Dreading your performance appraisals? You are not alone

Performance appraisals should be the most natural thing in the workplace. After all, it makes sense that managers should review the progress and performance of their employees.

However, appraisals tend to be approached with trepidation and dread by both managers and their staff. Quite often they are seen as a management chore that has to be completed rather than a dynamic process that can help raise the performance levels of staff.

Appraisals, which are sometimes called staff reviews, are a fundamental part of the whole process of managing human resources. Even in small companies such as community pharmacies, appraisals should be built into every line manager’s schedule.

Jane Lumb, Numark training manager, agrees, but understands the challenges faced by community pharmacies. She says “Finding time to do appraisals can prove challenging but time must be set aside for doing them, as without a structured system you will find it difficult to tackle management issues.”

She adds that time management is an ongoing issue in community pharmacy, and can be even more of a problem for independent proprietors who also need to schedule in all the work involved with running the business.

Effective appraisals

Appraisals work well when their purpose is clear and understood by all staff. The main purpose of an appraisal should be the review of an employee’s performance in his or her job.

To gain maximum benefit from the appraisal process, managers and employees should be convinced of the benefits. Managers should be open with staff about the purpose of the appraisal process and ensure staff receive guidelines and copies of the paperwork used to record the appraisal meeting.

Numark provides a template for pharmacy proprietors which outlines the objectives of the appraisal process, the benefits and the records that are kept following an appraisal. The template also contains guidelines for managers on how to prepare for the appraisal meeting.

An employee’s job objectives should be aligned to overall business objectives, providing a clear link between appraisals and overall business performance. The appraisal meeting provides an opportunity for meaningful dialogue about an employee’s progress against previously agreed objectives and targets.

Ms Lumb says: “People are a valuable business resource who can make a significant difference to the success of the pharmacy. A formal training and development system, based on annual staff reviews, will give all staff the opportunity to comment constructively on the environment in which they work. It will complement regular communication between staff and management and lead to the identification of staff training needs.”

Pharmacy proprietors and managers who have not yet introduced an appraisal process should consult staff in the first instance to ensure the process is transparent and is seen to link with overall organisational performance. Staff may be able to contribute ideas about preferred methods of appraisal and a timetable for appraisals.

The Chartered Institute for Personnel Development has identified five key elements of the appraisal process (see panel below).

Feedback

Managers need to provide practical feedback to the employee about his or her performance and progress. The manager must prepare thoroughly in advance to ensure feedback is accurate, constructive, and based on facts about performance, not perceptions. Managers may need training in how to give constructive feedback to employees.

Positive reinforcement

Managers should use appraisals as a means to highlight the good performance and the good work of employees. An appraisal should never be used to chastise an employee or to evaluate behaviour, as this may encroach on a disciplinary procedure.

Exchange of views

Appraisals are most effective when both the manager and the “appraisee” have an honest but constructive exchange of views. The appraisee can help to make the process a genuine exchange of views by preparing in good time for the appraisal meeting. He or she should perform a self-assessment of performance against previously specified targets, and not be afraid to voice any concerns or views — including a request for additional support.

Agreement

Established systems of appraisal set objectives that are reviewed at the next appraisal meeting, these should be agreed by both managers and appraisees. Objectives should be recorded and both the manager and the employee should have a copy.

In some companies, because of changes in the economic climate or job role changes, agreed objectives may have to be reviewed and amended before the next appraisal meeting.