LEARNING OBJECTIVESAfter studying this chapter, you should .docx

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After studying this chapter, you should be able to do the
following:
8-1 Discuss the difference between performance
management and performance appraisals. PAGE 263
8-2 List and briefly discuss the purposes of performance
appraisals. PAGE 269
8-3 Identify and briefly discuss the options for what to
evaluate in a performance appraisal. PAGE 272
8-4 Briefly discuss the commonly used performance
measurement methods and forms. PAGE 276
8-5 Identify and briefly discuss available options for the rater/
evaluator. PAGE 281
8-6 Identify some of the common problems, and how to avoid
the problems, with performance appraisals. PAGE 286
8-7 Briefly discuss the differences between evaluative
performance reviews and developmental performance
reviews. PAGE 290
8-8 Review the methods to improve employee engagement
through performance management and the issue of
electronic performance management. PAGE 292
8 Performance Management and Appraisal
©iStockphoto.com/Bill Oxford

Copyright ©2019 by SAGE Publications, Inc.
This work may not be reproduced or distributed in any form or
by any means without express written permission of the
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
Chapter 8: Performance Management and Appraisal 263
Practitioner’s Perspective
Cindy remarks that although performance evaluation can be
uncomfortable for both managers
and employees, failure to accurately and honestly evaluate
performance is never a good choice.
She recalls the time that a supervisor, Annette, came to see her.
“I want to fire Christine,” Annette said angrily. “She entered

the wrong invoice numbers again, and
now I have to stay and correct her mistakes—again!”
“Is this common?” Cindy asked. “Have you expressed your
concerns or initiated a performance
improvement plan?”
“She does it all the time, but I usually don’t catch it until after
she is off for the day,” Annette
replied. “By morning, it doesn’t seem worth my time go over it
with her.”
“How about her performance evaluation?” she asked next.
“Have you brought Christine’s poor
performance to her attention at her annual evaluation?”
“Well, no, I always give all my employees a satisfactory
rating—it’s easier that way,” answered
Annette.
Without ever bringing Christine’s unacceptable performance to
her attention and thus giving
her a chance to change, firing or otherwise severely disciplining
Christine at this point would be
questionable. How can this problem be avoided? In Chapter 8,
you will learn how to create and
utilize a performance evaluation process that works.
E. Job Analysis/Job Design
(required)
4. Performance management
(performance criteria and
appraisal)
H. Performance Management

(required)
1. Identifying and measuring
employee performance
2. Sources of information (e.g.,
managers, peers, clients)
3. Rater errors in performance
measurement
4. Electronic monitoring
5. Performance appraisals
6. Appraisal feedback
7. Managing performance
Q. Organization Development
(required—graduate students
only)
5. Improving organizational
effectiveness
9. Ongoing performance and
productivity initiatives
Get the edge on your studies.
edge.sagepub.com/lussierhrm3e
• Take a quiz to find out what
you’ve learned.
• Review key terms with eFlashcards.

• Watch videos that enhance
chapter content.
SHRM HR CONTENT
See Appendix: SHRM 2016 Curriculum
Guidebook for the complete list
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
After we have recruited, selected, and trained employees, we
must evaluate how well they
perform their jobs so they know how they are doing. Therefore,
performance evaluation is
an important part of the jobs of managers and HRM staff.1 We
need to figure out how to
manage employees’ performance over time to ensure that they
remain productive and
LO 8-1
Discuss the difference between
performance management and
performance appraisals.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,

po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
264 PART III: DEVELOPING AND MANAGING
hopefully become even more capable as they progress in their
careers. So the primary pur-
pose of performance appraisal should be to help employees to
continuously improve their
performance.2 Remember our earlier discussion about the fact
that human resources are
typically one of the few resources we can leverage to create a
sustainable competitive
advantage for the firm. To this end, we discuss in this section
the difference between per-
formance management and performance appraisal, and we
present the performance
appraisal process.
Performance Management Versus Performance Appraisal
“In a knowledge economy, organizations rely heavily on their
intangible assets to build
value. Consequently, performance management at the individual
employee level is essen-
tial and the business case for implementing a system to measure
and improve employee

performance is strong.”3 Committing management time and
effort to increase perfor-
mance not only meets this goal but also decreases turnover
rates.4
How do we manage performance within the organization? The
most common part of
the process, and the one with which we are most familiar, is the
performance appraisal,
or evaluation. (In this chapter, we will use the terms
performance evaluation, perfor-
mance appraisal, and just appraisal interchangeably.) However,
the performance
appraisal process is not the only thing that’s done in
performance management.
Q:5
Improving Organizational
Effectiveness
SHRM
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Performance Management Systems
Performance Management Versus Performance
Appraisal
Is It Time to Delete the Annual Appraisal Process?
Performance Appraisals
Accurate Performance Measures
Why Do We Conduct Performance Appraisals?

Communication (Informing)
Decision Making (Evaluating)
Motivation (Engaging)
Evaluating and Motivating = Development
What Do We Assess?
Trait Appraisals
Behavioral Appraisals
Results Appraisals
Which Option Is Best?
How Do We Use Appraisal Methods and Forms?
Critical Incidents Method
Management by Objectives (MBO) Method
Narrative Method or Form
Graphic Rating Scale Form
Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS) Form
Ranking Method
Who Should Assess Performance?

Supervisor
Peers
Subordinates
Self
Customers
360-Degree Evaluations
Whom Do We Choose?
Performance Appraisal Problems
Common Problems Within the Performance
Appraisal Process
Avoiding Performance Appraisal Problems
Debriefing the Appraisal
The Evaluative Performance Appraisal Interview
The Developmental Performance Appraisal Interview
Trends and Issues in HRM
Building Engagement Through Performance
Management
Technology: Electronic Performance Monitoring

publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
Performance management is the process of identifying,
measuring, managing, and devel-
oping the performance of the human resources in an
organization. Basically we are trying
to figure out how well employees perform and then ultimately
improve that performance
level. When used correctly, performance management is a
systematic analysis and mea-
surement of worker performance (and communication of that
assessment to the individ-
ual) that we use to improve performance over time.

Performance appraisal, on the other hand, is the ongoing
process of evaluating
employee performance. Notice that it is an ongoing process.
Employees need regular feed-
back on their performance,5 so we should give them routine and
candid assessments.6
New tools that we will discuss shortly are allowing us to do this
much more efficiently.
Performance appraisals are reviews of employee performance
over time, so appraisal is
just one piece of performance management. Although we will
spend most of the chapter
discussing performance appraisals, there are several significant
pieces to performance
management that we have already covered in past chapters and
others that we will cover
in future chapters. We discussed “strategic planning,” which
provides inputs into what we
want to evaluate in our performance management system, in
Chapter 2. We also discussed
the major method of identifying performance requirements in a
particular job when we
went through “job analysis and design” in Chapter 4. In Chapter
7, we discussed “train-
ing and development,” which obviously plays a part in
performance management. Addi-
tionally, we will discuss motivating employees, coaching and
counseling, employee
relations, compensation, and other pieces in Chapters 9 through
14. Now that we under-
stand the difference between performance management and
performance appraisal, let’s
look at the performance appraisal issue in more detail.
Is It Time to Delete the Annual

Appraisal Process?
It is worth noting right at the beginning that
many people in organizations do not like per-
formance appraisal systems and think that
these systems do not have the ability to
improve employee performance. One study
even noted that 95% of managers are dissatis-
fied with their performance management sys-
tem and 90% of HR managers believe the
system does not yield accurate performance
information!7 Routinely, there are calls to do
away with performance appraisal processes.8
Netflix is one company that has completely
stopped doing formal performance appraisals,
even though the CEO noted that “excellent
colleagues trump everything else.”9 (Netflix still does complete
informal 360-degree
appraisals. We will introduce you to these shortly.) So why does
this process continue to
be used by most major organizations?
In the past three or four years, it would seem to the average HR
manager that there has
been a never-ending line of companies that have decided to
dump their annual perfor-
mance appraisals. In addition to Netflix, a list of Fortune 500
companies like Deloitte,
Adobe Systems, GE, PwC,10 and SAP11 have trashed their
annual appraisal approaches.
Looking at all of the articles written about dumping appraisals,
the natural question
would be, “Why are we studying this if it is going away?” The
quickest answer is that it
isn’t quite gone yet and probably won’t be for some time—if
ever. Based on a number of
different surveys in the past couple of years, around 10 to 15%

of companies have decided
to stop using annual reviews. The numbers were about 6% of
Fortune 500 companies
Performance
management The process of
identifying, measuring, managing,
and developing the performance
of the human resources in
an organization
Performance appraisal
The ongoing process of
evaluating employee performance
Q:9
Ongoing Performance and
Productivity Initiatives
SHRM
E:4
Performance Management
(Performance Criteria and Appraisal)
SHRM
Netflix is one company that
has stopped doing formal
Ry
an
A
ns

on
/A
FP
/G
et
ty
Im
ag
es
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu

te
in 201512 and about 12% to 15% in 2017,13 which leaves
around 85% of those compa-
nies and many other smaller firms still using annual
evaluations.
Why hasn’t the rest of the business world let go of this relic of
the industrial age if it
doesn’t work like it needs to? Again, the quick answer is that
there is valuable information
that is gained from the process; and the latest online, app-based,
and/or social options
have not gotten to the point yet where they can provide all of
the same valuable informa-
tion. “The documentation that traditional appraisals produce is a
business necessity. The
data collected . . . allows the organization to make important
decision in a whole host of
business areas.”14 So one of the most valuable reasons for
performance appraisals is to
provide information for making good management decisions;
and if we don’t have that
information, decisions become more difficult and dangerous. In
addition, at least some
research shows that deleting the performance appraisal does not
automatically make the
organization better, and may make it worse. Research by CEB
showed that “[a]t firms
where reviews had been eliminated, measures of employee
engagement and performance
dropped by 10%. . . . Managers actually spent less time on

conversations, and the quality
of those conversations declined.”15
But new ideas for some form of routine or continuous
technology-based appraisal and
feedback (often called “check-ins” by the firms) have
proliferated over the recent past,16
with dozens if not hundreds of tech companies now offering
apps or other software solu-
tions17 to provide companies with the ability to give all
employees constant feedback. For
obvious reasons, this continuous appraisal seems to be more
common in organizations
that are less traditional and bureaucratic, and that are more
comfortable with technology
solutions. We spoke about Zappos’s holacracy earlier. Zappos is
trying to use holistic
feedback from all sides (a massive 360-degree evaluation) in
order to evaluate its employ-
ees and encourage creativity and innovation.
Still, we have to struggle with a significant problem:
Organizations legitimately use
periodic appraisals to make good decisions about their
employees and employee develop-
ment.18 If performance appraisals are not completed, the
organization doesn’t have valid
and reliable information about its human resources; and
therefore it has no ability to
make good decisions about things such as training, promotions,
and pay raises. Because of
this major issue, it is unlikely that most organizations will hit
the delete button on their
annual appraisal process until the newer technologies have been
proven capable of
defending the organization from claims of employment

discrimination.
Let’s take a look now at the performance appraisal process in
Exhibit 8-1. Note the con-
nection between the organization’s mission and objectives and
the performance appraisal
process. Here we briefly discuss each step of the process.
Step 1: Job analysis. This is logically our first step because if
we don’t know what a job
consists of, how can we possibly evaluate an employee’s
performance in that job? We
already learned how to do a job analysis in Chapter 4, but as
shown in Exhibit 8-1, we
should realize that the job must be based on the organizational
mission and objectives, the
department, and the job itself.
Step 2: Develop standards and measurement methods. If we
don’t have standards of acceptable
behavior and methods of measuring performance, how can we
assess that performance?
We will discuss performance measurement methods in the next
part of this section; and in
the section “How Do We Use Appraisal Methods and Forms?”
we will discuss these top-
ics in more detail.
Step 3: Informal performance appraisal—Coaching and
disciplining. Performance appraisal
should not be simply a once- or twice-a-year formal interview.
As its definition states,
performance appraisal is an ongoing process. While a formal
evaluation may take place
only once or twice a year, people need regular feedback on their

performance to know
how they are doing.19 We will briefly discuss coaching in the
“Critical Incidents Method”
WORK
APPLICATION 8-1
Select a job you have or have
had. Do you or did you know
the organization’s mission and
objectives? Briefly state the
mission. If you don’t know it,
find out. Do you understand
how your job fits or helps to meet
the organization’s mission and
objectives? Explain in some detail.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,

po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
subsection of “How Do We Use Appraisal Methods and
Forms?” and we will discuss it in
more detail in the next chapter.
Step 4: Prepare for and conduct the formal performance
appraisal. The common practice is to have
a formal performance review with the boss once or sometimes
twice a year, using one or
more of the measurement forms we will be learning about. Later
in this chapter, we will
discuss the steps involved in preparing for and conducting the
performance appraisal.
In the chapter sections to come, we discuss why we assess
performance, what we
assess, how we assess it, and who conducts the performance
appraisal. Then we discuss
performance appraisal problems and how to avoid them, and we
end the performance
appraisal process with the actual formal review session. But
before we leave this sec-

tion, we need to understand a critically important part of each
step in the performance
appraisal process: accurate performance measurement.
Accurate Performance Measures
To effectively assess performance, we need to have clear
standards for and methods of
measuring performance.20 The American National Standards
Institute (ANSI) has out-
lined the minimum required elements of a performance
management system for goal set-
ting, performance review, and performance improvement
plans.21 For details, visit the
ANSI website at http://www.ansi.org. We need accurate
standards and measures of
employee performance both to effectively assess performance
and to let employees know
where they can improve.22 This in turn should lead to training
employees to develop the
new skills they need to improve their performance.23
Also, to be an accurate measure of performance, our measure
must be valid, reliable,
acceptable and feasible, specific, and based on the mission and
objectives. Let’s discuss
each of those requirements here.
VALID AND RELIABLE. As in all areas of our people
management process, we must do
our best to make sure that all of our performance management
tools are valid and
Organizational mission
and objectives
Step 1: Job analysis

Step 2: Develop standards
and measurement
methods; communicate
Step 4: Prepare for and
conduct the formal PA
Step 3: Informal PA—
Coaching and discipline
EXHIBIT 8-1
EXHIBIT 8-1 THE PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL PROCESS
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str

ibu
te
reliable. Here again, we can pull out and dust off the OUCH test
as a quick way to
ensure fairness and equity in the performance management and
appraisal process. We
remember by now that OUCH stands for Objective, Uniform in
application, Consistent
in effect, and Has job relatedness. However, we still need to
analyze validity and
reliability in some detail.
We have to create valid and reliable measurement to be
accurate. Recall that we dis-
cussed reliability and validity in Chapter 4 and Chapter 6. Valid
means that a measure is
true and correct; a valid measure is a factual one that measures
the process that you
wanted to measure. Reliable means the measure is consistent; it
works in generally the
same way each time we use it.24
ACCEPTABLE AND FEASIBLE. In addition to validity and
reliability, we need to look
at a couple of other characteristics of our performance
measures—acceptability
and feasibility.25 Acceptability means that the use of the
measure is satisfactory or
appropriate to the people who must use it. However, in
performance appraisal, this
isn’t enough. To be acceptable, an evaluation tool must also be

feasible. Is it possible to
reasonably apply the evaluation tool in a particular case, or is it
too complex or lengthy
to work well? As an example, if the performance evaluation
form is two or three pages
long and covers the major aspects of the job that is being
evaluated, and if managers
and employees both believe that the form truly evaluates
performance measures that
identify success on the job, then managers and employees are
likely to feel that the tool is
acceptable and feasible to use. However, if the manager must
fill out a 25-page form that
has very little to do with the job being evaluated, the manager
may not feel that the form
is acceptable or feasible, at least partially due to its length,
even if the employees do.
Conversely, if the manager fills out a two-page evaluation that
they feel is a true mea-
sure of performance in an employee’s job, but the employee
feels that the evaluation leaves
out large segments of what is done in the work routine, the
employee may not feel that the
form is acceptable and feasible. If either management or
employees feel that the form is
unacceptable, it most likely will not be used correctly. (This
would also mean that the per-
son would not see the evaluation as a valid measure.26) And as
we saw in the section on
deleting the performance appraisal process, many managers and
employees do not cur-
rently see their appraisal process as acceptable and feasible—a
significant problem with
the process.

