This document provides an overview of appraisal skills and assessment techniques. It discusses various methods for assessing employee performance, including assessment schemes, rating scales, behavioral anchored rating schemes, and self-assessment. Key tips for effective assessment include focusing on facts, avoiding biases, and providing constructive feedback that separates criticism of performance from criticism of the person. The goal of assessment should be personal and professional development rather than judgment.

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APPRAISAL SKILLS
Assessment

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ARE YOU READY?
OK, LET’S START!

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INTRODUCTION
Most people at work like to know how well they're doing.
When we're told we're doing a good job by someone whose
opinion we respect, it makes the effort worthwhile. Nor do
most of us mind when we look at the less successful areas
of our work, especially if we believe that someone else is
prepared to help us deal with them. However, when
assessments are unilateral, judgmental and unfairly critical,
the whole process of appraisal is undermined and may be
destroyed.

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ASSESSMENT SCHEMES
The purpose of an assessment-based appraisal scheme is to
score or mark people. This may be as part of a bonus or
salary scheme.
The following features are normally part of such a scheme...
1. a summary of the purpose of the job
2. a list of key result areas and outcomes
3. a list of core competencies or skills
4. a guideline to each level of performance from "poor" to
"excellent"
5. a system of scoring, eg 1 to 10, "excellent" to "poor"
6. a period to be reviewed
7. scoring by the appraisee
8. scoring by the line manager
9. a meeting to discuss the respective assessments
10. final agreement on the assessments
11. salary or bonus awards based on the assessments
12. an appeals procedure if appraisees are not happy.

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HOW TO ASSESS
There are four "don'ts" when assessing others.
1. don't judge people against an ideal standard. None of us
can achieve perfection. Instead, measure people against
group standards that you have agreed or standards that you
believe they can achieve themselves.
2. don't compare people to one another, to other people
doing the same job or to yourself. Instead, compare them to
the objectively-measured standards of the job.
3. don't make assessments based on your own prejudices
about people. Instead, measure their performance.
4. don't make fixed assessments that sound like
condemnations, eg "He's a poor presenter". Instead, phrase
your assessments in their development context, eg "He's
not yet achieved self-confidence in presentations."

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FLAWED ASSESSMENTS
Because it is impossible for managers to know every one of
their staff intimately, there is a danger in assessment
schemes that managers will make their assessments using
inaccurate impressions.
There are three kinds of such flawed assessments...
Stereotyping. This means assuming that people are like
their type, eg "he's a typical accountant"; "she's a typical
Aries"; "he's typical of all young managers".
Simplifying. This means basing your assessment around one
known fact, one known event and ignoring anything which
doesn't fit in with this.
Errors in emphasis. This means judging people according to
one good facet, the "halo" or "angel" effect, or judging them
according to one bad facet, the "horns" or "devil" effect.

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FALSE PERCEPTIONS
We all see the world through our own unique perceptions
and we each bring our own experience to the way we see
others. But perceptions are also the basis of prejudice, the
belief that our way is the only way and that everyone else
should be like us.
To avoid the danger of prejudiced assessments,...
1. recognise that everyone is different
2. check that performance criteria are not biased in favour
of your own prejudices
3. rejoice in the differences that everyone brings to the
team
4. look for the benefits of having people with different skills,
different strengths and different personalities
5. build on the differences rather than seek to make
everyone the same
6. assess people according to the criteria of the job, not
your personal perception.

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PEOPLE LIKE US
One of the principal dangers in assessing others is that we
tend to like people who are like us. When we see people
doing the job the same way as we would do it, we tend to
understand them better and admire them more. But this is
blinkered and unfair on those who take a different
approach.
For example,
1. assessors who are perfectionists may be critical of staff
who don't share their own high standards
2. assessors who are high achievers may be intolerant of
those who don't seize opportunities to shine
3. assessors who are creative may praise those with flair at
the expense of the dullards
4. assessors who are rule-followers may be dismissive of
anyone who bends the rules
5. assessors who like to work quickly may find it hard to
rate the slow-but-sure plodders.

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RATING SCHEMES
A typical appraisal rating scheme consists of a list of
attributes, skills and criteria which are thought to be
essential or desirable in the job. Each appraisee is then
rated by the appraiser under each criteria and awarded a
performance score.
An example of a rating scheme could be a shop manager
with responsibility for stock and staff. Two criteria on a
performance appraisal could be stock management and staff
training. On stock management, the manager is given
perhaps a rating of "very satisfactory" (on a scale of poor to
excellent); on staff training, the manager is given a rating of
"satisfactory".
Ratings can also be made on a points scale from 0 to 10, so
that "very satisfactory" might be "8" and satisfactory might
be "5".

