Appraisal Skills Training for Appraisees
Good quality performance appraisal systems are those in which there has been initial training and development of both appraisers and appraisees. Appraisers must be sufficiently skilled to ensure that appraisal activities benefit individuals rather than simply 'ticking the box' to meet administrative needs.
Appraisals that have ignored this principle have usually been unproductive meetings of little benefit to either the appraisees or the organisations in which they are employed. Evidence suggests that badly conducted appraisals depress rather than improve performance.
To discuss training your appraisees as well as your appraising managers please call 0845 130 5714 or info@ga-training.com.
Why train your appraisees?
For a great many reasons not too many people look forward to their next appraisal. Both Appraisor and Appraisee will at some point experience a feeling of dread at the next time they are faced with the appraisal situation.
As an Appraising Manager you may be thinking 'how do I deal with the difficult situation of telling someone they are not performing to the desired level?' As an Appraisee you might be worried that it will be a one way conversation and you might be told there is nowhere for you to go in the organization.
Traditionally all the focus in the lead up to appraisals has been on the appraising manager. Ensuring they are well trained and have a full understanding of the forms they are meant to be using.
Little or no focus has been placed on how the Appraisee feels, how well prepared they are and how aware they are of their importance in making the meeting worthwhile for both parties and the organisation.
Think about any interview situation. Unless you are supremely confident, you will feel a certain amount of anxiety in the lead up to the interview. This anxiety, although in different forms, will be present in both the person giving the interview and those receiving it. Imagine therefore how much better you would perform as an interviewee if you were fully aware of what was expected from you at the interview.
Although anxiety will never be completely removed and a certain level of nervousness is in fact probably necessary for peak performance you are far more likely to perform well during the interview if you know at least some of what is expected of you.
Studies have shown overwhelmingly that an applicant for a job will perform significantly better if they have had some kind of coaching prior to the interview. This coaching might be from an independent recruitment consultant or someone from the organisation with inside knowledge of what the interview will involve. Whatever the source, the greater awareness someone has prior to any interview situation the more likely they are to perform to the best of their ability.
It is a truism that nothing discussed in an appraisal should come as a surprise, meaning if someone has been performing poorly the appraisal interview should not be the first time they become aware of this. With this in mind therefore, the format, structure, timing, accompanying forms and what is expected of the appraisee should not be a surprise on the day.
Many managers and organisations neglect this vital element. Both parties have to give and receive feedback during the process so why only train/coach one side? Surely if both parties were 100% aware of what was expected of them before, during and after the entire process, the true power and potential of a well conducted motivational appraisal would be maximised.
So what is the solution? Managers and organisations really have three main ways of addressing this issue.
The first and perhaps the most common way is to leave it to chance. Let the appraisee turn up, ill prepared and unaware of what to expect and just pray that everything goes OK.
The second is to encourage pro-active management of the process. The best managers don't need to be told to coach their appraisees. They will instinctively know they need to let everyone know prior the interview itself, exactly what is expected of them. They will give their appraisees exposure to the forms used, explain the overall purpose and encourage them to think about things in detail before the appraisal. However this approach is still unfortunately rare and in modern business it is often difficult anyway, to find the time to spend with each direct report in the lead up to appraisals.
The third way is to coach the Appraisees prior to the interview. We often put our managers through training programmes on How to carry out an Appraisal but then neglect to provide any guidance / training, for the Appraisees.
The many benefits of adopting this approach are:
- Reduced anxiety and fear
- No surprises
- A truly transparent process
- Maximising the time available during the interview
- Clear objectives from both parties
- An open and frank exchange of views
- Recognition of the vital importance of the Appraisee in the successful outcome of the process
- Appraisees will partake in a pro-active rather than re-active experience
The best approach to training appraisees is to give them an abridged version of the training given to the appraising managers.
By doing this everyone feels they have been through the same process and the appraisee feels confident they now know what to expect. It also provides them with a forum for discussion and a chance to raise issues they might normally be reluctant to ask or worse still were not even given an opportunity to do so in the first place.
So the next time you are looking at Appraisal Skills Training, spare a thought for those poor souls on the receiving end and invest in them as well as the managers!
It will pay rich dividends for all concerned.
To find out more about training your appraisees please call 0845 130 5714 or email info@ga-training.com.
Click here to view and download our Appraisal Skills Training Course programme.
