Performance reviews have long been used as a feedback channel in business culture, but is it time for a change? Leadmen (2017) explains that performance reviews do not have a helpful and constructive effect, creating no impact on how employees do their work – performance reviews have wasted time for employees and managers.3
Leadmen mentions a study by Adobe, indicating that employees prefer informal, on-the-spot feedback instead of periodic formal reviews. Adobe’s study shows two thirds of employees and managers believe performance reviews are outdated.3 Performance reviews have been emotionally rattling for most employees and most employees just fake through reviews, hiding their tears1 (this might increase emotional labour). I believe the negative mood that performance reviews bring is a root cause to the deterrence of the effectiveness of performance reviews.
Immen (2012) notes Professor Culbert’s argument that many managers are not confident that they can motivate without fear, whereas HR encourages reviews so HR can be busy and appear important. Professor Culbert suggests providing feedback should be an informal, two-way conversation: performance reviews are just one way where bosses provide review, but subordinates fail to have their viewpoint expressed. Culbert also claims that during performance reviews, managers use phrases with encoded meanings. He argues that holding both employees and managers accountable for providing feedback results in building trust within the workplace.2 Mayer et al. (1995) suggests that trust is developed through integrity (honesty and truthfulness), ability (technical and interpersonal knowledge), and benevolence (having others’ interests at heart)4.
Professor Culbert’s solution does contain the three characteristics for trust: having an open environment allows honesty to flow and the understanding of each other’s ability to help fulfill the interests of individuals and the organization. However, convincing managers to change may be a cumbersome process. In some settings, the corporate culture may not allow the feedback to generate an effective solution to problems (such as when younger employees and older managers differ greatly in the way they practice business), therefore the effectiveness of feedback is not only dependent on the openness and understanding of employees and managers, but also how well the solution align with organizational and individual interests.
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References
1 Adobe. (2017, January 11). Full study: Performance reviews get a failing grade. Retrieved February 4, 2017, from Slideshare website: http://www.slideshare.net/adobe/full-study-performance-reviews-get-a-failing-grade/1
2 Immen, W. (2012, August 23). A failing grade for performance reviews. Retrieved February 4, 2017, from Globe and Mail website: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/career-advice/a-failing-grade-for-performance-reviews/article1243140/
3 Leadem, R. (2017, January 17). To make your employees happier, lose this HR policy. Retrieved February 4, 2017, from Entrepreneur website: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/287797
4 Mayer, R. C., Davis, J. H., & Schoorman, F. D. (1995). An integrative model of organizational trust. The Academy of Management Review, 20(3), 709-734. Retrieved from JSTOR database.
Image Source
[Performance review]. (2016, November 3). Retrieved from https://culturestars.com/tag/performance-review/
Training and performance [Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.insperity.com/blog/are-annual-employee-performance-reviews-really-dead/