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RATE WITH CARE
There are a number of reasons why rating schemes should
be handled with care.
1. Who decides what the criteria are? The choice of criteria
may favour some people over others.
2. How relevant are the criteria to each job under review?
Most assessment schemes have to use a set of criteria that
cover a wide range of jobs. But different jobs will have
different priorities and may even have criteria outside the
assessment range.
3. What exactly do the criteria mean? This is a particular
problem when attributes such as "initiative", "leadership"
and "resourcefulness" are used.
4. Should criteria be weighted? Are all criteria equally
important or are some more important than others?
5. What method of assessment is used? In other words, how
is it decided that one employee is worth a mark of, say, "8"
and another a mark of, say, "7"?

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BARS
BARS stands for Behaviourally Anchored Rating Schemes.
These are schemes that aim to avoid some of the pitfalls of
criteria-scoring schemes.
This is how they work...
1. One set of managers looks at each job and identifies the
key aspects. For the position of retail manager, these might
include handling customer complaints; maintaining stock
levels; and meeting accounting deadlines.
2. A different set of managers identifies up to nine anchors
of behaviour for each criterion. These are descriptions of
how the job might be done at each of nine different
performance levels.
3. Each job holder is then rated at one of the nine levels
using the anchors as guidelines.

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BARS ANCHORS
The following is an example of a set of Behaviourally
Anchored Rating Scheme (BARS) criteria using the key result
area of handling personal customer complaints for a shop
manager...
1. Poor: pays little attention to customer complaints.
2. Unsatisfactory: passes complaints to others.
3. Less than satisfactory: acknowledges complaints only.
4. Satisfactory: follows laid-down complaint-handling
procedures.
5. Better than satisfactory: listens carefully, is able to state
the problem and applies laid-down procedures.
6. Good: follows procedures and takes personal
responsibility to sort out the issue.
7. Excellent: deals with complaint promptly and in person,
following laid-down procedures and own judgment.

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REPORTING
There are two assessment techniques that make use of
performance reporting.
1. Critical incident reporting. This is a way of gathering a
series of key examples of performance throughout the
period under review. At the time of the critical incidents, the
appraiser gives immediate feedback. These reports are
collected and brought to the appraisal session for an overall
assessment. Although critical incident reporting aims to give
a fair assessment of work over a long period, it can result in
excessive supervision.
2. Narrative reporting. This is an assessment technique in
which the appraiser describes in a report how the appraisee
went about dealing with a particular incident. It can focus
on what happened or describe how the appraisee used a
particular skill. At the end of the narrative, a rating may be
given.

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STICKING TO FACTS
If you operate an appraisal scheme which rates people, the
chances of disagreement are lessened if you stick to the
facts of performance.
You can do this by showing U CARE.
"U CARE" is a mnemonic for facts which are...
U - Undisputed, ie there is no disagreement about the
evidence collected.
C - Complete, ie they show the full picture.
A - Accurate, ie they are correct in what is reported.
R - Relevant, ie they relate to the key result areas of the job
and the performance criteria of the job.
E - Explicit, ie these are facts which are clear and
unambiguous.
When you stick to U CARE facts, there is less room for
argument and disagreement and more chance for progress
in the appraisal.

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COUNT, RANK AND TARGET
When facts are assembled in a performance review, they
can be presented in three ways...
Counting. Counting performance means producing statistics
on what a person has accomplished. This could be anything
from the number of contacts made, the number of sales
closed, to the amount of money taken.
Ranking. Ranking someone's performance means placing
their statistical achievements in a list alongside those of
everyone else.
Targeting. Targeting performance means recording the fact
of whether someone reached a pre-set target or not: yes or
no, did or didn't, right or wrong. This is also known as the
binary method of fact-gathering.

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COMPARING TO STANDARDS
One of the most commonly-used methods of assessing
performance is to set standards of work and then through
observation and measurement, decide whether the
standard has been met.
Since the introduction of vocational qualifications, industry-
wide standards of performance now exist alongside
company-wide standards for all jobs and levels. The three
steps in assessing people against a standard are...
1. agree what the standard is
2. gather factual and objective information on how an
employee performs
3. compare their performance to the standard.
It is important to agree with each appraisee on the method
of observation and measurement in order to avoid snooping
and excessive supervision.

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MEETING THE STANDARD
The following is an example of seven standards of
communication which might be expected of a supervisor or
team leader.
1. Advice and information are offered and given at an
appropriate place and time.
2. Information is current, relevant and accurate.
3. Advice and information is presented in a manner, and at a
level and pace, intended to promote understanding.
4. Advice is consistent with policy, approved codes of
practice and resource constraints.
5. Advice is supported by reasoned argument and evidence.
6. Information is supplied in the form requested.
7. Confidentiality is maintained.

