Delivering Performance Appraisal

Feedback Effectively
Shaun Pichler, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Mihaylo College of Business & Economics
California State University, Fullerton
 Why Appraise Performance?

• What are some of the key reasons why

organizations use PA?

• Of these, what is the main purpose of PA?

 Why Appraise Performance?
• Cultural – meritocracy
• Administrative – documentation
• Legal – protection
• HRM – connection to other systems
• Performance management
• Connect to higher level goals
• Deliver performance feedback
 PA Challenges

• What are some of the key challenges related to

performance appraisal (PA)?

• How about those that managers specifically

face?
 Key Challenges in the U.S.
 Referred to as the Achilles Heel of HRM in the U.S.
 View of PM as an “Administrative Burden”
– Benefits vs outweigh costs
– Get buy-in, demonstrate the strategic business value
 Reluctance to exchange candid information
– National culture and human psychology
 Judgment and time factors
– Opportunity to observe performance; time pressures and lags; accurate
recall of performance information
 Negative or highly variable reactions
Typical Ratings of Managers
 How to Improve
• We will focus on how to improve:
• The PA session & the delivery of PA feedback
• Employee reactions to the PA
 Job attitudes, job motivation, job performance
• Most experts agree
• Despite the challenges, improvement is possible
•Let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater
 Appraisal Reactions

• What are “appraisal reactions”

• Why are PA reactions

– So negative or,
– So variable or difficult to predict?
 Appraisal Reactions

• There are a variety of factors

• Some under our control, others not

• Two ways to think about this:

– Due process performance appraisal
– The social context of PA
 Adequate Notice
• Ideally, the PMP starts with planning
– Standards are made clear
– Focus on expected behaviors and results
– Should allow employee participation

• Ongoing feedback is essential

– Training can be helpful
– Predicts how well the review will go
 Fair Hearing
• Need for a formal review session

• Participation

• Supervisor job knowledge

 Role of Employee Participation

• Why is employee participation so important?

• Ways to increase or enhance participation in

the review session
 Types of Employee Participation

• Self-appraisal discussion
• Goal-setting
• Value-expressive voice
• Instrumental voice
• Two-way communication
• Time talked
 Relationship Quality and Reactions

• How should we define or characterize this?

• Why is it important to the PMP?

• Why is it important in the review session?

– How about after?
 Relationship Quality and Reactions
• Perceptions of support, trustworthiness, and
satisfaction with the relationship

• It is a key predictor of:

– performance ratings (Mr = .30)
– appraisal participation (Mr = .45)
– appraisal reactions (Mr = .66)
 Relationship Quality and Reactions
• Do employee ratees feel that relationship quality is important in
and of itself?

• Or is it important to employees largely because of the benefits to

them
– Opportunity to participate and better ratings

• Why does this matter?

 Relationship Quality Takeaways

• What are the key takeaways about RQ?

 Relationship Quality Takeaways

• What are the key takeaways about RQ?

– RQ matters
• As much or more than ratings and participation
– Might act as a necessary condition for feedback to
be effective
– It is important for managers to seem supportive
and trustworthy
• Even with “out group” ratees
 Let’s Focus on Feedback

• Definition of feedback

• Effective feedback can:

• Most feedback (60+%) has a _____ impact on

performance
 Let’s Focus on Feedback
• Definition of feedback
– Information about past behavior that is given with
the goal of improving future performance
• Effective feedback can:
– Help build confidence, develop competence
– Increase involvement and motivation
– Improve performance
• Most feedback (60+%) has a negative impact
on performance
 Feedback Best Practices
• What are some key ways to improve the way
feedback is delivered in the PMP?
 Feedback Best Practices
• Timeliness and frequency
• Specificity and verifiability (job related)
• Consistency, standardization
• Privacy
• Description, then evaluation
• Performance continuum
• Pattern identification
• Advice & idea generation
 Feedback Best Practices
• Remember, they key according to due process
is to:
– Seem neutral and fair
– To seem knowledgeable about the ratee’s job and
his or her job performance
• vis a vis key job factors and established standards
– To focus on job-relevant factors
– To allow participation
 Praise

• When or under what circumstances is praise

effective?
 Praise

• When or under what circumstances is praise

effective?
– Sincere and only when deserved
– Specific behaviors or results and with context
– Take time to act pleased and don’t rush
– Emphasize positive (not as compared to___)
 Negative Feedback

• What is it?

• What are some key potential problems?

• How can we improve delivery of negative

feedback?
 Negative Feedback
• Identifies areas where performance has fallen
short and ways to improve performance
– Otherwise, a feedback gap exists, persists
• Managers are usually very uncomfortable:
– Negative reactions and consequences
– Negative past experiences
– Playing “God”
– Need for conclusive (irrefutable?) evidence
 Handling Negative Feedback

• Focus on behaviors that can be changed

• Try to identify and resolve obstacles
– Be credible … how can you help?
• Emotions must be controlled – be calm

 Now… Feedback is actionable and employees

can respond accordingly
 The Rating Process

 Rater observes behavior of a ratee

 Rater encodes ratee behavior
 Rater stores information in memory
 When it is time to evaluate a ratee, rater:
– Reviews performance dimensions
– Retrieves stored observations to determine
relevance to performance dimensions
 Information is reconsidered and integrated
with other available information
 Key Ways to Prepare
• What are a few key ways we can reduce
errors and prepare for the review session?
 Legal Environment of PM in the U.S.
 Litigious society; PA process will likely be the focus of legal
action at some point (e.g. Pulakos et al., 2008)
– Typically related to procedural aspects of the appraisal
 Guidelines for addressing legal requirements:
– Evaluate based on job-relevant factors
– Employees must be aware of performance standards
– Must be a standardized, documented procedure
– Managers and employees should be trained in the process
– Managers should document performance (both good and bad)
– Ratings should be reviewed (e.g., by higher-level supervisor)
– Employees should be allowed to comment and appeal
– Consistency in decisions
 Legal Environment of PM in the U.S.
 The point here is that many of the ways managers themselves
can improve the review session also increase legal defensibility

 It is important not just for perceptions of fairness, attitudes and

work performance – all of which are related to business success

 It is important for compliance and prevention of discrimination claims

and other legal action
 Nobody’s Perfect

• When it comes to observing performance and

giving feedback …
– You shouldn’t try to be and the law doesn’t expect
you do be

• It is important to be aware that we are prone

to certain errors
– And that there are ways to minimize these errors
 Key Takeaways
• Take a few moments to think of three to five
key takeaways from this talk
 Jobs in Performance Appraisal
• HR Specialist

• HR Analyst

• HR Generalist & HR Manager