SPECIFIC. The evaluation measure must be specific enough to
identify what is going
well and what is not. The word specific means that something is
explicitly identified or
defined well enough that all involved completely understand the
issue. In performance
appraisals, a specific form provides enough information for
everyone to understand
what level of performance has been achieved by a particular
employee within a well-
identified job.
Creating specific measures is the only way to use a performance
appraisal to improve
the performance of employees over time. The employees have to
understand what they are
and are not doing successfully. Many times, evaluation forms
may be too general in nature
to be of value for modifying employee behaviors because we
want the form to serve for a
large number of different types of jobs. This can create
significant problems in the perfor-
mance appraisal process.
BASED ON THE MISSION AND OBJECTIVES. Finally, you
want to make sure that your
performance management system leads to the accomplishment
of your organizational
mission and objectives. As with everything else we do in HR,
we need to ensure that the
performance management process guides our employees toward
achievement of the
company’s mission and objectives over time. As managers,
making sure of this connection
will allow us to reinforce employee behaviors that aim at
achieving organizational goals,

and it will also allow us to identify for our employees things
that they may be doing that
actively or unintentionally harm our ability to reach those goals.
WORK
APPLICATION 8-2
Assess the accuracy of the
measurements of your performance
on your last performance appraisal.
Be sure to describe the measures’
validity, reliability, acceptability,
and feasibility, plus whether the
measures were specific and based
on the organization’s mission
and objectives.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,

po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
Thus, stating specific objectives saying exactly what each
person in each job should
achieve, or their performance outcomes, leads to accurate
assessment that can increase
performance. For some examples of inaccurate measures of
performance, complete
Applying the Concept 8-1.
WHY DO WE CONDUCT PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS?
As you can already see, the appraisal process gets to be
extremely complicated very
quickly. And remember, anytime that a process in an
organization is complicated, it is
going to cost a lot of money. So what’s the value provided to
the organization and to the
individual that makes the process of evaluating the performance
of our workers so
critical?
If performance appraisals are done in the correct manner, they
can provide us with a

series of valuable results. However, if not done correctly,
evaluating employee perfor-
mance can actually lead to lower levels of job satisfaction and
productivity. Let’s discuss
three major reasons (communicating, decision making, and
motivating) why performance
evaluations are completed and why they are so critical to
continually improving organiza-
tional performance.27
Communication (Informing)
The first major reason for performance appraisals is to provide
an opportunity for formal
communication between management and the employees
concerning how the organiza-
tion believes each employee is performing. All of us know
intuitively that successful com-
munication requires two-way interaction between people.
“Organizations can prevent or
remedy the majority of performance problems by ensuring that
two-way conversations
occur between managers and employees, resulting in a complete
understanding of what is
required, when it is required, and how everyone’s contribution
measures up.”28
Communication always requires that employees have the
opportunity and ability to
provide feedback to their bosses in order to make sure that their
communication is under-
stood. So in performance appraisals, the communication process
requires that we as man-
agers communicate with the employee to provide them with
information about how we
APPLYING THE CONCEPT8-1

Measurement Accuracy
Before each of the situation descriptions below, write the letter
corresponding to the accuracy criterion for a measure that is
NOT met in the situation.
a. valid
b. reliable
c. accepted
d. feasible
e. specific
f. based on the mission and objectives
____ 1. My boss is on my case because I’m not producing
as much as I used to. But it’s not my fault that the
machine jams more often and then I have to stop work-
ing to fix it.
____ 2. My boss said I have to evaluate all 25 of my
employees
four times a year instead of only once. I told her I don’t
have the time to do it that many times. It’s just not
possible to do a good review that often without cutting
back on other things that are more important.
____ 3. My boss said I have a bad attitude and gave me a
lower overall performance rating. I questioned what my
attitude had to do with my performance because I get
all my work done well, and by the deadline.
____ 4. My boss asked me to complete a self-evaluation form
rating my performance. But I didn’t do it because it is
her job—I let her do it.
____ 5. My boss told me that I was not doing a very good job.
But when I asked him why, he never gave me any details

to support his assessment. Good answer.
LO 8-2
List and briefly discuss the pur-
poses of performance appraisals.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
believe they’re doing in their job. However, the process also
requires that we provide the

opportunity for the employee to speak to us concerning factors
that inhibit their ability to
successfully perform to expectations.
Factors in a job that management may not know about can
include lack of training,
poorly maintained equipment, lack of necessary tools, conflict
within work groups, and
many other things that management may not see on a daily
basis. If the communication
component of the performance appraisal process does not allow
for this two-way com-
munication, managers may not know of the obstacles that the
employee has to overcome.
We can resolve problems only when we know about them. So as
managers, we need to
communicate with our employees to find out when issues within
the work environment
are causing a loss of productivity so we can fix them. Thus,
two-way communication is a
critical component of correcting problems through the
performance appraisal process.
Decision Making (Evaluating)
The second major purpose of performance appraisal is to allow
management to make
decisions about employees within the organization. We need to
make decisions based on
the information we get from our communication. Accurate
information is necessary for
management decision making and is absolutely critical to allow
the manager to improve
organizational productivity.29 We use information from annual
performance appraisals to
make evaluative decisions concerning our workforce, including
such things as pay raises,

promotions, demotions, training and development, and
termination. When we have valid
and reliable information concerning each individual within our
division or department,
we have the ability to make administrative and performance
decisions that can enhance
productivity for the firm.
If, for instance, through the process of coaching (the third step
of the performance
appraisal process), we find that several machine operators are
having trouble keeping
their equipment in working order, then that information would
quite likely lead to a needs
assessment (as discussed in Chapter 7) to determine whether or
not maintenance training
is necessary for our group of operators. Without our rigorous
evaluation process, we
might not learn of this common problem in a timely fashion, and
the result could be signif-
icant damage to very expensive equipment. This and similar
types of information fre-
quently come to the forefront as we go through the performance
appraisal process.
Therefore, decision making based on good communication is a
very large part of why we
take the time to do annual performance appraisals.
Motivation (Engaging)
The third major purpose of performance appraisals is to
motivate our employees to
improve the way they work, which in turn will improve
organizational productivity
overall.30 But what is motivation, and are performance
appraisals normally motivational?
We define motivation here as the willingness to achieve

organizational objectives. We
want to create this willingness to achieve the organization’s
objectives,
which will in turn increase organizational productivity.
Our evaluative decisions should lead to development of
employees.
Returning to the above example of the machine operators having
trou-
ble keeping their equipment in working order, making the
decision to
train employees leads to their development, which then
improves their
individual performance, as well as better utilizing
organizational
resources.
Evaluating and Motivating = Development
An effective performance appraisal process has two parts—
evaluating and motivating—
and it does both parts well. Evaluating is about assessing past
performance, and motivat-
ing is about developing employees to improve their future
performance. But are both parts
done well? Have you ever been in a position of being evaluated
and debriefed as an
HRM in Action
Performance Appraisal
H:7
Managing Performance
SHRM

Motivation The willingness to
achieve organizational objectives
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
employee? Was the process motivational? Most of us would
probably reply no. Think
about that appraisal process and how it was carried out. Here we
discuss problems with
evaluation and how to overcome them, as well as how to
motivate employees. We also

suggest separating formal assessment meetings designed to
evaluate or motivate.
PROBLEMS IN EVALUATION. A common problem in
appraisals is overpowering an employee
during the evaluation debrief with large amounts of negative
information that they
have not heard during coaching. This tends to cause the
employee to “turn off” or stop
listening as the manager explains what is wrong. Employees
will just “raise their shields”
to ward off all of the negative information. This is a natural
human trait. We are naturally
suspicious of negative information for a variety of
psychological reasons (i.e., defensive
mechanisms), so when we are presented with a large amount of
negative information,
we tend to discount or even disbelieve it. Therefore, employees
in such situations may
consider the process unfair or one-sided and not an accurate
measure of their performance
(not acceptable), and as a result, the evaluation may become
useless as a motivator that
develops the employee.
AVOIDING PROBLEMS IN EVALUATION. To help overcome
this problem during employee
evaluations, an effective manager who is a good coach will
generally never identify a
weakness that the employee has not previously been made aware
of during the formal
appraisal interview. This is the key to making the appraisal
acceptable to the employee.
In other words, there are no surprises in a well-run evaluation.
The evaluative part of
the appraisal should be a review only of what the employee

already knows and should
be willing hear because they have been coached on their
performance throughout the
evaluation period.
However, avoiding surprises is not enough.31 The appraisal
debrief must be a well-
rounded look at the individual employee, and it should identify
both positive and negative
(specific) factors in the employee’s behaviors and results within
the job (and remember,
the communication needs to be two-way). As the manager, we
want to tell the employees
what they did right but also where they have room for
improvement. This more balanced
approach to the debriefing process will minimize the risk that
the employee will raise
those shields and avoid listening.
MOTIVATING DEVELOPMENT. An important part of
development is the need for managers to
provide motivational opportunities for the employees to
improve their performance over
time. In other words, we need to tell them how to fix their own
problems. We need to
provide them with tools, training, or other methods that will
allow them to improve to
the point where their behavior is sufficient. Then, we must
continually strive to get them
to perform at an above-average level and ultimately become
superior performers, helping
them along the way through ongoing coaching between formal
reviews.
If we provide employees with tools that allow them to improve
over time, we’re not

focusing on negative past results but on positive future potential
results.32 If employees are
given an honest opportunity to fix something that they know is a
problem and are given
the necessary tools or training, most will take advantage of that
opportunity. So perfor-
mance appraisals can be motivational if they are properly used
and debriefed.
SEPARATING EVALUATION AND DEVELOPMENT. To
improve both parts of the performance
appraisal, we suggest splitting the debriefing into two separate
interviews. The first
meeting is to evaluate the employee’s past performance,
pointing out strengths
and areas for improvement; the employee is asked to think about
how to improve
performance. At the second meeting, manager and employee
jointly come up with a
developmental plan that should lead to increased performance,
which in turn will result
in a higher future evaluative rating during the next formal
appraisal. We will discuss
how to conduct the two separate interviews in the “Debriefing
the Appraisal” section of
this chapter.
WORK
APPLICATION 8-3
Assess the effectiveness of an
evaluative performance appraisal
you had. Did the manager present

both positive and negative
performance areas? Did you really
listen? Were there any surprises?
Explain any problems and how the
evaluation could be improved.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te

WHAT DO WE ASSESS?
Now that we know why we conduct performance appraisals, the
next step is to figure out
what needs to be evaluated. In other words, we have to decide
what aspects of the individ-
ual and their performance we’re going to measure. Discovering
the best options for what
to evaluate would come from analyzing the essential functions
and qualifications required
for a particular job, or in HR terms, our job analysis. We could
then use these facts to
design an appraisal instrument that uses measurable and
observable factors to evaluate
performance.33 However, we can’t evaluate everything that is
done over the course of the
year. We have to choose what we will focus on because what
gets measured, and evalu-
ated, gets done.34 Our three primary options for what to
evaluate are traits, behaviors, and
results.
Trait Appraisals
Traits identify the physical or psychological characteristics of a
person. Traits of an indi-
vidual can be part of the performance appraisal process. There
is evidence that traits such
as inquisitiveness, conscientiousness, and general cognitive
ability are valuable in jobs that
require management and leadership skills.35,36 However, we
must ensure that we focus on
traits that have a direct relationship to the essential functions of
the job, that they are
within the control of the individual, and that they are accurate
measures. Can we accu-
rately measure traits that affect job performance, can trait

measures pass the OUCH test,
are traits commonly measured, and should we measure traits as
part of our performance
appraisal process? Here we answer these questions, and we will
answer these same ques-
tions for our behavior and results options.
CAN WE ACCURATELY MEASURE TRAITS THAT AFFECT
JOB PERFORMANCE? Many traits that
most of us would be likely to focus on—such as physical
attractiveness, height, and
extroversion—actually have been shown to have very little
bearing on job performance
in most cases. If we’re going to use traits in performance
evaluation, we must ensure that
we focus on traits that have a direct relationship to the essential
functions of the job being
done, and they have to be accurate measures.
Is using trait-based evaluation a good method of judging work
performance? How
many of us would want to have judgments made about our work
based on our appear-
ance or personality? Would you consider this to be a valid and
reliable measure of your
work performance? In most cases, it’s very difficult to show
that personal traits are valid
and reliable measures of work performance.
GIVE TRAITS THE OUCH TEST. Let’s take a look at trait-
based measurements using the
OUCH test. Is a physical characteristic such as height or a
psychological characteristic
such as cheerfulness, work ethic, or enthusiasm an objective
measure of an individual’s
work performance? We would have great difficulty in creating a

quantifiable and factual
link between height or enthusiasm and job performance. So
when measuring traits, it’s
difficult to meet the objective requirement of the OUCH test.
If we utilized these trait-based measures in all cases in
employee evaluations, we would
be able to meet the uniform in application requirement of the
OUCH test. The third test—
consistent in effect—would likely be extremely difficult to meet
due to the fact that differ-
ent racial, ethnic, social, and gender groups tend to have
different physical and
psychological characteristics. Remember, reliability is a
measure of consistency. Physical
and personality characteristics have less to do with success in
the job than certain behav-
iors do. So it’s difficult to meet the has job relatedness test in
most cases. Finally, it would
be very difficult to get different supervisors to evaluate
subjective traits the same, because
of their own personality traits.
ARE TRAITS COMMONLY USED TO MEASURE
PERFORMANCE? Surprisingly, if you go to
the local office supply store and look at standard evaluation
forms that are available in
LO 8-3
Identify and briefly discuss the
options for what to evaluate in a
performance appraisal.
Traits The physical or
psychological characteristics
of a person

publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
preprinted pads, you will find that they usually list many traits
as part of the evaluation.
Why would this be the case? The simple answer is that at least
some traits, both physical
and psychological, are fairly easy to identify and we assume
that they are related to how
the individual will perform on the job. Many of us, individually
and as managers, value

