Performance management systems are only as effective as the accuracy of the instrument you use during the PMS assessment. If you are not getting honest feedback or the instrument causes inconsistent measures from individual to individual (the rater) then you have a serious problem. You cannot create effective strategies for personal development nor accurately measure if those strategies are being effective if you are not getting accurate data on your assessments. We have already discussed the issues with honest feedback. Now let’s discuss why you are having accuracy problems with your performance management system.
This article is part 5 of the series 6 Reasons Your Performance Management System is Failing You, and You Don’t Even Know it. You can find the other articles here.
Part one:6 Reasons Your Performance Management System is Failing You, and You Don’t Even Know it
Part two:The Secret to Improving Performance Management is Not Rocket Science
Part three:Why Keeping Secrets is Slowing Killing Your Company
Part four:Easy Solutions to Improving Your Talent Development
The issue with accuracy could be a variety of things, but one common issue that I often see is that the competencies, constructs or metrics that the PMS is attempting to evaluate the individuals on are too subjective. Things such as cares for others or shows genuine enthusiasm are difficult to assess especially when you are a new supervisor to that individual and/or not very familiar with PMS systems. Let’s take a look at a few things you can implement to reduce this issue.
Start with the end in mind
What are you trying to accomplish with your PMS? Certainly, caring for others is important, but how does it affect your customer experience or bottom line? If you want your employees to service customers faster or in a certain manner, and this is something you can measure or observe, then try and create criteria around these items if it is possible. The more specific, measurable, and observable the behaviors and outcomes that you are attempting to measure the more likely it will be that you will get accurate data.
Words matter
Look at the words that are specifically used to describe a competency. Ask yourself if there are specific descriptions to measure said competency and would the definition mean something different to someone else. For instance, completes work quickly might mean something different to you than me. I might believe that anything less than a day is quickly, but you might believe all work must be completed in under an hour for it to be considered quickly completed.
Words like quickly, well, fast, and anything with an emotional tone to it (how do you measure caring etc?) should be reviewed and possibly replaced. Replace these words with things such as: on time, achieves deadlines, completes the task in under 5 minutes etc. Concrete and specific descriptions will make measurements easier and responses more accurate. If you cannot create a competency that gives you accurate data then remove it from your PMS altogether. It is worthless if you cannot rely on the data or responses.
Improving the accuracy of your PMS instrument should be a top priority during the design phase. Having great sounding metrics or competencies are worthless to you if they don’t give you accurate data. Remove subjective competencies and descriptions. Make sure everyone understands what you want and expect from the PMS instrument. Start with the end in mind. What outcomes do you expect or desire to see improvements in? Following these simple tips will help remove subjective and confusing constructs and improve your overall PMS process.
Have other examples of subjective terms that you have witnessed in feedback systems? Comment below and join the conversation.