This document discusses performance management in agile environments. It begins with a brief history of performance appraisals and their traditional focus on individual accountability. It then discusses how appraisals need to shift focus to emphasize team performance over individual achievements in agile settings. The document recommends frequent feedback loops instead of annual reviews and using peer feedback and team goals to assess performance. Examples from Deloitte and ReturnPath showcase how some companies have restructured appraisals to better suit agile teams through continuous feedback and evaluating team effectiveness.

1. Performance Management in Agile
Nilesh Naik
Manish Anandani

2. Accountability
• Appraisal | How we got hereIts a formal assessment, typically in an interview, of the performance of an employee over a particular period
When human capital was plentiful, the focus was on which people to let go, which to keep, and which to reward —and for
those purposes, traditional appraisals (with their emphasis on individual accountability) worked pretty well.
The records indicate that appraisals started initially with US Army during the World War I, when it created merit-rating system
to flag and dismiss poor performers
Development
World War I World War II
First attempt of balancing the accountability and development took place at GE in 1960s. GE did split appraisals into
separate discussions about accountability and growth, to give development its due.
Focus in appraisal

3. • Appraisal | Traditional Performance AppraisalRatings reveal more about the rater than they do about the ratee - Idiosyncratic rater effects

4. • Appraisal | S.M.A.R.T. way of evaluationSpecific. Measurable. Attainable. Relevant. Time based.
• With heavy emphasis on financial rewards and punishments and their end-of-year structure, they hold people accountable for past
behavior at the expense of improving current performance and grooming talent for the future
• SMART objectives applied to software development try to force false objectivity onto inherently subjective efforts

5. • Appraisal | Re-evaluate EvaluationJoin the DOTS !!
These are two main issues with the way current annual appraisal cycle works:
• Individual efforts – Work that entails only the individual
• Steer colleagues to aim for individualistic achievements
• Rewards individual heroics
• They are poorly suited to the constantly changing nature of
software development
• Too slow to respond to assessment – Happens only once/twice
a year
• Superior is in the leading position and acts as a judge than a
counselor
• Make employees to perform better for fear of receiving a negative
feedback or in the hope of a positive one

6. • Appraisal | The core of agilityExcel as a TEAM and frequent feedback loops
Agile Practice focuses on:
• Creating a Collaborative environment
• Focus on group goals than individual goals
• Team intelligence precedes Individual
• Iterative way of building the right product
• Frequent feedback cycles instead of waiting until
the end
Can we design our performance management to compliment our agile engineering teams

7. • Appraisal | Its TEAM that countsTEAM is paramount
65%
20%
15%
Goals
Team Performance Peer Feedback Individual Excellance
• Team Performance
• Have majority of goals assigned to the team performance
• Give around 50 – 70% weightage to the team performance
• PO looks after ROI and should set team goals. PO and Manager
should sit together and assess the performance.
• Peer Feedback
• This works as a 360 feedback
• Team members appraise each other based on work ethics,
skills, power of collaboration etc
• Individual excellence
• Career development
• Innovation accountability
• Customer centric working style
It is very important that we imbibe team values and team performance.
It is important to reiterate that TEAM is paramount. You are NOT just
dependent on your own performance but on others too.

8. • Appraisal | Frequent feedback loopsContinuous feedback on Present instead of Past.
• Constant frequent feedback/touchpoint instead
of following an elaborate plan
• Early validation on performance rather than surprises
at the end of cycle
• Manager works as a coach more than a judge
• Constant feedback based on current situation than a
judgement on the past

9. • Appraisal | How others are doing itCase in point - Deloitte.
Deloitee found out that ‘creating the ratings consumed close to 2 million hours a year’. Many of these 2 million hours were eaten up
by leaders’ discussions behind closed doors about the outcomes of the process. Deloitee wanted to shift this investment of time
from a focus on the past to a focus on the future
Deloitee set 3 objectives for the new process:
1. Recognize Performance
2. See Performance
3. Fuel Performance
Frequent
Check-ins
Qtr perf reviews
Annual Comp review
A constant dialog with your direct reports is required to make sure
They are making progress on the goals you both have set. This dialog
Would help to fuel their performance and would avoid judgements at
the end of the year during appraisal cycle.
This window would allow managers to see if there is
Any improvement in the performance depending
on the Feedback given during frequent check-ins.
This review would only revolve around the compensation benefits
depending on the data gathered during Qtrly reviews and frequent
Feedback loop.

10. • Appraisal | How others are doing itCase in point –ReturnPath.
Return Path’s performance management system was focused exclusively on the individual. Return Path’s leadership wanted to shift
the focus to the team and maintain the openness, trust, and care that define the Return Path culture.
Team Effectiveness Program
1. All team members and Leaders pariticipate in the Lencioni’s effective team survey
2. By looking at the potential different scores from these assessments, gaps and communication barriers can be identified
3. Peer feedback sessions are held to identify strengths and weaknesses of individuals
4. The last step is to identify development goals based on peer feedback and assess individuals based on that
Annual Comp review

11. • Appraisal | CreditsThe data presented is compiled going through below articles
Following are few of the links which throw some light on this topic:
• https://hbr.org/2015/04/reinventing-performance-management
• https://hbr.org/2016/10/the-performance-management-revolution
• Performance reviews that don’t suck – Accelenova presentation
• Handling Assessment & Appraisals in Agile
• ReturnPath team effectiveness

12. Thankyou
12