certain things like enthusiasm, even if enthusiasm has very little
to do with the ability to do
a particular job or the actual results of job performance.
Certainly, there are some jobs where enthusiasm is critical.
However, being an enthu-
siastic employee may have very little to do with success in the
job, so if we evaluate indi-
viduals based on the characteristic of enthusiasm, we might
make an error in judgment
concerning their performance. And if we make errors in
analyzing the performance of our
employees, the appraisal form becomes less valid and reliable
and much less acceptable to
both the individual employee and management.
Finally, if our organization happened to be sued by a former
employee who claimed
that they were fired based on an appraisal process that was
unreliable and not valid, it
would be very difficult to defend trait-based evaluation forms
due to their subjective
nature.
SHOULD WE MEASURE TRAITS? Author Ken Blanchard said
that there are too many
evaluation items that can’t be objectively measured—such as
attitude, initiative, and
promotability. Therefore, it’s important to ask whether both
managers and employees
will agree with the measured rating as being accurate. The
bottom-line test (we will call
it the Blanchard test) is this: Does everyone understand why
they are assessed at a specific
level (evaluation) and what it takes to get a higher rating
(development)?37 We should

assess only traits that meet the bottom-line test of having a
direct and obvious objective
relationship between the trait and success in the job.
Behavioral Appraisals
Our second option in the assessment process is to evaluate
employees based on behaviors.
You will recall that behaviors are simply the actions taken by an
individual—the things
that they do and say. Behavioral appraisals measure what
individuals do at work, not
their personal characteristics. Is this a good option to use in a
performance appraisal
process?
CAN WE ACCURATELY MEASURE BEHAVIORS THAT
AFFECT JOB PERFORMANCE? As a general
rule, it is much better to use behaviors in an appraisal than it is
to use traits. While an
individual supervisor or manager may make a mistake in
judgment about the traits of an
employee, physical actions or behaviors can be directly
observed; and as a result, they are
more likely to be a valid assessment of the individual’s
performance.
GIVE BEHAVIOR THE OUCH TEST. Let’s take a look at a
behavioral evaluation using the
OUCH test. Would an evaluation based on actions taken by an
employee be objective?
In general, directly observing and evaluating an action is
significantly more objective than
making an attempt to judge a trait like individual effort. If we
applied the same evaluation
of behaviors to all of the individuals in the same type of job, we
would have a reasonable

certainty that we were being uniform in application. The same
thing would be true here in
evaluating the concept of consistent in effect.
So, it comes down to whether or not a behavior-based
evaluation has job relatedness.
Would a behavioral evaluation be directly related to the
essential functions of a job? The
answer is that it would be if we made sure that we chose
behaviors that were necessarily a
part of successfully accomplishing a task. For instance, if we
determine that a person acts
correctly in filling out a requisition form, putting the proper
information in the correct
blocks, and providing the requisition to the appropriate person
who would then order the
material, then we are assessing behaviors that are job related.
If, however, we evaluated
the action of walking to the lunchroom and walking back to
one’s workstation, would we
Behaviors The actions taken
by an individual
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,

po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
be measuring a valid job-related behavior? The answer is more
than likely no. Of course,
this is a silly example, but it should help you understand that no
matter what we do in the
evaluation process, we need to ensure that our actions are job
related.
OK, but would behavioral evaluations be defensible in the
situation of our fired
employee above? Would it be possible for us to show that our
evaluation process was
valid and reliable? If we choose to measure job-related
behaviors, it becomes much easier
for the organization to defend the validity and reliability of the
appraisal process.
Observation of actions that are directly related to a job would
provide at least some pre-
sumption of validity as well as reliability, purely because the
behaviors are directly job
related. Again, if we chose behaviors that could not be directly
associated with the job, the

validity and reliability of the measures would be suspect.
SHOULD WE MEASURE BEHAVIOR? Are behaviors that
measure performance more
acceptable to the individual employee and the managers than
personal traits? In fact,
evidence shows that most individuals are very comfortable with
the evaluation of their
performance being based on “what they do,” not “who they are.”
In general, the most
useful and therefore most acceptable feedback to employees is
feedback on specific job-
related behaviors.38 As managers, though, we still need to be
cognizant of the fact that a
behavioral evaluation can be a poor measure of work
performance unless the behaviors
chosen are directly applicable to being successful in the job. So
as with traits, the
Blanchard test asks whether employees understand why they are
assessed at a specific level
(evaluation) and what it takes to get a higher rating
(development).39
Results Appraisals
Our final option is to evaluate the results, or outcomes, of the
work process. Results are
simply a measure of the goals achieved through a work process.
Using results as an evalua-
tion measure provides management with an assessment of the
goals that were achieved in
a particular job over time.
CAN WE ACCURATELY MEASURE RESULTS THAT
AFFECT JOB PERFORMANCE? Is measuring
the outcomes of a particular individual’s job a valid and reliable
measure of that person’s

performance? Well, results are certainly concrete measures of
performance. However,
could results of a job have been skewed based on factors that
were outside the control of
the individual who is performing that job? The answer is
obviously that the results could
be affected by many other factors besides the individual’s
performance. For example,
standards could be set too low or high, and equipment and
machines don’t always work
correctly. As a result, employees can’t do as much, or any,
work.
Even though this is true, the measurement of results is the final
organizational measure
of success. The results produced through organizational
processes provide the company
with its return on investment—in this case, its investment in the
people in the organiza-
tion. So, organizations really like to measure results.
GIVE RESULTS THE OUCH TEST. Let’s take a look at the
OUCH test concerning results-based
evaluations. Is a result achieved in a particular job a concrete,
factual measure that can
easily be quantified? Obviously, results are a very objective
measure of what has happened
in that particular job. If we apply the same results-based
measure to each similar job, then
our measure is uniform in application. The measure of results
would almost certainly be
consistent across different groups of employees, so we would
also meet the consistency
in effect requirement of the OUCH test. And of course, if we
are measuring the results
of what happens in a job, we are certainly providing a measure

that has job relatedness.
So with a quick scan, we can see that a results-based
performance appraisal meets the
requirements of the OUCH test better than do either of the other
two options.
SHOULD WE MEASURE RESULTS? Results-based
evaluations, like behavior-based
evaluations, are typically very acceptable to both the employee
and the manager.
Results A measure of the goals
achieved through a work process
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te

Employees readily accept results-based appraisals because they
feel that such appraisals
are one of the fairest methods of analyzing their performance.
After all, results are the
most concrete measures available—either the result was
achieved, or it wasn’t. We can
also defend this type of appraisal much more easily than we can
defend the other two
options, even in court. It tends to be very easy for the
organization to go into a courtroom
and show that an individual’s results were objectively lower
than those achieved by other
people in the same or similar jobs, if such an action becomes
necessary.
But is a performance evaluation measured on results valid and
reliable? The results-
based evaluation would most likely be highly valid and would
usually be reliable, assum-
ing that we were able to take into account factors outside the
individual’s control that
nonetheless affect job performance. So as with traits and
behaviors, the Blanchard test
asks: Does everyone understand why they are assessed at a
specific level (evaluation) and
what it takes to get a higher rating (development)?40
Our three options concerning what we evaluate are traits,
behaviors, and results. But
which option is best? The answer’s not as easy as you might

think. Certainly, results-based
and behavior-based evaluations are more defensible due to the
fact that they are more reli-
able and valid than trait-based evaluations. But we have to
include a large number of fac-
tors in order to select which option is best in a particular
situation.
For example, if we need to evaluate employees who work on the
assembly line, we
may need to evaluate behaviors such as punctuality. Do they
show up to work on time? If
we have an employee who produces at 150% of the standard
when they show up, but they
only show up 2 or 3 days a week, that creates a problem for the
whole assembly line. In
that case, we may need to evaluate attendance and punctuality
(behaviors) because every-
one on the assembly line depends on everyone else.
However, if we have individuals who don’t do their actual work
where managers can
see and measure traits and behaviors—for example, people who
work from home (tele-
commuters) and independent outside salespeople—then we need
to rely on results-based
measures. Other employees are often not affected by the hours
that the telecommuters and
salespeople work. It will not matter when they are at the office,
as long as they get the job
done. The firm will be concerned with how much they produced
or sold. So circumstances
dictate which method we will use; we cannot say one method
will always be superior to
the other two.

WORK
APPLICATION 8-4
Very briefly describe a job you
have or had. Describe how your
performance was assessed based
on traits, behavior, and/or results.
Assessment Options
Write the letter corresponding to each of the following assess-
ment options for measuring performance before the situation
describing it.
a. traits
b. behavior
c. results
____ 6. On the assessment form question number 7, “willing-
ness to take responsibility,” I’m giving you an average
rating.
____ 7. You have to stay calm and stop yelling at your
coworkers.
____ 8. You sold only 25 units 3 weeks in a row. You know
the
standard is 35, so I’m giving you a formal warning that
if you don’t get up to standard in 2 weeks, you will be
fired.
____ 9. When you promote one of the women, make sure she is

attractive.
____ 10. I’m pleased with your performance. It is only your
sec-
ond week on the job, and you are already producing
the standard 10 units per day. I don’t think it will be long
before you exceed the standard and get bonus pay.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
HOW DO WE USE APPRAISAL METHODS AND FORMS?

The formal performance appraisal usually involves the use of a
standard form purchased,
or developed by the HR department, to measure employee
performance. Again, “If you
can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.”41 But you must be
careful how you measure suc-
cess,42 as the assessment should be as objective as possible, not
subjective.43 Employees
need to know the standards and understand what good
performance looks like, and they
need to be able to measure their own performance. If you are
stuck with a form that has
subjective sections, work with your employees to develop clear,
accurate standards.
Exhibit 8-2 lists the commonly used performance appraisal
measurement methods
and forms and displays them on a continuum based on their use
in evaluative and develop-
mental decisions. In this section, we discuss each of the
measurement methods and forms,
starting with the developmental methods and working toward
the evaluative ones.
Critical Incidents Method
The critical incidents method is a performance appraisal method
in which a manager
keeps a written record of the positive and negative performance
of employees throughout
the performance period. There is no standard form used, so it is
a method. Here, and for
each of the other methods and forms, let’s answer two
questions: Why and when do we
use the method or form, and how do we use it?
WHY AND WHEN DO WE USE THE CRITICAL INCIDENTS

METHOD? Most formal reviews take
place only once or twice a year. But do you want to wait for a
formal review before you
talk to employees about what they are doing well and when they
are not performing up
to expectations? No, you want to let them know how they are
doing on an ongoing basis.
Also, let’s say you are a manager with 12 employees. Can you
really remember everything
each of them did well, when they made a mistake, and on what
dates to evaluate their
total performance over the past 6 to 12 months? Odds are, you
can’t. However, many
managers don’t keep a record of critical incidents, which leads
to the problem of
inaccurate measures during the formal review meeting.
We use critical incidents to do a good assessment of the entire
review period, and we
coach during the entire review period when needed for
developmental decisions. We need
to continually conduct informal coaching and discipline, when
warranted, as we make
notes of critical incidents to use during the formal review. With
clear standards and coach-
ing, you can minimize disagreements over performance during
the formal performance
appraisal because employees will know what is coming.44
Although critical incidents are commonly used for
developmental decisions, they are
also used for evaluative decisions. For legal purposes, having a
list of documented critical
incidents is especially important leading up the evaluative
decision of firing employees.
We will discuss discipline and documentation in detail in

Chapter 9.
HOW DO WE USE CRITICAL INCIDENTS? Managers
commonly keep track of incidents with
each employee, in either hard-copy or electronic form. Robert
Graham CEO Michael
LO 8-4
Briefly discuss the commonly
used performance measurement
methods and forms.
Critical incidents
method A performance appraisal
method in which a manager
keeps a written record of the
positive and negative performance
of employees throughout the
performance period
H:5
SHRM
1. Ranking
Method
2. Graphic Rating
Scales Form
3. BARS
Form
4. Narrative
Method or

Form
5. MBO
Method
6. Critical
Incidents
Method
Evaluative
Decisions
Development
Decisions
1 2 3 4 5 6
EXHIBIT 8-2 PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
MEASUREMENT METHODS AND FORMS
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,

or
di
str
ibu
te
Buckly does it the old fashion way with a file folder for each of
his direct reports,45 but
there are many different software programs available now to
track performance over the
entire review period. Remember that critical incidents are
important employee actions,
not minor ones, which help or hurt personal and organizational
performance. Every
time an employee does something very well, like beating a
tough deadline or keeping
an angry customer from terminating a business relationship with
the firm, a note goes
in the employee’s file. Notes also go into the file every time the
employee’s behavior
hurts performance, such as when the employee comes to work
late or doesn’t meet
quality standards. In today’s environment, the note may be
written by the manager,
a coworker, customer, or even a subordinate. When desired, it
will be put in the form
of documentation, such as a warning, a performance report, or a
letter from a happy
customer thanking the employee for doing a great job.

Coaching is part of this ongoing process, and it involves helping
employees succeed by
monitoring their performance through giving feedback to praise
progress and to redirect
inappropriate behavior as often as needed.46 One error that
inexperienced or unskilled
managers tend to make in critical incidents evaluation is
focusing on the negative actions
of employees. Remember that a good, balanced evaluation
includes both positive and neg-
ative feedback, so look for good performance, not just poor
performance, and praise good
work when you see it.47
Management by Objectives (MBO) Method
The management by objectives (MBO) method is a process in
which managers and
employees jointly set objectives for the employees, periodically
evaluate performance, and
reward employees according to the results. Although there is a
three-step process, there is
no standard form used with MBO, so it is a method. MBO is
also referred to as work
planning and review, goals management, goals and controls, and
management by results.
WHY AND WHEN DO WE USE THE MBO METHOD? In many
cases, the MBO method is one of
the best methods of developing employees. As with the use of
critical incidents, employees
get ongoing feedback on how they are doing, usually at
meetings scheduled at regular
intervals. We can use the MBO method successfully with our
employees if we commit to
the process and truly involve employees rather than trying to
make them believe that our

objectives are theirs.
On an organization-wide basis, MBO is not too commonly used
as the sole assessment
method. It is more commonly used based on the evaluative
assessment during the develop-
ment part of the performance appraisal. One difficult part of
MBO is that different
employees will have varying individual goals, making MBO
more difficult and time-
consuming than using a standard assessment form.
HOW DO WE USE MBO? MBO is a three-step process:
Step 1: Set individual objectives and plans. The manager sets
objectives jointly with each
individual employee.48 The objectives are the heart of the MBO
process and should be
accurate measures of performance results. To be accurate,
objectives should be SMART.49
They need to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and
Time based. Being
specific, measurable, and time based is fairly easy to determine
in a written goal, but
attainable and relevant are more difficult. So we developed a
model based on the work of
Max E. Douglas, and we have provided two examples in Model
8-1 that we can use when
setting objectives for ourselves or others.
Step 2: Give feedback and evaluate performance.
Communication is the key factor in determin-
ing MBO’s success or failure, and employees should continually
critique their own perfor-
mance.50 Thus, the manager and employee must communicate
often to review progress.51

