“Your performance depends on your people. Select the best, train them and back them. When errors occur, give sharper guidance. If errors persist or if the fit feels wrong, help them move on.” — Donald Rumsfeld
The performance of an organization is solely dependent on the individual performances of the employees—not just the ones who are in executive positions but also the ones who function at lower and middle levels. The efficient the performance of each employee, the better will be the overall results of the organization. Besides, it is the employees who provide the organization with a competitive edge over other competitors. If the employees’ individual goals can be aligned with the goals of the organization, then there is a very high probability of the success of the organization. For this very reason, companies, such as Google, Facebook, Apple, and Netflix among others, have started focusing on the new trends to properly manage the individual performances of the employees.
In earlier times, companies did not always focus on the management of the performances of the employees. There were not many changes introduced in the systems to stimulate growth and satisfaction among the individuals. It is only recently that new trends in this area have been introduced to assist employees to advance in their careers while also achieving personal and organizational objectives.
What Are the New Trends Adopted By Companies?
A majority of companies are now focused on enhancing the employee experience, which is greatly important for the success of the organization. This is done by carefully mapping the different stages that an employee goes through; every person is at a different stage in the employee journey when the yearly employee engagement surveys are conducted. So, once we are aware of where the employee stands, it becomes easier to understand the personal experiences that might shape the individual’s professional experience. Apart from this, in present times, there is more emphasis on improving the internal communication at organizations. Since all employees work together to achieve a common goal, there is a need for clear articulation of information so that the individuals involved in the conversation are on the same page. This has been greatly beneficial when it comes to creating a positive employee experience and transforming the organization.
Another thing that has helped in the transformation of the organization is the reinvention of the performance management process. Now, this does not mean the discontinuation of ratings or some other processes. Instead, it has to do more with continuously coming up with new ways of setting goals, providing coaching to the employees, evaluating their performances, and most importantly, providing constructive feedback to them to support their professional development. For instance, earlier feedback was provided by only the manager but now most companies follow the continuous 360-degree feedback approach where all stakeholders—manager, fellow team members, clients—who work closely with the employee are responsible for providing the feedback. Self-evaluation is also an integral part of this approach and provides the employee’s perspective on the work he/she is responsible for.
A lot of companies have also started providing training to the managers and other employees to teach them the right ways of providing constructive feedback. Further, one-on-one meetings, frequent feedback surveys and quarterly reviews have also been introduced. All these approaches have greatly helped in improving the performances of the employees. Such changes are important, even more so in today’s times when the world is changing at such a fast pace and businesses are being forced to conform to the ‘new normal’.
With the disruptions and technological advancements happening around the world, it is crucial to maximize the performance of the employees to stay ahead of the competition and this can only be done by identifying, assessing, predicting and mitigating the threats. Given this, now the companies are heavily investing in analytics, which shows what a company’s results really are and helps in integrating data in the decision-making process.
With insights into the productivity, employee engagement level, and performance of each individual over a certain period of time, the managers can make more informed decisions regarding how they can help the employees improve their performances. The managers, with large sets of data, would be in a better position to analyze the factors affecting the performances of the employees. Once they are aware of the root causes resulting in hindrance in the journey of the employee who is trying to reach his/her goal, they can form strategies to better help the individual and support his/her professional goals. This will also contribute to the success of the organization.
Conclusion
With the changing times, the trends and developments in the performance management system have changed every now and then, and this is something that should continue in the future as well. It is necessary for organizations to change their strategies and processes with the changing needs, and this is what is required for them to reach to the top of the success ladder.
Written By
Tanvi Saini
Under the tutelage of The HR Club
IMI-New Delhi
HR Panorama 