by objective will assist you in tracking development toward observable objectives like sales targets.
Trait or behavior-based appraisal, on the other hand, may be helpful in determining how roles should be modified. This better allows individuals to play to their strengths or where extra training may be advantageous.
The important thing to remember is that you review each employee via the same process so as not to discriminate.
Simple rating evaluations
This ranks all employees from best to worst by comparing them to one another. It could be simple to identify who is a high flyer and who isn’t. But, it will be more difficult to rank everyone in the middle.
This approach fails because it ignores potential advantages that might not be immediately apparent. It must use a methodical approach to comparison evaluation in order to be trustworthy. Otherwise, it runs the risk of being subjective and unfair. Additionally, it makes the erroneous assumption that everyone is the same. Whereas, in fact, a company’s success depends on a diverse group of individuals.
Scoring
This methodical approach enables management to swiftly determine an employee’s proficiency in any particular area, including teamwork, communication, attention to detail, etc. They could receive a grade ranging from A to F, 1 to 5, or even from unacceptable to exceptional. This approach is also arbitrary, making it suspect if employed in isolation.
Goal-oriented management
This contemporary approach is founded on the idea that employees and managers should mutually set goals to be accomplished within a set time frame.
It is believed that an employee’s likelihood of success increases when they participate in the goal-setting process.
This type of appraisal focuses more on preparing and being proactive than it does on being reactive to events and situations. It is a process rather than a one-time evaluation. It is seen as a fair method of evaluation since it avoids subjectivity, is inexpensive, and promotes self-awareness, all of which should enhance an employee’s capacity to contribute positively to the team.
Evaluations based on traits and behaviors
The traits that make up a person’s personality, such as inventiveness, extroversion, and confidence, are evaluated in trait-based evaluations. This could be, for instance, how cordial a customer service representative is with a client.
The drawbacks of this method of evaluation are that it is very subjective and that some character traits are more evident than others, making it easier to ignore some equally valuable attributes. Setting measurable goals for character development is equally challenging.
A grading scale that is behaviorally anchored
The behaviorally anchored rating scale bridges the gap between trait- and behavior-based evaluations by combining and maximizing both. It’s especially helpful for workers who must accurately do intricate duties while still possessing qualities like sensitivity and care.
360-degree evaluations
This approach solicits feedback from numerous individuals who interact with each employee, which effectively eliminates bias. The employee themselves is needed to provide their perspective on their function in the team, as well as that of a number of other coworkers, clients, customers, etc.
Because it is comprehensive (the key is in the name!) and can provide such a comprehensive picture of an employee, the 360-degree appraisal method is praised as the best one. It not only helps management gain a thorough grasp of a worker’s attitudes and behaviors, but it can also be advantageous to the person by promoting self-improvement (in turn giving them confidence, which will help your business no end).