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SELF-ASSESSMENT
If the predominant kind of assessment in control appraisals
is manager assessment then the main kind of assessment in
developmental appraisals is self-assessment.
Self-assessment is now an integral part of the reporting
process in many organisations. It is even used by children at
school in their school reports. Pupils are encouraged to say
what they think about their progress. This is a necessary
ingredient to getting people to take ownership for their own
performance.
Self-assessment works because for motivational and
developmental purposes, what an employee thinks of
themselves is far more important than what you, the
manager, think of them.

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HOW TO SELF-ASSESS
For many people who have been used to believing that
others' opinions of them are more important than what
they think of themselves, learning to self-assess can be a
difficult exercise.
An appraising manager can assist this process by...
1. encouraging employees to rely on their own opinions
first and foremost and simply consider other opinions in
that light
2. using self-assessment questionnaires, life and career
reviews
3. reflecting on positive and negative performance by
using phrases such as "What I liked" and "What I didn't
like" about their performance or "What I did well" and
"What I didn't do so well"
4. not dismissing how people feel about their
performance, remembering that feelings act as greater
motivators than opinions.

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CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK
Constructive feedback is the technique of reviewing sub-
standard performance without making people feel bad. It
can be summarised as: praise the worker, criticise the work.
Constructive feedback works because while behaviour can
be changed, personality can't. It satisfies people's needs to
know how they can improve their performance. It delivers
review in an upbeat, non-judgmental way. It builds people's
confidence.
"John, you're a good team player. If you could spend more
time on your preparation, you'll find you'll get better
results.“
One way to get people to think about changing behaviour is
to ask them the question: "What do you think would have
happened if...?"

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IT'S IN THE TIMING
How effective feedback is often depends on when you give
it. Feedback that is detailed and requires discussion is
always best given while memories are fresh and clear. So, do
it soon after the event. But you also need to notice how
open the person on the receiving end is.
Don't give feedback when the person is...
1. preoccupied
2. emotionally worked up, either on a high or on a low
3. reliving something from the recent past.
Do give feedback when the person...
1. has a need
2. is open and willing to learn
3. is mentally still
4. is looking for feedback.

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PRAISING THE WORKER
The following are the steps in giving constructive feedback
following an employee's job performance in a critical
incident. This kind of feedback is best carried out when you,
the appraiser, have witnessed the employee's performance.
1. agree what the aims of the get-together are.
2. ask the employee what they think about their
performance. Alternatively, start by asking the employee to
say what for them went well and then ask them to say what
for them didn't go so well.
3. underline anything you agree with. If the employee
recognises the need to improve, ask him or her what he
would like to do.
4. state your own views about what went well and what
could be improved.
5. repeat the overall positive aspects of the performance
and close on a high note.

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LINCOLN TO HOOKER
The following letter from President Abraham
Lincoln to Major General Hooker was written on
January 26th 1863 during the American Civil
War.
It is a classic example of a written performance
appraisal containing in varying amounts...
• praise
• recognition
• identification of strengths and weaknesses
• criticism of unhelpful behaviour
• offers of help
• expression of renewed confidence
• assertiveness in tackling difficult areas.
"General, I have placed you at the head of the
Army. I have done this upon what appear to me
to be sufficient reasons. And yet, I think it best
for you to know that there are some things in
regard to which I am not quite satisfied.
I believe you to be a brave soldier which of
course I like. You have confidence in yourself
which is a valuable, if not an indispensable,
quality. But I think that during General
Burnside's command, you have taken counsel of
your ambition and thwarted him as much as you
could in which you did a great wrong to the
country and to a most honourable brother
officer.
I much fear that the spirit which you have aided
to infuse into the army of criticizing their
commander will now turn upon you. I shall
assist you as far as I can to put it down.
And now beware of rashness. Beware of
rashness, but with energy and sleepless
vigilance, go forward and give us victories."

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THE FOX AND THE CROW
Aesop tells the following fable that warns about
distinguishing between true appraisal and false flattery:
A crow having stolen a piece of cheese flew up into a tree to
eat it. Just then a fox came by and sitting beneath the tree
said to the crow: "I never noticed before but your feathers
are a more delicate black than I've ever seen, your body a
fine and graceful shape and your coat of fine complexion.
But your voice is only just bearable."
Pleased with most of the assessment, the crow decided to
put the fox straight about her voice and immediately started
to sing. Whereupon the cheese fell out of her mouth and
was devoured by the waiting fox.
Moral: People sometimes praise you in order to flatter and
deceive. Beware of false appraisers and, remember, others'
opinions are only their opinions.

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THAT’S
IT!
WELL DONE!

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THANK YOU
This has been a Slide Topic from Manage Train Learn