The frequency of evaluations depends on the individual and the
job performed. However,
most managers do not conduct enough review sessions.
Step 3: Reward according to performance. Employees’
performance should be measured
against their objectives, again jointly by both the manager and
employee. Employees
H:1
Identifying and Measuring
Employee Performance
SHRM
WORK
APPLICATION 8-5
Select a job you have had. Did your
boss use critical incidents in your
evaluations? Assess how well your
boss used coaching between formal
performance appraisal meetings to
review your performance.
Management by objectives
(MBO) method A process
in which managers and
employees jointly set objectives
for the employees, periodically
evaluate performance, and

reward employees according
to the results
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
who meet their objectives should be rewarded through
recognition, praise, pay raises,
promotions, and so on.52 Employees who do not meet their
goals, so long as the reason is
not out of their control, usually have rewards withheld and even
punishment given when

necessary.
Narrative Method or Form
The narrative method or form requires a manager to write a
statement about the employee’s
performance. There may not be an actual standard form used,
especially for high-level
professional and executive positions, but there can be a form—
so it can be a method or
a form.
WHY AND WHEN DO WE USE THE NARRATIVE METHOD?
A narrative gives the manager the
opportunity to give the evaluative assessment in a written form
that can go beyond
simply checking a box to describe a predetermined assessment
item. The manager can
also write up a developmental plan of how the employee will
improve performance in the
future. Narratives can be used alone, but they often follow an
objective part of the form.
Although the narrative is ongoing, it is commonly used during
the formal review. A letter
of recommendation is often an example of a narrative evaluation
method.
HOW DO WE USE THE NARRATIVE METHOD OR FORM?
The system can vary. Managers may
be allowed to write whatever they want (i.e., use the method),
or they may be required to
answer questions with a written narrative about the employee’s
performance (i.e., use the
form). Let’s discuss both here.
The no-form narrative method can be the only assessment
method used during the for-

mal review process. But the narrative method, when used alone,
is more commonly used
with professionals and executives, not with operative
employees. How we write the for-
mal narrative assessment varies, as writing content and styles
are different. A narrative
based on critical incidents and MBO results is clearly the best
basis for the written
assessment.
The narrative is also often used as part of a larger form. For
example, you have most
likely seen an assessment form (such as a recommendation) that
has a list of items to be
checked off. Following the checklist, the form may ask one or
more questions requiring a
narrative written statement.
Graphic Rating Scale Form
The graphic rating scale form is a performance appraisal
checklist form on which a man-
ager simply rates performance on a continuum such as excellent,
good, average, fair, and
poor. The continuum often includes a numerical scale, for
example from level 1 (lowest
performance level) to 5 (highest). The Self-Assessment and
Skill Builder exercise 8-1 uses a
graphic rating scale form; it is found at the end of this chapter.
WHY AND WHEN DO WE USE THE GRAPHIC RATING
SCALE FORM? The graphic rating scale
form is probably the most commonly used form during the
formal performance appraisal
Narrative method or
form Method in which the

manager is required to write a
statement about the employee’s
performance
Graphic rating scale form
A performance appraisal checklist
form on which a manager simply
rates performance on a continuum
such as excellent, good, average,
fair, and poor
MODEL 8-1 SETTING OBJECTIVES MODEL
(1) To + (2) Action Verb + (3) Specific and Measurable Result
+ (4) Target Date
To increase widget productivity 5% by December 31, 2020
To + produce + 20 units + per day
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or

di
str
ibu
te
(primarily for evaluative decisions), but use of
the form should lead to development decisions
as well. Why the popularity? Graphic rating
scales can be used for many different types of
jobs, making them a kind of one-size-fits-all
form that requires minimal time, effort, cost,
and training. Walk into an office supply store
and you can find pads of them. But on the
negative side, graphic rating scales are not very
accurate measures of performance because the
selection of one rating over another, such as an
excellent versus good rating, is very subjective.
For example, think about professors and how
they measure performance with grades. Some
give lots of work and few As, while others give
less work and almost all As.
HOW DO WE USE THE GRAPHIC RATING SCALE
FORM? It is very simple, and we have most
likely all used one. For example, many colleges let students
assess professors at the end
of a course, and all the students do is check a box or fill in a
circle to give their rating.
One of the problems with this method is that some of us don’t
bother to actually read

the questions. Based on our biases, some of us just go down the
list, checking the same
rating regardless of actual performance on the items. To be fair,
this problem is not
common with managers formally evaluating their employees.
However, it does tend to
occur when customers evaluate products and services, including
when students assess
professors.
To overcome this problem, we can reverse the scale from good
to poor on different
questions, but this is unfortunately not commonly done. Why
isn’t this done all the time?
Some managers who make the scales do not know they should
do this. Also, some who do
know they should reverse the scales don’t because they don’t
want to end up with overall
ratings being pushed to the middle because people don’t read
the questions.
Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS) Form
A behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS) form is a
performance appraisal that pro-
vides a description of each assessment along a continuum. As
with graphic rating scales,
the continuum often includes a numerical scale that runs from
low to high; but with the
BARS form, each item is an analysis of a specific behavior. A
simple example here would
be in a restaurant where the server is supposed to clean and
reset the tables (a behavior)
after each customer leaves. A BARS item might be “Server
cleans and resets table after cus-
tomers what percent of the time (choose the closest answer)?”
Answers: 100%; 75%;

50%; 25%; 0%.
WHY AND WHEN DO WE USE THE BARS FORM? The
answers to why and when are the same
here as they are with graphic rating scales, so let’s focus on the
differences between
graphic rating scales and BARS forms. BARS forms overcome
the problem of subjectivity
by providing an actual description of the performance (the
required behaviors) for each
rating along the continuum, rather than that one simple word
(excellent, good, etc.)
that graphic rating scales provide. A description of each level of
performance makes the
assessment a more objective, accurate measure.
Why aren’t BARS more commonly used than graphic rating
scales? It’s partly eco-
nomics and partly expertise. Again, the graphic rating scale can
be used for many differ-
ent jobs, but BARS forms have to be customized to every
different type of job. And
developing potentially hundreds of different BARS forms takes
a lot of time, money, and
expertise. Even when a firm has an HR staff, the question
becomes, “Is developing
Behaviorally anchored
rating scale (BARS)
form A performance appraisal
that provides a description of each
assessment along a continuum
There shouldn’t be any surprises or
lack of agreement on performance
levels during the formal perfor-

mance appraisal interview.
Th
om
as
B
ar
w
ic
k v
ia
G
et
ty
Im
ag
es
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op

y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
BARS forms the most effective use of our time?” Obviously, the
answer is, “It depends
on the types of jobs being evaluated and the resources available
to complete the evalua-
tion process.”
HOW DO WE USE BARS FORMS? As with graphic rating
scales, we simply select a level of
performance along a continuum. College accreditation
associations are requiring more
measures of student outcomes as assurance of learning; and as
part of that process,
they want more BARS rubrics as evidence. So in college
courses, especially for written
assignments, professors give out rubrics that describe in some
detail the difference
between an excellent (A), good (B), average (C), poor (D), and
not acceptable (F) grade,
using multiple criteria to put together a final grade. Students
use the rubric to do the work

by meeting the written descriptive of how each part will be
graded/objectives. When
getting the assignment back with a grade, students better
understand why they got the
grade they did and how to improve in the future. Here is another
simple example of
making a graphic rating scale item into the more objective
BARS.
Attendance—excellent, good, average, fair, poor
becomes
Attendance—number of days missed 0–1, 2, 3–4, 5, 6 or more
Ranking Method
Ranking is a performance appraisal method that is used to
evaluate employee perfor-
mance from best to worst. There often is no actual standard
form used, and we don’t
always have to rank all employees. This method can be
contentious, as evidenced by
changes at GE, which until about 2015 was the king of the “rank
and yank” companies
that was notorious for ranking their employees and, at the end
of each year, terminating
the lowest ranked performers. According to a 2016 Wall Street
Journal article, GE is
working to reinvent their employee review process, providing
routine feedback from man-
agers and coworkers during the year, but also doing a brief
review with each employee at
the end of the period.53 Dell is another company that tried
forced-ranking but it “turned
good employees into politicians, bad employees into
backstabbers, and colleagues into

enemies. It hurt collaboration”—so Dell dumped it.54
WHY AND WHEN DO WE USE THE RANKING FORM?
Managers have to make evaluative
decisions such as determining who gets a raise or promotion and
who gets laid off.
So when we have to make evaluative decisions, we generally
have to use some type of
ranking. However, our ranking can, and when possible should,
be based on other valid
and reliable methods and forms.
Managers can also use ranking for developmental purposes by
letting employees
know where they stand in comparison to their peers—meaning
managers can use rank-
ings to motivate employees to improve their performance. For
example, when one of the
authors passes exams back to students, he places the grade
distribution on the board. This
does not in any way affect the current grades—but it lets
students know where they stand,
and he does it to motivate them to improve. Using the ranking
method for employee devel-
opment is generally more valuable to the organization than
using it for evaluative pur-
poses. Showing an employee comparative strengths and
weaknesses and working with
them to fix weaknesses tends to be motivational, but evaluating
them as “poor” overall
versus their coworkers tends to be demotivational.
HOW DO WE USE RANKING? Under the ranking method, the
manager compares an employee
to other similar employees, rather than to an objective standard.
An offshoot of ranking

is the forced distribution method, which is similar to grading on
a curve. Predetermined
WORK
APPLICATION 8-6
Select an organization, preferably
one you work for or have worked
for. Identify and briefly describe
the assessment methods and/
or forms that are used to assess
employee performance.
Ranking A performance
appraisal method that is used to
evaluate employee performance
from best to worst
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po

st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
percentages of employees are placed in various performance
categories—for example,
excellent, 5%; above average, 15%; average, 60%; below
average, 15%; and poor, 5%.
The employees ranked in the top group usually get the rewards
(a raise, a bonus, or a
promotion), those not in the top tend to have rewards withheld,
and the ones in the
bottom group sometimes get punished. In Self-Assessment and
Skill Builder 8-1, you are
asked to rank the performance of some of your peers.
While this section does not contain an exhaustive list, it
provides examples of each of the
major methods of performance appraisal. Which appraisal
method or form is best
depends on the objectives of the organization. Using a
combination of the methods and
forms is usually superior to using just one. For developmental
objectives, the critical inci-
dents, MBO, and narrative methods work well. Alternately, you
can’t decide who gets the

promotion or merit raise without an evaluative method, so for
administrative decisions, a
ranking method based on the evaluative methods, and especially
graphic rating scales or
BARS forms, works well.
Remember that the success of the performance appraisal process
does not lie just in
the formal method or form used once or twice a year. It depends
on the manager’s human
relations skills in ongoing critical incidents coaching, and it
also depends on effective mea-
sures of performance that are accurate enough to let everyone
know why they are rated at
a given level (evaluative) and how they should improve
(developmental) for the next
assessment.55
Insperity’s PerformanceReview.com is one website that has
been designed to help
managers write complete and effective performance appraisals
online. The site offers
practical advice to guide managers through the appraisal
process.56
WHO SHOULD ASSESS PERFORMANCE?
Now that we’ve learned the why, what, and how of the
performance appraisal process, we
next need to discuss the options for choosing a rater or
evaluator. There are a number of
different options concerning who should evaluate the individual
employee, and the deci-
sion needs to be based on a series of factors. Let’s take a look
at our options for deciding
who should evaluate an employee.

Appraisal Methods and Forms
State which of the following assessments is being described in
each of the given situations, writing each assessment’s corre-
sponding letter before the situation(s) in which it is described.
a. critical incidents method
b. MBO method
c. narrative method and forms
d. BARS forms
e. graphic rating scale forms
f. ranking method
____ 11. Hank is not doing a good job, so you decided to talk
to
him about it and keep track of his performance regularly.
____ 12. Your employees perform different tasks. You want to
create a system for developing each of them.
____ 13. Sara is moving, has applied for a job at another com-
pany, and asked you for a letter of recommendation.
____ 14. You started a new business a year ago, and you are
extremely busy focusing on sales; but you want to
develop a performance appraisal form you can use with
all 14 of your employees, who do a variety of jobs.
____ 15. You have been promoted, and you have been asked to
select your replacement.
LO 8-5
Identify and briefly discuss
available options for the

rater/evaluator.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
Supervisor
When we ask who should evaluate an employee, the most
common response is that
their immediate supervisor should do it. But why would the
supervisor be the best
person to evaluate an employee? Well, the supervisor is

supposed to know the level of
performance of their employees. Certainly, supervisors are often
one of the best and
most commonly used options as an evaluator for the employees
under their control.
However, this is not always the case due to problems with
supervisor performance
assessments.
PROBLEMS WITH SUPERVISOR EVALUATIONS. What if the
supervisor doesn’t see the
employee very frequently? This may not be all that uncommon
in a modern organization.
Many times today, supervisors have little or no direct contact
with their employees
because they may be in a different building, city, state, or even
country. Virtual teams,
Internet-linked offices, telecommuting, and other factors cause
supervisors not to be in
constant touch with their employees, unlike the situation 20 or
30 years ago.
There are other problems as well. What if there’s a personality
conflict? Supervisors
are human, just like their employees; and they may just not
relate well to some of their
employees. This may cause a personal bias for or against certain
employees that may
invalidate the appraisal process.
What if the supervisor doesn’t know what you’re supposed to be
doing in your job?
Aren’t supervisors always supposed to know every job for
which they are responsible?
Again, 30 years ago, this may have been true. However, in
today’s work environment,

with the amount of information necessary to do the complex
tasks that organizations
must accomplish in order to compete, nobody can know every
job. There’s just too much
information for any one individual to learn. So jobs have been
segmented down into
smaller and smaller areas, and the supervisor may not know
each of those jobs in great
detail. So there are certainly problems that can occur in the case
of a supervisor being
responsible for a subordinate employee’s evaluation process.
AVOIDING SUPERVISOR REVIEW PROBLEMS. A simple
way to overcome these problems is
to have others, in addition to (or in place of) the supervisor,
assess performance. Also,
multiple measures can make a performance assessment more
accurate—valid and reliable.
Using other evaluators and multiple measures can help
overcome personal bias and
provide information that supervisors don’t always know about.
Peers
In addition to, or in place of supervisors, the trend is to use
more teams; and teams com-
monly evaluate each member’s performance.57 Why? If the
supervisor is absent or has
infrequent contact with the employees, but each of the
employees frequently interacts
with multiple coworkers in a team or group, then peer
evaluations may be valuable.58
Peers often know the job of the individual employee better than
the supervisor does, and
they are more directly affected by the employee’s actions—
either positive or negative. In
addition, peers can evaluate the ability of the individual to

interact with others success-
fully in a group or team setting—something that may be very
difficult for the supervisor to
see unless they are intimately involved with the group.
PROBLEMS WITH PEER REVIEWS. Peer evaluations can
cause problems because the process
may become less objective. In fact, research evidence regarding
the validity of peer
evaluations is really unclear.59 Personality conflicts and
personal biases can affect how
individual employees rate their peers. A major problem is with
perception because most
of us see ourselves as being better at our job than our boss and
peers. Individuals within
a group or team may also just have significantly different
personality types, and these
differences can cause friction within the workgroup that may
spill over when it comes
time to evaluate the person that they are in conflict with.
H:2
Sources of Information (e.g.,
Managers, Peers, Clients)
SHRM
publisher.
Do
no
t c

op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
AVOIDING PEER REVIEW PROBLEMS. Because we know
that problems can occur within a
peer evaluation, the manager can take the issues into account
and adjust rating values
as necessary. For example, assume you are the manager of a
work group of six people
who, in your opinion, work very well together and provide a
quality work product. When
you review a set of peer evaluations from the work group, you
notice that two of the
group members (a young male and an older female) gave each
other significantly lower
than average grades. However, the other four members of the
group gave both of them
good marks for their contributions to the group. This quite
likely is a situation where a
personality conflict has occurred between the two members that
caused them to lower

each other’s grades. Knowing that the other four members of the
group evaluated these
two individuals as valued members of the team, the ratings from
the two individuals can
be adjusted, noting that a personality conflict may have lowered
their evaluations of each
other. Some research shows that as peers evaluate each other
more, their ability to provide
relevant and valuable feedback increases, as does their personal
confidence. So giving
employees practice in peer evaluations can improve the validity
and reliability of such
evaluations.60 Even with the potential for personality conflicts
and bias, peer evaluations
can give us good insight into the inner workings of a group or
team when the supervisor
has infrequent contact with the team. In Self-Assessment and
Skill Builder 8-1, you will do
a performance assessment of your peers.
Subordinates
We may also have subordinates evaluate their supervisor. We
would typically use only
subordinate evaluation for managerial-level employees.
However, who within the firm
knows, and suffers the consequences from, the actions of a
supervisor more than the
people who work for them? Subordinate evaluations can give us
good insight into the
managerial practices and potential missteps of people who
oversee others. As a result, sub-
ordinate evaluations may give us valuable information that we
would be unable to find
out using any other means. Have you filled out a form that
assesses your professors? If so,
you have participated in one form of subordinate evaluation.

