Wouldn't it be nice if there were a computer program that could remove some of the hassle of the annual employee performance review?
Even a diligent supervisor might benefit from software that could help figure out whether Dick in accounting "meets" or "exceeds" expectations in leadership ability, or whether Jane in sales deserves an overall rating of 3.5 or 4.5 if she consistently beats monthly sales targets but shows up late for staff meetings.
This kind of help is a lot closer than many managers realize. New software promises to make the annual performance review easier and faster, while assuring top executives that employees are being rated consistently on skills and objectives that are in line with overall corporate goals. The tools, usually part of a suite of performance-related applications, can coach bosses through the appraisal process, help them calculate scores and offer tips for writing reviews. At the same time, they provide reports on who has and who hasn't completed their reviews, along with a full picture of the capabilities, experience and accomplishments of the entire work force.
While no computer program can replace human judgment, the software "provides structure to make sure the process gets done and provides guidance for giving meaningful feedback," says James Holincheck, a research vice president at the Gartner Inc. research company in Chicago. "What it doesn't replace is the interaction between the manager and the employee."
At most companies, performance reviews are still a paper-based process. Managers fill out a printed document, go over it with the employee and pass it up the ladder. In contrast, with the electronic systems, managers fill out a Web-based form, which the employee can review online. When completed, the review is forwarded to the human-resources department and the results are tallied and stored.
On-Time Performance
For some companies, just having a way to automate the process of making sure reviews are done on time is a big improvement. Since the spring of 2005, Amcor Sunclipse, a unit of Australia-based Amcor Ltd., has been using a Web-based service from Halogen Software Inc. of Ottawa to handle performance reviews for about 1,600 clerical, supervisory and executive employees.
In the past, managers would get a binder for each employee with appraisal forms and a history of the employee's skills. Annual reviews were consistently late, sometimes as much as six months, resulting in delayed raises and unhappy employees, says Lowell Richardson, Amcor Sunclipse's vice president, learning and performance. Because there was no consistency in appraisals, they had little connection to corporate objectives, and they weren't useful in assigning employees to training programs or filling positions.
Now, using the Halogen software, employees are notified a few weeks before their anniversary date that they need to fill out a self-appraisal form on the company's internal Web site. When the form is completed, a manager receives an email alert that the review is awaiting action. If completed on time, the review is then passed on to a secondary manager or on to HR. If the review is delayed, the manager receives a reminder, and the manager's superior is also notified. (In the case of an especially tardy review, notices can go all the way up to the chief executive, a rare occurrence.)
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Because of the email notices, about 30% of evaluations now are being completed by the employee's anniversary date, compared with none under the old system. "The auto-emailing is the key to us," says Mr. Richardson. "That's what ensures that appraisals are done on time."
The software also helps with one of the most difficult parts of appraisals: weighing the relative value of different performance goals, and scoring employees consistently on those objectives.
At Amcor Sunclipse, all employees are assessed on what they do to maintain a safe workplace. But safety is a more critical part of a manufacturing supervisor's job than of a customer-service manager's. So the system can be set up so that "improving safety" accounts for 40% of the manufacturing supervisor's overall rating, while reducing waste would count for only 15% of the score. For an office worker, safety would be worth only 5% of the rating, and preventing invoice errors would be as much as 85%.
Weighting the goals "allows us to prioritize co-workers' workload, effort and expectations," Mr. Richardson says.
Helpful Hints
With some of the new software, performance reviews can seem to write themselves, thanks to a built-in coaching feature that suggests preset phrases when filling out appraisals.
At Tyco International Ltd., a Bermuda-registered conglomerate with U.S. headquarters in West Windsor, N.J., an executive might need to assess one of the supervisors in her division on "managerial courage." Using performance-management software from Kenexa Corp., Wayne, Pa., she can click on a coaching link that suggests ways to explain her assessment, such as, "speaks his/her mind; challenges but knows when to stop" or "candid, often blunt; realistic, but can be heavy-handed."
Like other performance-management systems, the Kenexa software comes with a "dashboard" view that gives higher-level managers a look at such details as how many reviews are still outstanding, and how many employees are ranked above and below expectations. This "gives you easy visibility into the performance of your group," says Julie Gueller, a plant manager for Tyco's health-care group in Wabasha, Minn., adding that a cluster of low-performing employees in one department "is a red flag for me."
Some HR executives think the software will prove to be so easy to use that managers will stop dreading annual reviews and even make employee assessments a year-round process. Most of the programs include a note-taking feature, which enables a manager to add comments about an employee throughout the year.
"Because paper is more cumbersome, [paper-based reviews] can only be done once a year," says Janice Thomson, in charge of human resources at Centrica PLC's Direct Energy unit, which uses performance software from SuccessFactors Inc., San Mateo, Calif. "Ideally, performance is managed on a much more ongoing basis than that." |
