What are the Performance Management Steps

 

The steps in performance management are similar to those in a well-designed training process, when the process can be integrated with the overall goals of the organisation.

There are various authors who propose different steps for performance management, however a common performance management process would include some or all of the following steps. The steps are the same regardless of whether it is performance management of organisations, subsystems, processes, etc.

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How the steps are carried out will vary depending on the focus of the performance management system, and the organisation concerned.

 

The following steps apply in particular to activities such as management development, planning, organising and coordinating activities.

 

  • Review organisational goals to link preferred organisational results in terms of units of performance, that is, quantity, quality, cost or timeliness (note that the result itself is therefore a measure)
  • Specify desired results and ensure they contribute to the organisation's goals
  • Weight, or prioritise, the desired results
  • Identify first-level measures to evaluate if and how well the desired results were achieved
  • Identify more specific measures for each first-level measure if necessary
  • Identify standards for evaluating how well the desired results were achieved (e.g., "below expectations", "meets expectations" and "exceeds expectations")
  • Document a performance plan, including desired results, measures and standards
  • Conduct ongoing observations and measurements to track performance
  • Exchange ongoing feedback about performance
  • Conduct a performance appraisal (sometimes called performance review)
  • If performance meets the desired performance standard, then reward for performance
  • If performance does not meet the desired performance standards, then develop or update a performance development plan to address the performance gap

 

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