Appraisal Do Sand Dont s

7/28/2019 Appraisal Do Sand Dont s

1/5

APPRAISAL dos and donts

SUGGESTIONS for supervisors and managers

Do Dont

J udge an employees performance againststandards defined in the work plan

Compare one employees performanceagainst anothers

Base appraisals on verifiable results produced andon first-hand observations

Base appraisals on hearsay and third-handreports

Focus on the employees performance, on whatthe employee has actually achieved

Dwell on the employees personality andperceptions about how outside factorsmight be influencing the employeesperformance

Give the employee a rating based on performanceduring the past year

Give the employee a high rating asmotivation to improve performance

Refer, in the appraisal document, to issues thathave been addressed when they occurred duringthe year

Save up issues for the end-of-yearappraisal rather than confront them whenthey occur

Have a structure worked out for conducting theappraisal discussion; know what you want theemployee to understand and to do when thediscussion is over

Go into the appraisal discussion with onlythe completed appraisal document but noplan for conducting the discussion; assumethat you will wing it

Be familiar with the information in the appraisaldocument before the discussion

Go into the appraisal discussion cold, nothaving refreshed your recollection of theemployees performance

Set a time and place to meet with the employeeseveral days in advance

Drop in on the employee without advancenotice and say, Lets do your appraisalnow.

Signal the importance of the discussion byconducting it when scheduled, not allowing other

things to take priority

Repeatedly postpone the appraisaldiscussion as other things come up

Allot sufficient time for the appraisal discussionAssume the meeting will only take a fewminutes


2/5

Do Dont

If you expect the discussion to be difficult, conductit on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday

If you expect the discussion to be difficult,conduct it on a Monday when the employeeif fresh from the weekend or on Friday sothe employee has the weekend to becomemore frustrated with you

Conduct the discussion in a quiet and privateplace where distractions and interruptions will bekept to a minimum

Conduct the discussion in a crowded coffeeshop or public area

Be on time for the discussion, thus symbolicallycommunicating its importance to the employee

Show up late for the discussion, thus lettingthe employee know that there are manyother things you consider more importantthan talking about the employeesperformance

Turn your cell phone or pager off; put your officephone on forward on do not answer it during thediscussion

Take every call that comes in during thediscussion, thus giving yourself a breather

Sit at a table with the employee Sit at a big desk and have the employee sitopposite you in a small chair

Make eye contact with the employee; be attentivewhen the employee is talking

Act like you do not really care about whatthe employee has to say

Get the employee to talk Dominate the conversation

Stay on task Let the conversation stray into topics notrelated to the employees performance

Be concise and make good use of the time allottedfor the discussion

Let the discussion drag on after theimportant points have been covered

Discuss actions and events that occurred acrossthe entire year under review

Harp on a single incident

Take notes on significant comments and reflectback what the employee has said

Try to remember the employees significantcomments without taking notes onlyschool kids take notes

Ask probing questions when you do notunderstand what the employee has said or touncover workplace issues the employee hashinted at

Avoid digging deeper into important issues,asking about issues the employee hasalluded to indirectly, or otherwise stirringup trouble

Clarify the distinctions between exceeding,meeting, and not meeting expectations

Keep it a guessing game as to what theemployee has to do to meet or to exceedexpectations


3/5

Do Dont

If performance needs to improve, problem-solvewith the employee to uncover the cause and helpthe employee work out a solution

If performance needs to improve, just tellthe employee to improve; or, give theemployee a corrective action plan you havedesigned

Deal with minor performance deficienciesinformally, but make note of what you discussedand what the employee agreed to do

Escalate every minor performancedeficiency to the level of a corrective actionplan

When improvement is needed, explain how failureto improve affects the work unit and higher levelgoals

Explain the need to improve performanceby saying, Because this is the standard, orBecause I told you to

If the employee becomes emotional, suggestwaiting a few minutes before resuming thediscussion

If the employee becomes emotional, eitherforge on or call off the meeting

If the employee becomes angry and actsinappropriately (e.g., shouting, pounding the desk,leaving the room), wait calmly and resume theconversation after the employee is finishedventing

If the employee becomes angry, talk louder,shake your finger, and scowl

Listen to the employees career goals andschedule a separate meeting so that sufficientattention can be devoted to discussing them