PROBLEMS WITH SUBORDINATE REVIEWS. There is
potential for bias here, especially from
subordinates who have been disciplined by their supervisor.
Obviously, subordinates
may try to get back at their supervisor for giving them tasks that
they did not want to
perform or for disciplining them for failure in their jobs. There
may also be a personality
conflict, or some subordinates may be biased against their
supervisor or manager for
other reasons. So there are certainly negative aspects to
subordinate evaluations. On the
other end of the scale, the subordinates may inflate the
capabilities of their manager, at
least partly because of a lack of understanding of all the tasks
and duties required of the
manager. In fact, in a recent survey, about two thirds of
employees rated their managers
higher than the managers rated themselves.61
AVOIDING SUBORDINATE REVIEW PROBLEMS. In all of
these problem areas, if we know
that there is a potential problem, we can most likely guard
against it. In many cases,
as we go through a group of subordinate evaluations, we will
see one or two outliers
providing either very high or very low marks for the supervisor.
In such a case, we should
probably throw those outliers out of the calculation when
determining overall marks
for the supervisor. It’s surprising how often these outliers are
extremely easy to spot in a
subordinate evaluation process.
Another significant issue in the case of subordinate evaluations

is confidentiality. Sub-
ordinate evaluations must be anonymous or it is unlikely that
the subordinates will pro-
vide an honest evaluation of their supervisor. Obviously, if the
evaluation is not
confidential, the supervisor can and may exact retribution on
subordinates who provide
unflattering evaluations. In such cases, subordinates will likely
inflate the capabilities of
the supervisor, which minimizes the value of the evaluation
process itself. Despite poten-
tial for bias and other problems, subordinate evaluations can
provide us with valuable
information about the supervisor’s capabilities.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu

te
Self
Have you ever done a self-assessment at work? Virtually all of
us have informally evalu-
ated how we perceive we are doing on the job, whether we are
actually formally asked to
do so as part of the assessment or not. It is required with MBO.
Even when they are not
asked to do a self-assessment, employees will still walk into the
review discussion with
some informal self-assessment that they will compare to the
supervisor’s rating. But are
self-evaluations valuable, or is the employee going to
overestimate their individual capa-
bilities and tell us that they’re perfect? (As you know, every
chapter of this book has one or
more self-assessments, and in one for this chapter—Self-
Assessment and Skill Builder 8-1
at the end of the chapter—you will assess your performance on
a group project. If you
want to, you can do the skill-builder now.)
PROBLEMS WITH SELF-ASSESSMENTS. Most research
evidence shows that self-assessments
tend to overestimate the individual’s ability to do a job.62
However, some of the research
says that employees either underestimate or accurately estimate
their job performance
over time. A significant portion of the evidence seems to show
that individuals with
lower overall levels of knowledge and skills tend to inflate their

self-assessment of their
abilities.63 Conversely, as individuals become more
knowledgeable and more skilled, the
evidence tends to show that they will either accurately estimate
or even underestimate
their capabilities in their jobs.64,65,66
AVOIDING SELF-ASSESSMENT PROBLEMS. Based on the
fact that most of the evidence
shows that employees overestimate their ability to do their job,
is self-assessment a valid
performance measure? Here again, even though the measure
may have validity concerns,
if we know that self-evaluations tend to be skewed, we can most
likely adjust for that.
In addition, receiving information from the individual
concerning their perception of
their skill set is extremely valuable in a number of management
processes—including
plans for training and development opportunities, providing
work assignments, and
counseling and disciplinary measures. As stated in the
Blanchard test, both the manager
and employee need to agree on the level of performance, and
what it takes to get to the
next level—it’s called perceptual congruence.67
Customers
We may want to use customers as evaluators when the
individual being evaluated has fre-
quent contact with customers. We use the word customers in a
broad sense to include peo-
ple outside the organization, including customers for our
products and services and
suppliers to the firm, and those inside the organization,
including people in other depart-

ments of the firm (for example, the print shop that makes copies
for other departments
and the mail room that receives mail and delivers
communications to the rest of the firm).
If an employee interacts routinely with internal or external
customers, we need to know
how those customers feel about their interactions with the
employee. This particularly
applies to external customers, who are the ones who ultimately
pay the bills.
It does not matter what else we do successfully if our customers
are uncomfortable
with their interactions with our employees. If external
customers are upset about their
interactions with our employees, then they have the ability to go
elsewhere with their busi-
ness. And even internal customers can create significant
problems within the firm due to
conflict between departments or divisions. So we want to ask
internal and external cus-
tomers to evaluate the individuals with whom they come into
contact.
PROBLEMS WITH CUSTOMER ASSESSMENTS. What do you
think the major problem
would be with customer-based evaluations? One problem is that
customer assessments
commonly use simple graphic rating scales, which we discussed
as being very subjective.
Also, customers are usually not trained to do an accurate
assessment, so bias is a problem.
For these and other reasons, the popular opinion is that
customer evaluations are almost
WORK

APPLICATION 8-7
Select your current job or a past
job. Identify who has or had input
into your performance appraisal.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
always negatively skewed. However, research shows that this is
not necessarily the case.68

In some situations, customer evaluations actually exceed
internal evaluations.
AVOIDING CUSTOMER ASSESSMENT PROBLEMS.
Regardless of problems, customer
evaluations provide us with valuable information concerning
our employees who have
direct customer contact. And we can always adjust the
evaluation process knowing that
customer evaluations may be biased. One of the basic methods
of adjusting the customer
evaluation process is by comparing the individuals being
evaluated and identifying the
ratios of negative and positive comments. This allows us to
identify more successful and
less successful employees. Although this is an imperfect
measure, it still provides value to
the firm because customers’ perceptions are critical to our
relationships with them. So, we
need to measure this relationship.
360-Degree Evaluations
In some cases, the evaluation is expanded to everyone that an
employee comes into con-
tact with through 360-degree feedback.69 The 360-degree
evaluation analyzes individu-
als’ performance from all sides—from their supervisor’s
viewpoint, from their
subordinates’ viewpoint, from their customers (if applicable),
from their peers, and from
their own self-evaluation. The 360-degree evaluation would
generally give us the most
accurate analysis of the individual and their performance within
the company.
DuPont developed 360-degree reviews back in 1973, and they

are still popular
today.70 With the trend of structuring work in teams, peer
evaluations are now used regu-
larly.71 Those who fill out the appraisal form would usually do
so anonymously. The feed-
back from all these people is used to evaluate and develop the
employee.
PROBLEMS WITH 360-DEGREE EVALUATIONS. Although
considered the best, why don’t
we always use 360 degree evaluations? The simple answer is
time and money. It takes
a significant amount of time for a group of individuals to
evaluate one person if we use
a 360-degree format. Using up so much organizational time
obviously also costs us a
significant amount of money. If we multiply those numbers by
the time it takes everyone
associated with the organization to evaluate one individual, the
costs can quickly become
massive.
AVOIDING 360-DEGREE PROBLEMS. Unfortunately, there
really is no easy way to avoid these
problems besides what is commonly done—simply not using
360-degree evaluations.
The 360-degree evaluation format tends to be most valuable if it
is used for purposes
of individual development, rather than to make administrative
evaluative decisions.72
A good 360-degree feedback system can provide specific
suggestions about how to
improve individual competencies.”73 It can also go a long way
toward minimizing some
of the most common problems with the performance appraisal
process, which we will

review in the next section.
Whom Do We Choose?
Now that we know our options for who should conduct an
evaluation of each employee,
which option should we use? Again, we need to remember that
each of the options costs
us money because it takes time for the individual to perform the
appraisal. So, we need to
determine which option or options to use. We can combine any
of these methods with any
other, all the way up to the point of the 360-degree evaluation.
However, we want to use a
360-degree evaluation only when it’s worth it. If it’s not
necessary, then it doesn’t make a
lot of sense due to the cost of this method.
For instance, is there any need to do a 360-degree evaluation of
janitorial or house-
keeping staff? Would this make sense? Obviously, it would not.
In most cases, with low-
level staff members, a supervisor’s evaluation is sufficient. This
is true because even
though only the supervisor does the formal assessment, the
supervisor often gets informal
360-degree evaluation
An evaluation that analyzes
individuals’ performance
from all sides—from their
supervisor’s viewpoint, from their
subordinates’ viewpoint, from
their customers (if applicable),
from their peers, and from their
own self-evaluation

publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
feedback on the employee’s performance from customers and
peers of that employee.
Customers will often complain to the supervisor if the
employee’s service is not satisfac-
tory, and peers will complain about a fellow employee who is
not meeting standards for
some reason. The supervisor’s critical incident file is often
written based on information
received from peers and customers, and that reduces the

influence of any personal bias the
supervisor may have toward the employee.
What about the case of an outside salesperson? In this situation,
the results tend to
speak for themselves. Sales numbers are available to the
salesperson and manager. If the
supervisor rarely sees the individual but the customer interacts
with our salesperson on a
routine basis, we can ask the customer to do an evaluation of
the salesperson and ask the
salesperson for a self-appraisal. With the sales figures, a self-
assessment, and customer
feedback, we can develop a plan to increase future performance.
Finally, if we are evaluating the marketing manager for the
firm, we may want to do a
360-degree evaluation because of the fact that this individual
would affect all of the
groups—subordinates, customers, peers, the organization, and
themselves. So, we evalu-
ate the specific situation and use the number of methods
necessary to get an accurate
assessment of the individual.
So once again, to get an understanding of the return on our
investment, we need to do
a cost-benefit analysis to determine when the benefits of
increasing performance outweigh
the costs of a particular person or group completing a
performance appraisal. In essence,
we attempt to maximize performance while minimizing the total
cost of the appraisal
process.
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL PROBLEMS

During the performance appraisal process, we face some
common problems. However,
we can take measures to avoid them. So in this section, we
discuss the problems first with
simple ways to avoid each of them as an individual. Then we
discuss what the organiza-
tion can do to overcome these problems on an organization-wide
basis. We can actually
overcome multiple problems with the same method. See Exhibit
8-3 for a list of problems
and ways to avoid them.
Common Problems Within the Performance Appraisal Process
Let’s briefly discuss each of the common problems during the
performance appraisal pro-
cess listed in Exhibit 8-3.
BIAS. Bias is simply a personality-based tendency, either
toward or against something. In
the case of performance assessment, bias is toward or against an
individual employee. We
all have biases, but supervisors especially cannot afford to
allow their biases to enter into
their evaluation of subordinates. This is very easy to say but
very difficult to do. Biases
make the evaluation process subjective rather than objective,
and they certainly provide
the opportunity for a lack of consistency in effect on different
groups of employees. So to
overcome the bias problem, we need to be objective and not let
our feelings of liking or
disliking an individual influence our assessment of that person.
STEREOTYPING. Stereotyping is mentally classifying a person
into an affinity group and
then identifying the person as having the same assumed

characteristics as the group.
Though stereotyping is almost always assumed to be negative,
there are many incidents
of positive stereotypes. However, making assumptions about
individual employee
characteristics based on their supposed membership in a group,
rather than explicitly
identifying the performance of the individual, creates the
potential for significant error
in evaluations. So we can avoid stereotyping by getting to know
each employee as an
individual and then objectively evaluating actual performance.
WORK
APPLICATION 8-8
Select an organization, preferably
one you work for or have
worked for. Identify some of the
positions and people who should
be evaluated using 360-degree
evaluations. Briefly describe your
cost-benefit analysis to justify your
selection.
LO 8-6
Identify some of the common
problems, and how to avoid
the problems, with

Bias A personality-based
tendency, either toward or
against something
Stereotyping Mentally
classifying a person into an
affinity group and then identifying
the person as having the same
assumed characteristics as
the group
H:3
Rater Errors in
Performance Measurement
SHRM
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di

str
ibu
te
HALO ERROR. Halo error occurs when the evaluator forms a
generally positive impression
of an individual and then artificially extends that general
impression to many of that
individual’s categories of performance to create an overall
evaluation of the individual
that is positive.74 (Alternatively, the evaluator can form a
negative initial impression and
extend it to form an overall negative evaluation—this is
sometimes called the “horns
error.”) In other words, if an employee is judged by their
supervisor to be generally a
“good” employee, and if the supervisor then evaluates each of
the areas of the employee’s
performance as good, then regardless of any behaviors or results
to the contrary,
the supervisor is guilty of halo error. So we can avoid halo error
by remembering that
employees are often strong in some areas and weaker in others,
and we need to objectively
evaluate each employee based on their actual performance for
each and every item of
assessment.
DISTRIBUTIONAL ERRORS. These errors occur in three
forms: severity or strictness, central
tendency, and leniency. They are based on a standard normal

distribution, or the bell
curve that we are all so familiar with. In severity or strictness
error, the rater evaluates
everyone or nearly everyone as below average. Central tendency
error occurs when the
rater evaluates everyone under their control as average—
meaning nobody is rated as
either really good or really bad. Finally, leniency error occurs
when the rater evaluates
everyone as above average—meaning it is basically a form of
grade inflation. So we
need to give a range of evaluations because we really aren’t all
equal in our level of
performance, and everyone can’t be the worst or the best.
SIMILARITY ERROR. This error, also called “like me,” occurs
when the rater gives better
evaluations to subordinates whom they consider more similar to
themselves and poorer
evaluations to subordinates whom they consider to be different
from themselves. We all
have a tendency to feel more comfortable with people who we
feel are more similar to
ourselves;75 and if we are not careful, we can allow this feeling
of comfort with similar
individuals to be reflected in the performance appraisal process.
So we can avoid
similarity error by embracing diversity and objectively
evaluating each employee based on
their actual performance, even if they are different from us and
don’t do things the same
way that we do.
PROXIMITY ERROR. This error states that similar marks may
be given to items that are near
(in other words, proximate to) each other on the performance

appraisal form, regardless
of differences in performance on those measures. For instance,
if we mark the first three
items as “meets expectations,” we tend to continue marking the
same way on down
the form. So we can avoid proximity error by objectively
evaluating employees’ actual
performance on each and every item on the assessment form,
and having reverse item
scales really helps.
EXHIBIT 8-3 PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL PROBLEMS
AND AVOIDING THEM
Common Problems How to Avoid Problems
Bias
Stereotyping
Halo error
Distributional errors
Similarity error
Proximity error
Recency error
Contrast error
Attribution error
Develop accurate performance measures
Use multiple criteria
Minimize the use of trait-based evaluations
Use the OUCH and Blanchard tests
Train your evaluators
Use multiple raters

publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
RECENCY ERROR. This occurs when the rater uses only the
last few weeks of a rating period
as evidence when putting together performance ratings. For
instance, if a warehouse
worker has been a strong performer for most of the appraisal
period, but right before his
annual evaluation, he accidentally set a fire, he may be rated
poorly due to recency error.
So we can avoid recency error by evaluating the employee based
on their performance
during the entire assessment period, which is commonly 6 to 12
months. Using the

critical incident evaluation method really helps our recall, and it
helps us assess employee
performance more objectively for the entire period.
CONTRAST ERROR. Here the rater compares and contrasts
performance between two
employees, rather than using absolute measures of performance
to assess each employee.
For example, the rater may contrast a good performer with an
outstanding performer;
then, as a result of the significant contrast, the good performer
seems to be “below
average.” This would be a contrast error. So we can avoid
contrast error by objectively
evaluating the individual based on their actual performance
against an objective standard.
ATTRIBUTION ERROR. In simplified terms, attribution is a
process in which an individual
makes assumptions about the reasons or motivations (such as
attitudes, values, or
beliefs) for an observed behavior. So, attribution error in
performance appraisal might
occur when the rater observes an employee action—such as an
argumentative answer to
a question—and assumes that the individual has a negative
attitude toward their job and
is a poor performer. This may not be true; and if it isn’t, the
rater is guilty of an attribution
error.76 So we need to avoid attribution error because it is
based on our subjective
conclusions. When in doubt, we shouldn’t assume we know why
the employee did or
didn’t do something. We should investigate actions so that we
can objectively evaluate
employees based on their actual performance.

