This week for one of our assignments, we had to interview someone (outside of healthcare) who is responsible for conducting performance appraisals of employees. I interviewed my friend, Susan G., who is a manager at doTERRA.
Q: Do the employees complete a self evaluation before meeting with you? Do you feel they are usually honest?
A: Yes, they do complete a self evaluation, and for the most part, I do feel they are usually honest. We meet with our employees frequently, so they are aware of what is expected of them, so they know what we expect of them.
Q: What kind of scale do you use to evaluate performance (poor, below average, average, etc., a number scale, etc.?) Is the performance evaluation consistent for all employees?
A: We use a below, at, or exceeds standards. For each of the employees in our department, they are all measured the same way. We look at the average and the expectations of all involved (employees, team leads, supervisors, managers) in that category and then we set thresholds to determine where the employees will fall on the rating scale.
Q: Do you let employees know in advance when appraisals will be happening and how long they can expect it to last? Do you feel that employees behave better in the days or weeks preceding an appraisal?
A: Yes, we do let them know in advance, and Human Resources also sends out emails and communicates the upcoming appraisal. I don't necessarily feel that employees behave better in the days leading up to the appraisal. The performance measurements are being measured for the entirety of the reporting period, so it doesn't matter if they change their behavior in the days leading up to the appraisal. We still look at the full period.
Q: What advice would you give to a employee who is receiving poor evaluations but has a lot of other things going on in their life?
A: Well, we would start out by asking what the employee feels that they need at this time, whether it be a personal or a professional need. If it's possible, we will make an effort to be accommodating, but we also expect that they will make a solid effort to meet our requirements as well. Sometimes it's possible to make short term accommodations for injury and illness, but we expect them to return to work as soon as possible and give us their best.
Q: Do you ever find it hard to be honest to employees you generally like, but their performance is not meeting standards? How do you handle this?
A: No, I wouldn't say so. We make our standards and expectations clear from the very beginning, so it's easy for us to coach performance to meet standards early on. But it's also important to note that it's not personal, it's professional. All employees are held to the same standards, whether I personally like them or not.
Q: If an employee is given a poor appraisal, what are the consequences? When is termination acceptable?
A: For us, performance appraisals do not lead to termination. We use performance appraisals to see who is underperforming and then we investigate why and how we can improve their performance to meet our standards.
Q: Do you prefer to give out raises at the time of appraisals? Do you feel like this increases productivity and appraisal ratings?
A: We always give out raises after all appraisals are completed. As long as Human Resources has given approval, we will give a "merit increase" with their appraisal.
Q: If you know you are going to be taking disciplinary action, do you prefer to have others in the room (i.e. human resources, social work, etc.)?
A: Most disciplinary action is completed first by the supervisor, but when I do have to get involved, I do like having others in the room. It protects both myself and the employee, and makes sure that the interaction will be fair. I will often have another supervisor or manager in the room, or Human Resources.
Q: How often do you prefer to do appraisals (yearly, quarterly, monthly)? Why do you prefer this time frame?
A: I prefer yearly appraisals. I think that this allows employees to have time to work on making performance improvements while allowing room for error that shorter periods of time wouldn't allow.
Q: Do you make goals in the appraisal together or do you have the employee bring goals already made? If goals are made, how often do you follow up on them?
A: We ask them to create their own goals when they do their self appraisal, and then the supervisor will give them additional goals that they think would be appropriate or work with what the employee has come up with. All the goals should align with the company values, as well as with our standards for performance evaluations.
Q: What do you hope to accomplish from appraisals? Do you actually see an improvement from the feedback given to your employees?
A: We hope to provide guidance to continue improvement. I would say sometimes. There are some employees who are very motivated and want to improve, and there are others who are just there to do the bare minimum and get paid.
Q: If you know you are going to be taking disciplinary action, do you practice what you plan to say beforehand?
A: It honestly depends on the situation. If it's something I haven't dealt with before, I will sometimes roleplay with another manager, or ask for advice, either from someone above me, or from Human Resources. But if the situation is something about our expectations or something, those conversations are easier to have, since our expectations are clear and consistent for all employees.
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Q: Do the employees complete a self evaluation before meeting with you? Do you feel they are usually honest?
