Welcome to the October 5, 2005 issue of The Total View

Published by Success Performance Solutions, Written by Ira S. Wolfe

Visit our Human Resources Blog and Perfect Labor Storm Blog where we can post daily (and more often) human resource updates, news, and Perfect Labor Storm facts. 

Tune in to PA Cable Network (PCN) on October 6 at 8:00 P.M.***, the weekly (PA) Commonwealth network show Journalists' Roundtable when featured guests, Ira Wolfe - Contributing Editor, "Business 2 Business", Ted Byrne - Managing Editor, and Steve Cornibert - Contributing Columnist return to the air for a discussion on high priority issues affecting business in PA. It will air again on Sunday, October 9 at 7:00 P.M. and 11:00 P.M.

What's Inside:

1. Ten Reasons Why Performance Reviews Fail

Ask any manager what he hates most about his or her job and you'll likely hear “performance reviews”. For many reasons, these periodic employee evaluations have been done poorly if at all in the past. What follows is a list of the 10 most important reasons why performance reviews fail.

1. Lack of manager training. Managers have never been trained how to evaluate an employees' performance. Effective employee evaluation requires more than accurately filling out a form once a year; performance appraisals that generate performance improvement require good observing, listening, and feedback skills.

2. Peter Principle. Managers who never wanted to be in the job of supervising and managing other employees are promoted up the ladder. Promotion was just the only way for the employee to stay with the company or get more money. In one recent situation, an employee was encouraged by her manager to accept the promotion. The employee really didn't want the added responsibilities but her manager insisted "she'd be good at it" and shouldn't waste this opportunity. The manager offered to coach and mentor the employee and even to pay for training. Unfortunately her manager resigned just a few months later and her new boss wasn't willing to coach, mentor, or train.

3. Managerial mobility. Managers are replaced, relocated, or retire and their replacements don't have the luxury of time to observe their new reports for more than a few weeks, even days, before they are asked to review the employee. This situation is particularly harmful when their predecessor's criteria for evaluation is more critical or flattering. Worse, the previous manager didn't document anything or wrote inappropriate remarks.

4. Social Workers. Employees are promoted to be a supervisor or manager because they really like helping people or are well liked. But when it comes to holding their employees accountable, they find it excruciatingly painful. This is particularly difficult when the manager now is responsibile managing his former peers. These types of manages prefer to remain your friend, not your boss, and do whaterver it takes to avoid confrontation.

5. Horn Effect. This is the manager who believes "nobody's perfect and there is always room for improvement.” The manager doesn't believe in rewarding an employee with a “10” (out of 10) even when he/she deserves it. A few employers actually use a rating scale of 1 to 9 because no employee deserves a 10 in their minds.

6. Halo Effect. A few managers hope to boost an employee's morale and confidence by rating his performance better than he deserves. Other managers just don't want to be bothered writing comments justifying poor performance. Managers select ratings that don't require any feedback or don't want to put anything in writing that might be held against them should the employee ever file a complaint. And others don't provide the rating an under-performer deserves because if the employee quits, this will make more work for the manager (that is, more interviewing and training….and who knows if the next employee might even be worse!). Whatever the reason for the halo effect, managers choose the easy way out and exchange positive reviews for mediocrity.

7. Money and Reviews don't mix. Performance reviews should be focused on the performance that led to accomplishments or missed expectations. When salary increase are tied to performance reviews, some managers may be pressured to give good evaluations even when not deserved. Others use annual reviews to justify smaller than expected salary increases. The manager might even downgrade an employee's performance to ensure the employee doesn't ask for a salary increase. Likewise, with a high rating, the employee might feel justified in requesting more salary or benefits.

8. The manager and employee focus on personality and hard-work, not measurable results. The tendency is for the manager to reward the employee who is easier to manage even if he/she misses performance expectations and/or can't do the job. A few employees expect high "grades" because they work harder and volunteer often even though the quality of his work falls short.

9. Performance reviews are required to be completed annually but this policy is not enforced. Some employees are reviewed and others are not. The employees who are reviewed might feel singled out and the non-reviewed employees feel ignored. When not provided regularly, employee performance appraisals can be based on most recent performance, not performance over the course of the year. Results go both ways. Employees who put on their best behavior around review time get favorable ratings and the employee who has a bad couple of weeks gets punished.

10. “When you've got a minute, stop by my office.” Performance reviews are “sprung” on the employee or done non-chalantly around the water cooler. Performance reviews are only scheduled when an employee is not performing up to expectations, another employee or customer files a complaint, or the company needs to terminate/lay-off the employee.

2. Perfect Labor Storm Alerts #457 to 459

Don't miss day-to-day updates on Perfect Labor Storm. Save the Perfect Labor Storm blog to your favorites.

Fact #457: In 2004, more than 9.2 million plastic surgery procedures were performed. This is an increase of 24 percent since 2000. (Source: American Society of Plastic Surgeons)

Fact #458: In 1980, Americans spent 8.8 percent of their income on health care. Today (2005) the figure is up to 15.4 percent, and it will climb to 18.7 by 2024. (Source: Medicare)

Fact #459: By 2015, the Baby Boom doctors who started practicing in the 1960s and 1970s will retire faster than the new generation of physicians can replace them.

Don't be caught in storm without all the facts. "The Perfect Labor Storm Fact Book: Why Worker Shortages Won't Go Away" is a must-read leading edge forecast that predicts workforce trends for decades to come. Order your copy today - Only $7.95.

3. Employee Evaluations Made Easy - 360s too!

Janus Performance Management System - tailored to match individual needs by developing the competencies that are most relevant for every job.

Ten stand-alone individual module workbooks are divided into three volumes.

Janus provides a comprehensive, step-by-step planning design to help manage this process effectively. Janus not only provides a suite of goal setting and appraisal forms and templates to help this action planning process, but also helps to ensure that all written documents are in plain language, complete, comprehensive, and easy-to-use.

Online 360 assessments now available!

View sample employee evaluation forms and tips.

4.  The Manager's Pocket Guide to Documenting Employee Performance
By Terry L. Fitzwater

This guide will help you document and change unwanted work behaviors before they become issues for termination. It includes information on a four-step progressive discipline process and how to apply it; clarifying gaps in execution vs. gaps in knowledge; behavior modification through corrective action; a process for documenting peformance issues; and a look at the legal framework surrounding discipline.

Order Manager's Pocket Guide to Documenting Employee Performance

5.   The Manager’s Pocket Guide to Workplace Coaching
By Daniel A. Feldman, Ph.D

This guide is designed to help people become better managers. When a person is elevated to a management position, it is usually because he or she has done well at mastering the prerequisite technical skills.

Coaching employees to develop their skills helps not only the employee, but also the manager, the team, and the organization.

Order Manager's Pocket Guide to Workplace Coaching


Ira S. Wolfe. 2005 - All Rights Reserved. Reprints and other distribution by permission only.

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