Avoiding Performance Appraisal Problems
As you can see above, there are a significant number of ways
that performance appraisals
can fail to provide an accurate assessment of the capabilities
and behaviors of individual
employees. Thus far, we have provided only simple solutions to
help us overcome these
problems as individuals. But how can a firm avoid these
problems on an organiza-
tion-wide basis throughout the performance appraisal process?
Luckily, we can take a number of basic steps to minimize the
negative issues that occur
in the performance appraisal process. All we have to do is look
at the problems noted, and
we can fairly quickly come up with some possible solutions to
at least the majority of
those problems using the same methods. Let’s discuss how the
firm can limit the potential
for the appraisal process to go astray by developing accurate
performance measures,
training evaluators, and using multiple raters.
DEVELOP ACCURATE PERFORMANCE MEASURES. As
discussed earlier in this chapter, if the
performance appraisal methods and forms are not accurate
measures, then the entire
performance appraisal process will have problems. Therefore,
the organization should
have its own HR specialist or hired consultants develop an
objective assessment process
and measures. Now, let’s discuss three things HR specialists
commonly do to help ensure
accurate measures.

Use multiple criteria. One method of overcoming some of the
problems with the appraisal
process is to ensure that we use more than one or two criteria to
evaluate an individual’s
performance. We should generally have at least one evaluation
criterion for each major
function within an individual job. As we noted earlier,
behaviors and results that occur
over the entire course of the evaluation period are typically the
best criteria to use in the
process of evaluating an individual’s performance. However,
employees behave in many
different ways in different circumstances throughout the course
of a year, so we shouldn’t
limit the appraisal process to one or two actions on the part of
that individual employee.
WORK
APPLICATION 8-9
job. Identify common mistakes
your supervisor made when
assessing your performance, during
either an informal coaching or a
formal appraisal review.
publisher.

Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
By evaluating multiple criteria, we have the ability to lower the
incidence of halo, recency,
contrast, and attribution errors; and we may even be able to
affect bias and stereotyping
because of the fact that many criteria, not just one or two, are
being analyzed.
Minimize the use of trait-based evaluations. Our next method of
overcoming problems within
the appraisal process is to minimize the evaluation of individual
traits. As we noted earlier,
trait-based evaluations tend to be more subjective than
behavior- or results-based evalu-
ations, and as a result, they should generally not be used unless

there is a specific reason
why employees must exhibit a particular trait to be successful in
a job. Only when we have
a specific reason for trait-based evaluations should we measure
those traits and evaluate
them in the appraisal process.
In addition, because of their subjectivity, trait-based
evaluations are much more diffi-
cult to defend in cases where the organization used the
evaluation process for later disci-
plinary action against an individual employee. By minimizing
the evaluation of traits, we
lower the incidence of bias, stereotyping, similarity errors, and
(potentially) attribution
errors. So, minimizing trait evaluations lowers the ability of the
rater to make some of the
most significant mistakes that can occur in the appraisal
process.
Give the measures the OUCH and Blanchard tests. We already
stated this with each of the three
types of assessment, but these two tests are so important to
successful, accurate measures
that they bear repeating here. With the OUCH test, the measure
has to be objective, uni-
form in application, consistent in effect, and have job
relatedness. With the Blanchard test,
everyone must understand why they are assessed at a specific
level (evaluation) and what
it takes to get a higher rating (development).77
TRAIN EVALUATORS. Once we have accurate measurement
methods and forms, the next
thing that we should do to help overcome some of the issues
with the appraisal process is to

train our evaluators to avoid the common errors and problems
that occur in performance
assessment and to train them in how to use the various methods
and forms.
Train evaluators to overcome the common problems of
assessment. Simply through the process of
rater error training, we can mitigate or even eliminate many of
the common problems.
Once the evaluator becomes aware that the common errors occur
with some regular-
ity, the evaluator almost immediately begins to evaluate such
errors and guard against
them. Even bias and stereotyping errors may be mitigated
through the rater error–training
process. As we’ve said several times throughout this book,
most of our employees want
to do a good job; and once they know that an error is being
committed, they will make
Avoiding Appraisal Problems
Review the list of common problems or errors, and then write
the
letter corresponding to each one before the statement describ-
ing or involving it.
a. bias f. proximity error
b. stereotyping g. recency error
c. halo error h. contrast error
d. distributional errors i. attribution error
e. similarity error
____ 16. I got a lower rating than I deserve because I’m not
afraid

to speak my mind to the boss, and she doesn’t like it.
____ 17. I’m sick and tired of hearing how many units Sally
produces and that I should be more like her.
____ 18. I told my boss that I thought I deserve an excellent
rating,
but she said that she gives everyone a good rating.
____ 19. I tend to take it easy during the year, but I make sure
to
really push and do a good job for the month of December,
and that’s why I got a good performance review.
____ 20. I attended all the classes and participated in the class
discussions, so the professor gave me an A, even
though my final average on my test scores was a B.
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di

str
ibu
te
attempts to correct that error. So, rater error training provides
them with knowledge of
these errors and allows them the opportunity to correct them.
A robust form of rater training is frame-of-reference training,
which defines job per-
formance dimensions in more concrete terms, provides samples
of behaviors at each per-
formance level, emphasizes the fact that job performance has
many dimensions, and
allows practice and feedback sessions. While the details of
frame-of-reference training are
beyond the scope of this introductory text, this method of rater
training has been shown
to have a significant positive effect on rater accuracy in the
appraisal process.78
Train evaluators to use the measurement methods and forms.
Evaluators should also be trained
to use the various performance assessment methods and forms.
Because the critical inci-
dent method is not commonly used as a formal assessment
method, evaluators should be
taught to use it to help overcome recency error. Evaluators also
need training to effec-
tively use MBO and to write a good narrative. When using a
rating scale, the organiza-

tion should provide some training for the raters so they better
understand the differences
between the word descriptors along the continuum (excellent,
good, etc.). BARS forms
and ranking are fairly straightforward; but supervisors need to
realize that they, too, are
subject to common problems when selecting each rating, and
training can help overcome
any problems encountered.
USE MULTIPLE RATERS. The next tool we can use to
minimize errors in the evaluation
process, at least in some cases, is to have multiple raters
evaluate an individual. As we
noted earlier, this becomes expensive very quickly, so we must
decide whether or not the
value inherent in using multiple evaluators overcomes the cost
of the process. However, if
it does, using multiple evaluators can conquer some significant
problems in the appraisal
process. What will the process of using multiple evaluators do
to improve the appraisal
process? It limits the ability of one individual appraiser to
provide a biased opinion
concerning an employee’s performance, and it limits the
potential for stereotyping in the
appraisal process. In addition, halo, similarity, contrast, and
attribution errors become
less likely; and distributional errors tend to even out among
multiple raters. It is for these
reasons that 360-degree evaluations have gained favor in many
organizations over the
past 20 years.
DEBRIEFING THE APPRAISAL
The debriefing process is where we communicate to individuals

our analysis of their per-
formance. Companies may have guidelines for this process. For
instance, Facebook man-
agers are told that performance reviews should be 80% focused
on strengths.79 Earlier in
the chapter, we noted that there are two major reasons for
assessing performance: for
evaluative decisions and for development. We also suggested
breaking the formal perfor-
mance appraisal debriefing into two separate interviews. In this
section, we describe how
to conduct both reviews.
The Evaluative Performance Appraisal Interview
Planning ahead is critical to the performance appraisal
interview process. Therefore, this
section is separated into preparing for and conducting the
evaluative interview. Because
the evaluative interview is the basis for the developmental
interview, it should be con-
ducted first.
PREPARING FOR AN EVALUATIVE INTERVIEW. When
preparing for an evaluative interview,
follow the steps outlined in Model 8-2. Our evaluation should
be fair (meaning ethically
and legally not based on any of the problems discussed).80 If
we have had regular coaching
conversations with our employees, they know where they
stand,81 and our preparation
is mostly done except for filling out the form. So our
relationship with the employee will
directly affect the outcome.82 Employees should also critique
their own performance
through a self-assessment using the form.83

WORK
APPLICATION 8-10
job. Identify and explain how
the organization’s performance
appraisal process does or doesn’t
use each of the three methods of
overcoming common performance
appraisal problems. How can the
organization improve the process?
LO 8-7
Briefly discuss the differences
between evaluative performance
reviews and developmental
performance reviews.
H:6
Appraisal Feedback
SHRM
publisher.
Do
no

t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
So step 1 of Model 8-2 is to simply set up the meeting. Step 2
has the employee use the
form to conduct a self-assessment; and in step 3 we, too, assess
the employee’s perfor-
mance using the form. In keeping with the balanced evaluation,
in step 4 we identify both
strengths and areas for improvement that serve as the basis for
the developmental inter-
view. Finally, step 5 involves predicting employee reactions to
our assessment, and plan-
ning how to handle them. Using critical incidents will help
support our assessment when
employees disagree. And don’t forget that the Blanchard test
states that both you and the
employee should be able to explain and agree on the employee’s
level of performance.

CONDUCTING AN EVALUATIVE INTERVIEW. During the
interview, encourage the employee to
talk and also listen to the critique of their performance.84
Model 8-2 lists the steps for
conducting an evaluative performance appraisal interview. In
step 1, we open the meeting
with some small talk to put the person at ease. Then in step 2,
we go over our evaluation
of the items on the assessment form. In step 3, we identify the
employee’s strengths
and weaknesses, discuss them, and agree on them. Finally, in
step 4, we conclude the
interview, which may involve making the
appointment for the developmental interview.
During this process, employees should be
open to negative feedback, even if they don’t
agree with it. They shouldn’t make excuses or
blame others. If they don’t agree with the
assessment, they may say something like,
“Thanks for the feedback, but I don’t agree
with it because. . . .” Giving objective reasons
for the disagreement is fine, as long as they do
it without being argumentative and disre-
spectful. If there is such disagreement, we
may want to schedule a follow-up meeting
with the employee so that we and they may
gather facts that support our or their stance
on the assessment.85
The Developmental Performance Appraisal Interview
Again, planning ahead is critical when it comes to performance
appraisal interviews.
Therefore, this section is also separated into preparing for and
conducting the

interview.
MODEL 8-2 THE EVALUATIVE PERFORMANCE
APPRAISAL INTERVIEW
Preparation for the Appraisal Interview
Conducting the Appraisal Interview
2. Go over the
assessment
form
3. Agree on strengths
and areas for
improvement
4. Conclude the
interview
1. Open
the
interview
2. Have the
employee
perform a self-
assessment
3. Assess
the employee’s
performance

4. Identify
strengths
and areas for
improvement
1. Make an
appointment
5. Predict the
employee’s reactions
and plan how to
handle them
A performance appraisal can be
more effective as a conversation,
rather than as a single speech about
the employee’s performance.
Ga
ry
B
ur
ch
el
l v
ia
G
et
ty

Im
ag
es
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
PREPARING FOR A DEVELOPMENTAL INTERVIEW. After
the employee’s performance
evaluation is completed, you should prepare for the
developmental interview based on

targeting areas for improvement that you already discussed in
the evaluative interview.
Yes, as a manager you are busy, and you may question the need
for coaching and the cost
of separate formal developmental interviews, but the benefit of
spending time developing
employees will lead to increased performance and lower
turnover in your organization.86
To prepare for the interview, follow the steps in Model 8-3,
which begins with simply set-
ting up a time to conduct the review. As stated in step 2, have
employees come up with their
own objectives and strategies for improvement,87 and also
develop your own for them (step 3).
CONDUCTING A DEVELOPMENTAL INTERVIEW. The steps
to follow when conducting a
developmental performance appraisal interview are listed in
Model 8-3. Again, step
1 starts with small talk to open the interview. In step 2, it is
important to agree on
developmental objectives. As part of step 3, the employee needs
to be made aware of
exactly what they must do to improve and increase the rating on
the next review; and
you must also let the employee know that follow-up progress
feedback is essential for
changing behavior.88 So step 4 is to set up a follow-up meeting
to review the employee’s
progress. When conducting steps 3 and 4, we don’t want the
employee working on too
many things at once, so we should keep the number of
objectives down to three or fewer.
We can always add new objectives later. We end in step 5 by
concluding the interview

with some positive encouragement to reach the objectives.
TRENDS AND ISSUES IN HRM
It’s time to take a look at some of the trends and issues in
performance management. First
we will evaluate whether or not we can improve employee
engagement through good
performance management processes, and secondly, we take a
look at electronic
performance monitoring, or EPM. Does it improve performance
and add value to the
organization’s performance appraisal process by providing
results-based evidence of
employee productivity?
Building Engagement Through Performance Management
We discussed performance management at the beginning of the
chapter. Recall that it is
a broad process of analysis and measurement of worker
performance and communica-
tion of that assessment to the individual over time. But can
performance management
actually create a more highly engaged workforce? Well, there is
at least some evidence
WORK
APPLICATION 8-11
Assess how well your present
or past boss helped develop
your knowledge, skills, and
competencies through informal
coaching and/or the formal

performance appraisal interviews.
Describe how the boss
could improve.
LO 8-8
Review the methods to improve
employee engagement through
performance management and
the issue of electronic perfor-
mance management.
WORK
APPLICATION 8-12
Select an organization you work
for or have worked for. Does it use
formal evaluations? Do you believe
the organization should or should
not conduct formal evaluations?
MODEL 8-3 THE DEVELOPMENTAL PERFORMANCE
APPRAISAL INTERVIEW
1. Make an
appointment
2. Have the employee
develop objectives and
plans for improving

performance
3. Develop objectives
and plans for improving
performance
Preparation for the Appraisal Interview
Conducting the Appraisal Interview
1. Open the
interview
2. Agree on
objectives
3. Develop
plans for
meeting the
objectives
4. Make a
follow-up
appointment
5. Conclude
the interview
publisher.

Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
that this is the case when performance management is done as
we discussed during the
body of the chapter.
Going back to Chapter 1, you will also remember that employee
engagement is a com-
bination of job satisfaction, ability, and a willingness to
perform for the organization at a
high level and over an extended period of time. Job satisfaction
alone isn’t enough, and
neither is annual or more frequent performance appraisal.
You’re probably getting the
feeling by now that good people management processes are
always a combination of

things—there is no simple solution.
So how do we increase engagement by managing performance?
It starts at the begin-
ning—with orientation/onboarding where the new employee
learns about the company
culture. High-quality onboarding processes allow us to socialize
the new employee into
the work environment. Through the socialization process, the
employee learns how to
function successfully in their new environment by participating
in conversations with oth-
ers, including their future supervisor, concerning how things are
done in the organiza-
tion.89 These conversations have to endure though. The
manager/supervisor needs to
provide frequent feedback about how well the job is being done,
as well as taking the time
to listen during these feedback sessions to what issues are
confronting the employee.90
This continuing conversation and accessibility to their manager
can ultimately lead to an
increased level of trust between the manager and employee,
assuming the manager/super-
visor takes action on issues identified during the conversations.
The ultimate goal here is to increase employee engagement
through continuing perfor-
mance management, and there is real evidence that this does
occur. One research study
identified five performance management activities that
influence engagement: Setting per-
formance goals; providing ongoing feedback and recognition;
managing employee devel-
opment; conducting appraisals; and creating a climate of trust
and empowerment.91 So if

we can do these things, performance management can “have a
positive and direct influ-
ence on employee engagement,” as well as individual attitudes,
behaviors, and ultimately,
organizational outcomes.92
Technology: Electronic Performance Monitoring
Electronic performance monitoring (EPM) is the process of
observing ongoing employee
actions using computers or other nonhuman methods. The
number of employees moni-
tored through EPM has increased drastically in the past 20
years. In the early 1990s,
about one third of employees were being monitored
electronically. By 2001, approxi-
mately 78% were being monitored electronically,93 and that
percentage has more than
likely increased ever since. The reason for this steep increase is
that using EPM apparently
is an effective means of increasing productivity.94 EPM allows
management to know if
employees are actually working or doing personal things during
paid work hours. The
biggest upside to EPM seems to be that it provides information
for concrete, results-based
performance evaluations.
Certainly, this is a valuable outcome. However, some
researchers and practitioners
argue against EPM because of a number of factors, including
ethical questions concerning
such monitoring, legal concerns over employee privacy, and
potential increases in stress
due to constant monitoring of performance. Stress research
provides an interesting
dichotomy. If the monitoring is done for employee development

and involves more com-
munication between the employee and manager, stress is
generally reduced. If, however,
monitoring is done as a means of giving rewards and
administering punishment, stress
appears to generally increase.95 So, the questions are these:
Should organizations use EPM
systems? And if so, how should they use them?
There’s no simple answer. Again, EPM has been shown to
increase productivity, and
organizations need to maximize employee productivity.
However, when stress levels
become too great, increased stress is known to decrease
productivity. So there’s an obvi-
ous tradeoff between more employee monitoring and controlling
stress levels in our work-
force. Management must understand this tradeoff to successfully
improve productivity in
the organization overall.
WORK
APPLICATION 8-13
Select an organization you work
for or have worked for. Does
it use EPM? If so, describe the
EPM system. Do you believe the
organization should or
should not use EPM?

Electronic performance
monitoring (EPM) The process
of observing ongoing employee
actions using computers or other
nonhuman methods
H:4
Electronic Monitoring
SHRM
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te

In addition, the ethical and legal questions noted in the previous
paragraph may be sig-
nificant enough in some cases to cause individual employees to
leave the organization.96 If
these individuals are our more productive workers, and
especially if they are knowledge
workers, then what does the loss of these knowledgeable
individuals do to organizational
productivity? There doesn’t appear to be any current research-
based answer to these ques-
tions. Therefore, because these questions exist, organizations
must be careful in how they
implement EPM processes so that they can improve their
chances of reaching the stated
goal of EPM—improving organizational productivity.
Finally, as these programs are rolled out in the organization,
managers must be acutely
aware of the potential downside effects of increased stress
levels and employees feeling
that their privacy is being invaded. These could lead to
decreases in productivity and
higher rates of turnover.97 In other words, management must
work to overcome the
potential problems and costs associated with EPM to gain the
benefits.
Want a better grade?
Get the tools you need to sharpen your study skills. Access
practice quizzes, eFlashcards, video and multimedia, and more
at
edge.sagepub.com/lussierhrm3e.

DIGITAL RESOURCES
Performance Appraisal*
Awkward Performance Review
Performance Appraisal Interview
Benefits of Performance Appraisal*
Preparing for a Performance Evaluation Meeting
Performance Appraisal Procedural Justice
What Do We Assess?*
Keys to Effective Performance Appraisals
* premium video only available in the interactive eBook
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or

di
str
ibu
te
CHAPTER SUMMARY
8-1 Discuss the difference between performance man-
agement and performance appraisals.
Performance management is a continual process that iden-
tifies, measures, manages, and develops the performance
of people in the organization. It is designed to improve
worker performance over time. Performance appraisal is the
part of the performance management process that identi-
fies, measures, and evaluates the employee’s performance
and then discusses that performance with the individual.
This should also be on an ongoing basis.
8-2 List and briefly discuss the purposes of perfor-
mance appraisals.
Communication is the first purpose. Appraisals need to
provide an opportunity for formal two-way communication
between management and the employee concerning how
the organization feels the employee is performing. The sec-
ond purpose is to gain information for evaluative decisions.
We need good information on how employees are perform-
ing so that we can take fair and equitable actions with our
workforce, to improve organizational productivity. Providing

motivation for development is the last major purpose. Used
correctly, appraisals can motivate by providing opportuni-
ties for the employees to improve their performance over
time.
8-3 Identify and briefly discuss the options for what to
evaluate in a performance appraisal.
Our three primary options for what to evaluate are traits,
behaviors, and results. There is some evidence that
particular types of traits are valuable in jobs that require
management and leadership skills, but many traits have
been shown to have very little bearing on job performance,
meaning they are not valid measures of performance. We
can also use behaviors to evaluate our workers. Measur-
ing behaviors is usually a much better appraisal option
because physical actions or behaviors can be directly
observed, and as a result, they are more likely to be a valid
assessment of the individual’s performance. Finally, we
can evaluate performance based on results. Results are
a concrete measure of what has happened in the organi-
zation. However, results may be skewed based on factors
that are outside the control of the individual who is being
evaluated.
8-4 Briefly discuss the commonly used performance
measurement methods and forms.
The critical incidents method utilizes records of major
employee actions over the course of the appraisal period
to complete the employee evaluation. MBO uses objec-
tives jointly set by the manager and employee to gauge
employee performance during the evaluation period. In the
narrative method, the manager writes either a structured or
unstructured paragraph about the employee’s performance.
Graphic rating scales provide a numerical scale so that the

manager can check off where an employee falls on the con-
tinuum. BARS forms provide a description of the behaviors
that make up acceptable performance at each level on the
scale. Finally, ranking creates a hierarchy of employees,
from best to worst.
8-5 Identify and briefly discuss available options for
the rater/evaluator.
It is logical to choose supervisors as evaluators when they
have ongoing contact with the subordinate and know the
subordinate’s job. When the supervisor may not spend lots
of time with the individual employee, peers may make better
evaluators because they may know the job of the individual
employee better than the supervisor does and may be more
directly affected by the employee’s actions. Subordinate
evaluations can give us good insight into the managers who
control employees in our organization. We may want to use
customers as evaluators when the individual being evaluated
has frequent contact with those customers, because we
need to know how customers feel about their interactions
with our employees. Self-evaluation is valuable in a number
of management processes, from training and development
to counseling and disciplinary measures, among others.
The 360-degree evaluation gives us the best overall anal-
ysis of any employee in the firm, because it looks at an
employee’s performance in the eyes of all others who are
affected by that individual. The 360-degree evaluation for-
mat is more useful for individual development than it is for
administrative purposes. The biggest downside is that the
process takes a lot of time, which means that it also costs
the company a lot of money.
8-6 Identify some of the common problems, and
how to avoid the problems, with performance

appraisals.
Personal biases and stereotyping are two of the most sig-
nificant appraisal problems. Other problems include halo
error, distributional errors (either the grading is too harsh or
too lenient, or everyone is judged to be average), similarity
error, proximity error, recency error, contrast error, and attri-
bution error.
There are several ways to avoid these problems. The first
option would be to develop accurate performance mea-
sures. Accurate performance measures use multiple crite-
ria, minimize trait-based evaluations, and can be analyzed
using the OUCH test and the Blanchard test. Next, we
should train the evaluators, because as soon as they know
some of the common errors, those errors will become less
pronounced. We can also use multiple raters to mitigate
any potentially biased evaluations and minimize other errors
such as similarity, contrast, and attribution errors. Finally,
don’t evaluate what you don’t know. Find someone in the
organization who does know the job, and have that person
evaluate the individual performing the job.
8-7 Briefly discuss the differences between evaluative
performance reviews and developmental perfor-
mance reviews.
The evaluative interview is a review of the individual employ-
ee’s performance over a certain period. The evaluation
needs to be fair and equitable, not based on bias. The
employee must be given the opportunity to talk as well as lis-
ten to the critique of their performance. The developmental
interview, on the other hand, focuses on areas for improve-
ment over time. You should have employees come up with

publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
their own objectives and strategies for improvement, and
you should develop your own objectives for them.
8-8 Review the methods to improve employee engage-
ment through performance management and the
issue of electronic performance management.
Performance management to improve engagement starts at
the onboarding process where the new employee is social-
ized into the work environment. Continual feedback from

their manager/supervisor should continue with frequent
feedback concerning how the employee is doing and assis-
tance overcoming obstacles. This will build greater trust
between the two which ultimately leads to a positive and
direct influence on employee engagement, as well as indi-
vidual attitudes and behaviors.
Electronic performance management (EPM) has contin-
ued to increase at work. The biggest value to EPM seems
to be that it provides information for concrete results-based
performance evaluations. But there are ethical questions
concerning constant monitoring of employees, as well as
questions of how the monitoring affects health of those
employees. Finally, the negative consequences of EPM may
cause lower productivity overall if employees are unhappy,
as well as an increase in turnover—both seriously negative
outcomes.
KEY TERMS
behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS)
form 279
behaviors 273
bias 286
critical incidents method 276
electronic performance monitoring
(EPM) 293
graphic rating scale form 278
management by objectives (MBO)
method 277
motivation 270
narrative method or form 278

performance appraisal 265
performance management 265
ranking 280
results 274
stereotyping 286
360-degree evaluation 285
traits 272
KEY TERMS REVIEW
Complete each of the following statements using one of this
chap-
ter’s key terms.
1. ________ is the process of identifying, measuring,
managing,
and developing the performance of the human resources in
an organization.
2. ________ is the ongoing process of evaluating employee
per-
formance.
3. ________ is the willingness to achieve organizational objec-
tives.
4. ________ identify the physical or psychological characteris-
tics of a person.
5. ________ are the actions taken by an individual.
6. ________ are a measure of the goals achieved through a
work process.
7. ________ is a performance appraisal method in which a
man-

ager keeps a written record of positive and negative perfor-
mance of employees throughout the performance period.
8. ________ is a process in which managers and employees
jointly set objectives for the employees, periodically evaluate
performance, and give rewards according to the results.
9. ________ requires a manager to write a statement about the
employee’s performance.
10. ________ is a performance appraisal checklist on which a
manager simply rates performance on a continuum such as
excellent, good, average, fair, and poor.
11. ________ is a performance appraisal that provides a
descrip-
tion of each assessment along a continuum.
12. ________ is a performance appraisal method that is used to
evaluate employee performance from best to worst.
13. ________ analyzes individual performance from all sides—
from the supervisor’s viewpoint, from the subordinates’ view-
point, from customers’ viewpoints (if applicable), from peers,
and using the employee’s own self-evaluation.
14. ________ is a personality-based tendency, either toward or
against something.
15. ________ consists of mentally classifying a person into an
affinity group and then identifying the person as having the
same assumed characteristics as that group.
16. ________ is the process of observing ongoing employee
actions using computers or other nonhuman methods.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS
The following critical-thinking questions can be used for class
dis-
cussion and/or for written assignments to develop
communication
skills. Be sure to give complete explanations for all answers.
1. Other than giving an annual evaluation, what would you do
to
manage the performance of your employees? Explain why.
2. Do you agree that performance appraisals should be discon-
tinued in companies? Defend your answer.
3. What would you do as the manager in order to make sure
that your employees knew the standards that they would be
evaluated against? Explain your answer.
4. Do you really think that it is possible for a performance
appraisal to be motivational? Why or why not?
5. Can you think of a situation in which a trait-based
evaluation
would be necessary? Explain your answer.
6. You are in charge and you want to evaluate a group of
assembly workers. Who would you choose as the evalua-
tor(s)? What about evaluating the Director of Operations—
who would you choose to do that? Explain your answer.
7. How would you minimize the chances that stereotyping
could affect the evaluation process in your company?

publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
8. Which of the solutions to performance appraisal problems
would you implement first if you were in charge? Second?
Why?
9. What would you do to make the performance appraisal
debriefing more comfortable and less confrontational for your
employees? How do you think this would help?
10. Is electronic performance monitoring ethical? Would you
use
it? Why or why not?