A: Yes, they do complete a self evaluation, and for the most part, I do feel they are usually honest. We meet with our employees frequently, so they are aware of what is expected of them, so they know what we expect of them.
Q: What kind of scale do you use to evaluate performance (poor, below average, average, etc., a number scale, etc.?) Is the performance evaluation consistent for all employees?
A: We use a below, at, or exceeds standards. For each of the employees in our department, they are all measured the same way. We look at the average and the expectations of all involved (employees, team leads, supervisors, managers) in that category and then we set thresholds to determine where the employees will fall on the rating scale.
Q: Do you let employees know in advance when appraisals will be happening and how long they can expect it to last? Do you feel that employees behave better in the days or weeks preceding an appraisal?
A: Yes, we do let them know in advance, and Human Resources also sends out emails and communicates the upcoming appraisal. I don't necessarily feel that employees behave better in the days leading up to the appraisal. The performance measurements are being measured for the entirety of the reporting period, so it doesn't matter if they change their behavior in the days leading up to the appraisal. We still look at the full period.
Q: What advice would you give to a employee who is receiving poor evaluations but has a lot of other things going on in their life?
A: Well, we would start out by asking what the employee feels that they need at this time, whether it be a personal or a professional need. If it's possible, we will make an effort to be accommodating, but we also expect that they will make a solid effort to meet our requirements as well. Sometimes it's possible to make short term accommodations for injury and illness, but we expect them to return to work as soon as possible and give us their best.
Q: Do you ever find it hard to be honest to employees you generally like, but their performance is not meeting standards? How do you handle this?
A: No, I wouldn't say so. We make our standards and expectations clear from the very beginning, so it's easy for us to coach performance to meet standards early on. But it's also important to note that it's not personal, it's professional. All employees are held to the same standards, whether I personally like them or not.
Q: If an employee is given a poor appraisal, what are the consequences? When is termination acceptable?
A: For us, performance appraisals do not lead to termination. We use performance appraisals to see who is underperforming and then we investigate why and how we can improve their performance to meet our standards.
Q: Do you prefer to give out raises at the time of appraisals? Do you feel like this increases productivity and appraisal ratings?
A: We always give out raises after all appraisals are completed. As long as Human Resources has given approval, we will give a "merit increase" with their appraisal.
Q: If you know you are going to be taking disciplinary action, do you prefer to have others in the room (i.e. human resources, social work, etc.)?
A: Most disciplinary action is completed first by the supervisor, but when I do have to get involved, I do like having others in the room. It protects both myself and the employee, and makes sure that the interaction will be fair. I will often have another supervisor or manager in the room, or Human Resources.
Q: How often do you prefer to do appraisals (yearly, quarterly, monthly)? Why do you prefer this time frame?
A: I prefer yearly appraisals. I think that this allows employees to have time to work on making performance improvements while allowing room for error that shorter periods of time wouldn't allow.
Q: Do you make goals in the appraisal together or do you have the employee bring goals already made? If goals are made, how often do you follow up on them?
A: We ask them to create their own goals when they do their self appraisal, and then the supervisor will give them additional goals that they think would be appropriate or work with what the employee has come up with. All the goals should align with the company values, as well as with our standards for performance evaluations.
Q: What do you hope to accomplish from appraisals? Do you actually see an improvement from the feedback given to your employees?
A: We hope to provide guidance to continue improvement. I would say sometimes. There are some employees who are very motivated and want to improve, and there are others who are just there to do the bare minimum and get paid.
Q: If you know you are going to be taking disciplinary action, do you practice what you plan to say beforehand?
A: It honestly depends on the situation. If it's something I haven't dealt with before, I will sometimes roleplay with another manager, or ask for advice, either from someone above me, or from Human Resources. But if the situation is something about our expectations or something, those conversations are easier to have, since our expectations are clear and consistent for all employees.
I thought this was an interesting opportunity to speak with a manager who actually conducts performance appraisals and see how they felt about them.
One thing that really stood out to me this week was when I asked about employees that you as a manager like, but who aren't doing their job as well. I thought it was a great point that my friend Susan made about how it's not personal, it's professional. I think it's important to make sure your employees know what the standards are, and that every employee will be held to those same standards, rather you like them as a person or not. That's why consistency is absolutely key.
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