Ignore the employees career goals

To close, summarize the important points madeduring the discussion and any actions agreed to

After the details of the appraisal have beencovered, stand up to signal the discussionis over

Have the employee review and sign the appraisaldocument and provide comments, if appropriate

Ask the employee to sign the appraisaldocument with allowing time to read it

Ask the employee to sign the appraisal documentto indicate that the appraisal has been discussed

Ask the employee to sign the appraisaldocument without explaining the meaning

of the signature

Let the employee know what will happen to theappraisal document; give the employee a copy ofthe document

Submit the appraisal document withoutexplaining to the employee where it goesafter the discussion or without giving theemployee a copy


4/5

APPRAISAL dos and donts for employees

Do Dont

Ask questions before the appraisal discussion to

make sure you know how the performancemanagement process works

Be in the dark as to how the performancemanagement process works

Review your work plan prior to the appraisaldiscussion so you will know the performanceexpectations your supervisor will be focusing on

Show up for the appraisal discussion with afuzzy recollection of your past yearsperformance expectations

Document your own performance prior to thediscussion, comparing what you actually achievedto the expectations defined in your work plan

Leave it up to your supervisor to documentyour performance over the past year

Prepare a list of changes and improvements youhave made during the year

Assume that your supervisor remembers orhas documented the important results youhave achieved during the year

Make a list of issues you want to cover during theappraisal discussion, such as barriers you areencountering in your work and ideas forimprovements

Assume that your supervisor knows theproblems you face in your job or has nointerest in helping you overcome them

Plan to discuss the current status of issues youaddressed with your supervisor during the year,

including barriers to your work and yoursuggestions for improvement

Save up problems concerning barriers toyour work until the appraisal discussion so

you will have excuses when your supervisoris critical of your performance

If, prior to the appraisal discussion, you are askedto give your supervisor information about yourachievements, provide concise, objectiveinformation

If you are asked to give your supervisorinformation about your achievements, do sogrudgingly while complaining about havingto do your supervisors job for him or her

Once the appraisal discussion begins, speak up

and make sure you help to make it truly adiscussion, not a lecture from your supervisor

Be passive and unresponsive, listening andnodding your head in agreement with

everything the supervisor says

Stay focused on discussing performanceGo off on tangents, change the subject orengage in gossip

Express yourself clearly and concisely Try to get in as many words as you can


5/5

Do Dont

Ask for clarification if your supervisor brings up anarea for improvement that you dont agree with or

dont understand

Become defensive and emotional if yoursupervisor is critical of some aspect of your

performance

Actively engage in problem solving with yoursupervisor

Expect your supervisor to have a solution toevery problem

Be open to changing the way you do things and totaking on different responsibilities

Resist making any changes

Ask your supervisor for ideas on how to makeimprovements

Be afraid to learn how you can improve

Use the appraisal discussion to learn somethingnew about the business and to get to know yoursupervisor better

Dont raise any questions or offer anysuggestions so the discussion can becompleted as quickly as possible

If your supervisor has difficulty clarifyingexpectations or justifying a rating, help yoursupervisor by providing relevant information andexamples

If your supervisor has difficulty justifyingratings on your appraisal, keep quiet andmaybe your supervisor will get in trouble forpoor documentation

Ask questions to better understand yourperformance expectations and how actualperformance has been evaluated this time and will

be evaluated in the next cycle

Keep yourself in the dark about what isexpected of you and how your performancehas been and will be appraised

Get clarification, before leaving the discussion, onthe key points brought out during the discussionand on any actions you or your supervisor havecommitted to

Avoid summarizing what has beendiscussed and what actions have beensuggested in order to avoid having to doextra work or to change your routine

Regard the appraisal form as an imperfect butnecessary summary of your performance relativeto expectations over the course of the year

Get hung up on the design of the appraisalform and how it is filled out

Sign the appraisal after the appraisal discussionhas been completed your signature providesdocumentation that your supervisor has held thediscussion with you

Refuse to sign the appraisal because youdisagree with it or are angry with yoursupervisor your signature does notindicate agreement with the appraisal orendorsement of your supervisor

Used with permission from North Carolina Office of State Personnel

Documents

Appraisal Do Sand Dont s