More than likely, you are reading this here hoping to gain insights into the objectives of performance management. If so, you might know what performance management actually means.
To the uninitiated, performance management is simply described as:
A continuous process that seeks to identify, measure and develop workforce performance.
Using our best guess and a process of elimination, we can gauge that your company performance is not as good as it should have been. In addition to this, your existing performance management system is doing nothing to elevate employee performance.
Does this mean that you should ditch your present system? Well, no.
Instead of kicking your performance management system to the curb, our team at MCDA CCG recommend that you revamp it!
Before you begin undertaking a DIY performance management renovation, ask yourself one question -do you know the first step in forming a performance management system that actually works?
The first step is to understand the objectives behind it.
Let’s review…
Objectives Of Performance Management System
Here are the 5 primary objectives of performance management systems:
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Setting and defining goals to fulfill company objectives
Goal setting is the most lucrative way to initiate better performance among employees.
Repeatedly, it has been strongly indicated that practical goal setting:
- Allows employees to focus on what’s important.
- Aligning individual objectives with the business objectives.
- Optimizes employees’ individual performance.
- Helps to identify the key result areas and work upon improving them.
A quality performance management system will place goal setting as one of its main conditions.
As a manager, strive to set goals that benefit both employee performance and business performance.
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Setting the right expectations for managers and employees
An efficient performance management system sets and defines clear expectations from both managers and employees.
As a manager, you must place achievable expectations from your employee.
Just as you shouldn’t expect a poor performer to generate incredible results right away, don’t expect that a star performer will remain consistent every other week.
Furthermore, holding managers to high, unfair expectations will only bring in poor management decisions.
To set expectations that will actually yield demonstrable results:
- Define the expectations of your employees in clear terms. Let employees know what your expectations are from them.
- Back up the reasoning behind the expectation. Explain how these expectations will help in fulfilling the business objectives.
- Document expectations. Don’t let it be a word-by-mouth interaction. Have a specific spreadsheet or document about what to do and who handles it.
Once people know of their own roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities, they are more likely to fulfill their roles with consistent work to achieve productive results.
Ultimately, this will facilitate better business performance and encourage the personal development of the employee.
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Effective communication between individuals and teams
Changing workplace dynamics is bringing a cultural shift to today’s workplace. Consequently, communication has played an essential part in it.
Effective communication practices result in employees who are engaged and happy. It also ensures a smooth alignment of individual objectives with business objectives.
Regularly, team members must be aware of their peers’ goals, succession planning, and ideas in order to work well together.
A team that lacks communication among its team members lacks the bonding needed in a high-performing team.
Some tips for building an active communication environment:
- First, team leaders or managers should take out the time to indulge in one-on-one interactions with the team members.
- Continuous feedback and coaching form a workforce with varied skills by encouraging career development. One way to do this: performance appraisals or performance reviews.
- Additionally, conduct frequent team-building activities.
- Promote collaboration and communication as an essential part of your workplace culture.
- Also, use appropriate and helpful business communication tools.
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Set performance standards
The most important objectives of performance management are to set performance standards.
Setting the right performance standards can help you build a better performance plan. It, in turn, makes for a smoother evaluation of employee performance.
Every job has specific performance standards that have to be met. Failure to accomplish the performance standards can mean the following things:
- A lack of effort on the employees’ part.
- Usually having set more unrealistic standards for the said job.
- Meanwhile, not enough resources were available to complete the task.
- In particular, a failure of cooperation or collaboration from the team or manager.
Here’s the thing.
You might never know what the reason for failure is without any performance management system.
A good performance management system can highlight what’s lacking and what deserves credit.
The company’s strengths and weaknesses will be more clear and hence easier to rectify.
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Determining individual training and performance plans
Another vital objective of performance management systems is to identify the training and development needs of its workforce.
It promotes personal growth and advancement in the employees’ careers by helping them acquire the desired knowledge and skills.
A successful performance plan offers personal growth opportunities for your people, encouraging them to proactively contribute while reinforcing their confidence.
Here’s how you can create an effective employee performance plan to foster career development:
- First, ask your employees what skills, training, or course(s) they require to do great work.
- Once established, create a training plan and budget.
- Additionally, decide how the new training skills should be applied in revamping old methods.
- Finally, set up key organizational objectives to apply these newfound skills.
Summary
An efficient performance management system can bring a lot to the table. Getting to know the objectives of performance management is a tiny but essential part of it.
The main objective of performance management is to enhance the organization by:
- Achieving individual employee goals of employees along with organizational objectives.
- Enhancing the skills and personal development of employees through the managers’ help.
- Encouraging work that helps in fulfilling business goals.
Similar to developing a preparation strategy to win a sports match, a game plan for your business is not only recommended, but necessary to achieve sufficient results. Moreover, lack of an effective plan misaligns individual objectives and further affects operations due to insufficient performance.
Problems are a part of business, this is well understood; but when an unhealthy habit continues to linger and further disrupt your team and productivity, it usually involves critical action.
And we’ve seen it all!
On the other hand, we’ve directly observed how an effective performance management not only contributes to organization productivity, but creates happy employees in the process.
As mentioned above, an entire performance management switch is usually not necessary, but it is crucial you can improve it. Ditch the evaluation forms, appraisal meetings or data driven metrics to track and assess employee performance, and follow a more personal approach.
An effective update begins at the moment you set and define goals/objectives, and lasts as long as your business is running. Reach out to our team at MCDA CCG, INC, (headquartered in Placentia, Orange County, California) and we can provide quality guidance throughout your improvement efforts, whether you need help in refocusing employee objectives, ensuring that your management teams consistently encourage team performance, even if you have future questions, our focus on building relationships will ensure lifelong satisfaction.
Call us today for a no obligation discussion!