One Page Talent Management: Performance Management

Performance Management:  There’s a clear love-hate relationship between performance management’s lack of popularity and its importance to the individual and corporation.
a.    Start with the Science (goal-setting theorists—Locke, Latham, etc.)
i.    The more challenging the goal, the more it motivates: People work harder toward stretch goals.
ii.    Goals aligned with personal interest motivate: There’s nothing like self-interest to motivate us. If it’s good for us and good for the company, the goal is a perfect match.
iii.    Specific goals beat general goals: “Do your best” is inferior to having a goal with a specific objective, standard or performance and a timeframe.
iv.    Too many goals dilute the effectiveness of each one. Thus, have only a few compelling, specific goals and offer feedback along the way and see people improve.
b.    Eliminate Complexity, Add Value
i.    SMART goals are good (but SIMple goals are better). SMART= Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-bound)
ii.    SIMple is better: Specific, Important, and Measurable.
iii.    Keep it to 3 goals. Too many diffuses people’s attention.
iv.    Avoid stretch goals. People give effort to large goals but get confused with the potential impossibility of a stretch goal.
v.    Participative goal setting often adds unnecessary complexity but does not add significantly to performance results.
vi.    Give feedback regularly and improve the goal attainment.
vii.    Using numbers or scales does not get to whether the person met or did not meet goals. Stick to discussions around goals and forget numbers.
viii.    Avoid self-assessments. It sounds harsh, but it’s the supervisor’s opinion that really ends up mattering.  Also, science—self assessment is the least reliable form of assessment.
c.    Create Transparency and Accountability
i.    Transparency: Show how goals are linked to higher corporate goals and show how goals are derived.
ii.    Share ratings and distribution: Knowing how others did helps employees know where they stand.