CASE 8-1 NOT SPILLING THE BEANS AT JELLY BELLY:
DEVELOPING A MORE ACCURATE
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL SYSTEM
What might be the sweetest job in the world? Why not working
alongside such tempting treats as chocolates, gummies, gum
balls,
buttered popcorn, cheesecake, candy corns, licorice, sour can-
dies, cinnamon confections, jellies, and of course let us not
forget
jelly bellies! That’s the way it is at Fairfield, California–based
Jelly
Belly Candy Company (JBCC). They offer over 100 varieties of
candies (including such novelty flavors as cinnamon confections
and Chili Mango) in over 70 countries globally. They also
operate
six retail stores in California and offer tours in their Pleasant
Prairie,
Wisconsin, visitor’s center.(1)
JBCC’s mission statement captures the flavor of the firm.
Jelly Belly Candy Company is dedicated to producing the
highest quality confections, delivering superior customer
service and creating a reliable and enjoyable product line
to the consuming public. We seek to be a responsible
corporate citizen and to ensure high quality and safety
standards. We expect our consumers and business part-
ners to have confidence in the products bearing our name
and that our products are manufactured in accordance
with a guiding code of conduct. Jelly Belly is committed
to conducting business with ethical business standards
and asks its vendors, suppliers and licensees to conduct
themselves in the same manner.(2)
Given this family firm’s commitment to maintaining high

operating
and ethical standards, there is no “sugar coating” employee per-
formance and job satisfaction. Every successful firm
understands
that employee retention is strongly tied to the employees feeling
that they are an integral part of the firm and that their work is
appre-
ciated and rewarded. JBCC understood that the best way to exe-
cute their mission statement, have employees both understand
and
implement the firm’s underlying priorities and values, was
through
their employee evaluation performance system. JBCC saw the
need for a precise, automated talent and employee appraisal sys-
tem as the panacea for maximizing the human assets.
The bittersweet truth was that it took a merger of the two
branches
of the family business into one unit to surface this issue. One
part of
the firm was doing employee evaluations using 1960’s
technology:
hard copy forms and personnel files. The other part was using a
computer-based system, but the software was antiquated.
JBCC’s
head of HR for their Midwest operations, Margie Poulos, and
her
HR staff, were tasked with the responsibility of taking HR data
from three locations (600 employees) and creating one
integrated
process.
According to Jeff Brown, JBCC’s HR Director, “When
employees
feel they have gotten a thorough and accurate review, it boosts
their morale.” This was the foundation of their new appraisal

system—comprehensive, unbiased, and precise measurements
of employee performance would serve as the viable feedback
employees both wanted and needed to establish and obtain spe-
cific quantifiable objectives. Employees, according to
motivation
literature, who know what are expected of them, perform at a
higher
level with greater job satisfaction. Happy workers lead to higher
retention, and retention is the name of the game for superior
perfor-
mance, industry leadership, and expansion.
JBCC used a traditional appraisal system where annual evalua-
tions were conducted, with no comparison to prior years. They
wanted a new system that would be online, use one standardized
form, allow managers to have access and input periodic updates
of the employee’s performance from remote locations, and
allow
for signoffs. “In our old system, a few folks in Chicago would
have
access to the system. However, we have managers in California
with Chicago subordinates. It is important that they can share
the
same forms across the board. And we have folks who are on the
road a lot or are working out of home offices, so having them be
able to access this is a huge point for us,” according to Brown.
Poulos and her team did have concerns and drew up a list of
fac-
tors the system had to incorporate. Primarily “we didn’t want to
end
up with a system that is so complicated that the managers
wouldn’t
use it,” and therefore Poulos made sure the new software system
would be simple, flexible, save time, and allow for developing

vari-
ations of the firm’s core competencies. The new software had to
structure and formalize the appraisal process while allowing for
customization of the firm’s competencies and staff/managers’
sug-
gested modifications.
Once the software was selected, 50 managers received fast-track
training with annual appraisals immediately commencing.
Brown
had high praise for the system, indicating that:
It allows us to standardize competencies across job clas-
sifications, add signature and comment sections to make
our process more interactive, and increase accessibility
for remote managers. . . . Organizing and automating the
appraisal process results in performance appraisals that
are more accurate and fair. This is important because,
after all, an employee appraisal is a legal document.
Poulos and her team were also enamored with the new system
because it allowed them to connect employee training and
development needs with employee performance. “We’ve
always had a separate training manual. Now we can go in to
the evaluations and more easily monitor employees’ skills
devel-
opment, see what training individuals need, and check the due
dates for training and renewal. That makes it much easier for us
to keep track.”
First, the new system has achieved its primary objective of con-
necting employees’ personal objectives with employee goals.
“The feedback has been really positive, from both managers and
employees as well. Some staff said this was the best appraisal
they’ve had,” Poulos said. “They felt the evaluations were fair
and

realistic, and supervisors had the scope to provide more relevant
and legitimate comments than they could before. Rather than
just
clicking on a bunch of canned comments, they were accurately
reviewing the employee.”
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
A great side effect of the new automated system is that this
system
has proven to be far more efficient than the old one. “Since this

year
was the first time using the new system, it took us a little longer
than
it will next year. But the process was a whole lot faster,” Poulos
said. “It has already saved us a lot of time, and we got
everybody’s
appraisals done in one shot.”(3)
References
(1) Biesada, A. (n.d.). Jelly Belly Candy Company. Hoovers.
Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://0-subscriber.hoovers.
com.liucat.lib.liu.edu/H/company360/fulldescription.html?-
companyId=57880000000000
(2) Jelly Belly Candy Company. (n.d.). Jelly Belly Candy
Company mission statement. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from
https://www.jellybelly.com/mission-statement
(3) Halogen Software. (n.d.). A sweet employee performance
appraisal system for Jelly Belly. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from
http://www.halogensoftware.com/customers/stories/jelly-belly
Questions
1. What is performance management, and what is the driving
force behind Jelly Belly Candy Company’s performance man-
agement approach?
2. What is performance appraisal, and what are the key features
Jelly Belly Candy Company wanted in their new appraisal
system?
3. What is the performance appraisal process, and how does
Jelly Belly Candy Company’s new appraisal system incorpo-
rate those processes?

4. How did the question of performance accuracy affect the
development of Jelly Belly Candy Company’s automated
appraisal system?
5. Why did Jelly Belly Candy Company redesign their perfor-
mance appraisal system?
6. What does Jelly Belly Candy Company evaluate when they
conduct employee appraisals, and why are they using that
approach?
7. Who is assessing training performance at Jelly Belly Candy
Company?
8. What trends in performance appraisal are affecting Jelly
Belly
Candy Company’s appraisal system?
Case created by Herbert Sherman and Theodore Vallas, Depart-
ment of Management Sciences, School of Business Brooklyn
Campus, Long Island University
CASE 8-2 AMAZON.COM: SELLING EMPLOYEE
PERFORMANCE WITH ORGANIZATION AND
LEADERSHIP REVIEW
Amazon.com, which started as the biggest online bookstore, has
become a household name by expanding rapidly in the retail
mar-
ket. It offers millions of movies, games, music, electronics, and
other general merchandise products in several categories,
includ-
ing apparel and accessories, auto parts, home furnishings, health
and beauty aids, toys, and groceries. Shoppers can also
download

e-books, games, MP3s, and films to their computers or handheld
devices, including Amazon’s own portable e-reader, the Kindle.
Amazon also offers products and services, such as self-
publishing,
online advertising, an e-commerce platform, hosting, and a
cobranded credit card.(1)
To keep this megastore running at a fast pace, Amazon hired
115,000 employees, who generated $74 billion in 2013. Target
and Home Depot made a combined income of close to $74
billion
in the same year, yet they employed more than 340,000 people
between them in their retail stores.(2) Why does Amazon need
only one third of its competitors’ labor force to produce the
same
revenue? Like the other mega retailer, Walmart, Amazon has
deliv-
ered creative business solutions to their own processes to con-
tinuously increase their operating effectiveness. However, their
strategy focuses on enhancing the customer-shopping
experience
and providing excellent customer service rather than providing
the
lowest-priced products. To meet their customers’ needs,
Amazon
must deliver more speed and efficiency in its giant warehouse.
They use more automated work processes that reduce the com-
pany’s operational costs and also increase labor efficiency and
employee safety.
The quality of Amazon’s warehouse labor has become the
critical
issue in the firm’s success; and hence, hiring and retaining the
best, most suitable candidates for the company’s manual labor
positions is a key success factor. That being said, Amazon’s
turn-

over rate at these lowest-ranked positions in the organization is
high since Amazon lets go of its lowest-performing employees
to
make room for new, more appropriate candidates while promot-
ing the very best. To detect the lowest- and highest-performing
employees, Amazon initiated a performance evaluation system
called the Organization and Leadership Review (OLR).(3)
OLR actually has two main goals: (1) finding future leaders and
preparing them to be able to face the most challenging tasks
pre-
sented in a fast-paced work environment; and (2) determining
the
10% of employees who are the least effective and taking neces-
sary corrective action with them. OLRs take place twice a year
to
grant promotions and find the least effective employees.(4)
Only
the top-level managers attend these meetings, where there could
be two reasons why an employee’s name may be mentioned.
Either
the employee is being considered for a promotion, or the
employ-
ee’s job might be at stake.
OLRs start with the attendees reading the meeting agenda. Then
supervisors suggest the most deserving subordinates to be con-
sidered for promotion. All executives in the room evaluate these
suggestions and then debate the alternatives. Promotions are
given at the end. During the process, instead of using hard data,
executives tend to evaluate employees’ performance on the
basis
of personal, anecdotal experiences. Anyone in the meeting may
deny a promotion; therefore, ambitious employees seeking a
pro-

motion should also be very friendly with their boss’s peers. If
an
employee’s supervisor cannot present that worker well enough,
another’s favorite subordinate will get the promotion.(5)
In terms of promotion, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos expects the
managers to set the performance bar quite high to allow only the
most exceptional talent to progress.(6) Promotions are protected
by well-written guidelines, which focus on delivery and impact,
but not on internal politics. People spend less time campaigning
for their own promotions, and top performers are highly
compen-
sated based upon the quality of their work.(7) Therefore, only a
few promotions are available each year, and receiving positive
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu

te
feedback from a supervisor is quite rare. The approval that
employ-
ees get from their supervisor is not enough to earn a promotion;
employees still have to “fight” for a promotion, which may not
occur
immediately.
References
(1) Hoover’s Inc. (2014). Amazon.com, Inc. [Hoover’s
Company
Records—Competitive Landscape/In-Depth Records].
Retrieved July 13, 2014, from Long Island University
Academic Database.
(2) Ibid.
(3) Stone, B, (2013, October 15). Why it’s so difficult to climb
Amazon’s corporate ladder. Bloomberg BusinessWeek.
Retrieved from http://www.businessweek.com/articles/
2013-10-15/careers-at-amazon-why-its-so-hard-to-climb-
jeff-bezoss-corporate-ladder/
(4) Ibid.
(5) Ibid.
(6) Ibid.
(7) Soper, T. (2012, December 13). Here’s what employees love

and hate about working at Amazon, Microsoft. Geek Wire.
Retrieved from http://www.geekwire.com/2012/employ-
ees-love-hate-working-amazon-microsoft/
Questions
1. Do you think OLRs increase employee motivation? If not,
why
would Amazon conduct such performance appraisals?
2. How might rater bias, stereotyping, and traits appraisal
impact the accuracy of OLR? Could this be corrected? If so,
how?
3. Given the differing appraisal systems described in this chap-
ter, which appraisal systems most closely resemble OLR?
4. Given your answer to the above question, what appraisal
system do you think would best meet Amazon’s objectives
of retaining the best employees while taking corrective action
with the bottom 10%?
5. Amazon is a high-technology firm. How might it use elec-
tronic performance monitoring to supplement the OLR pro-
cess?
6. What are the advantages and disadvantages of having per-
formance reviews like OLR that involve only one-way commu-
nication, rather than MBO?
Case created by Herbert Sherman and Theodore Vallas, Depart-
ment of Management Sciences, School of Business Brooklyn
Campus, Long Island University
SELF-ASSESSMENT AND SKILL BUILDER 8-1 PEER AND
SELF-ASSESSMENTS

This exercise includes the usual self-assessment for each
chapter,
plus an evaluation of peers and developing measures of perfor-
mance.
Objectives
To develop your skill at assessing your performance and that of
your peers, and to develop your skill at developing measures of
per-
formance
Skills
The primary skills developed through this exercise are as
follows:
1. HR management skills—technical, business, and conceptual
and design skills
2. SHRM 2016 Curriculum Guidebook—H: Performance
management
Assignment Part 1—Self-Assessment
During your college courses, you most likely had to do some
form
of group assignments, and you’ve also done group assignments
in this course. Select one group you worked with, and based on
your performance in that group, do a self-evaluation using the
rating
scale form below.
Evaluator (you) ____________________________________
(Self-Evaluation)
A A−
Always

B+ B B–
Usually
C + C C–
Frequently
D+ D D–
Sometimes
F
Rarely
Did a “good” analysis of project
Developed “good” questions to ask
Actively participated (truly interested/involved)
Made “quality” effort and contributions
Got along well with group members
Displayed leadership
List at least three of your own measures of performance here
Class attendance—number of absences 0–1 2 3 4 5+
Attendance at group meetings to prepare group project—number
of absences

0 1 2 3 4+
Managed the group’s time well
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te
This exercise can stop with just a self-assessment, or it can
continue to also include peer evaluations.
Assignment Part 2—Peer Review
1. Part 2 begins by conducting a peer evaluation using the

above form for each of the other members in your group, but
using this heading for the form:
Group Member ___________________________________
(Peer Evaluation)
Either copy the above form for each group member, do your
assessment on any sheet without using the form, or have
your instructor provide you with multiple forms that you can
complete for each group member.
2. Below, rank each group member (including yourself) based
on their performance. The first person you list should be
the best performer, and the last person you list should be
the least effective performer, based on the performance
appraisal above. If members are close or equal in perfor-
mance, you may assign them the same rank number, but you
must list the better one first.
3. To the right of each group member (including yourself),
place
the overall letter grade (A–F) you would assign to that mem-
ber based on the performance appraisal. You may give more
than one member the same grade if those individuals deserve
the same grade. You may also use plus and minus grades.
Rank Name Grade
_______ __________________________________________
_______
_______ __________________________________________
_______
_______ __________________________________________

_______
_______ __________________________________________
_______
_______ __________________________________________
_______
SKILL BUILDER 8-2 DEBRIEFING THE APPRAISAL
Note: This exercise is designed for groups that have been
working
together for some time as part of the course requirements. It is a
continuation of Skill Builder 8-1. Based on your peer
evaluations,
you will conduct performance appraisals for your group
members.
Objective
To develop a plan to improve your team performance, and to
develop your skills in conducting performance appraisals
Skills
The primary skills developed through this exercise are as
follows:
1. HR management skills—technical, business, and conceptual
and design skills
2. SHRM 2016 Curriculum Guidebook—H: Performance man-
agement
Assignment
You will be both the evaluator and evaluatee. Get together with
group members and have each member select a letter, beginning
with the letter A. Pair off as follows: A and B, C and D, E and
F,

and so on. If the group consists of an odd number of people,
each
member will sit out one round. A should conduct the evaluation
interview for B, C should conduct the evaluation interview for
D,
and so on, using the form in Skill Builder 8-1. The evaluators
should
follow up the evaluation interview with the developmental
interview
to give suggestions on improving B, D, and F’s performance (be
sure to follow the evaluative and developmental interview steps
in
Models 8-2 and 8-3). Make sure you are evaluators and
evaluatees;
do not be peers having a discussion. When you finish, or when
the
instructor tells you time is up, reverse roles of evaluators and
eval-
uatees. B, D, and F will become the new evaluators for A, C,
and E.
When the instructor tells you to, or when time is up, form new
groups of two and decide who will be the evaluators first.
Continue
changing groups of two until every group member has appraised
and been appraised by every other group member.
Apply It
What did I learn from this experience? How will I improve my
group
performance in the course? How will I use this knowledge in the
future?
_____________________________________________________
__

_____________________________________________________
__
publisher.
Do
no
t c
op
y,
po
st,
or
di
str
ibu
te

LEARNING OBJECTIVESAfter studying this chapter, you should .docx

More Related Content

Similar to LEARNING OBJECTIVESAfter studying this chapter, you should .docx (20)

More from AASTHA76 (20)

Recently uploaded (20)

LEARNING OBJECTIVESAfter studying this chapter, you should .docx