Complicated and protracted performance management systems are likely obsolete and useless. Many companies continue to use them at their own peril. However, large corporations, in particular, are well known for continuing obsolete and ineffective processes that suck the life right out of their company culture.
Performance systems tend to consume all the energy inside an organization for several weeks and produce little, if any, results. It could be argued performance management systems actually cause negative – not positive – results.
Quality guru W. Edwards Deming, once said these systems can leave employees “bitter, crushed, bruised, battered, desolate, despondent, dejected, feeling inferior, some even depressed, unfit for work for weeks after receipt of the rating, unable to comprehend why they are inferior.” Does this sound like something you would administer within your company?
Most employees simply want open, honest feedback each and every day. Calm, civil and assertive leadership will help companies navigate these treacherous waters. We don’t need a “system” for everything in the people business. Labeling employees with a rating is a good way to kill a person’s spirit and the company’s culture.
Building a great company requires leaders willing to do what is right for their company, not simply copying what everyone else is doing. It is likely most performance management systems belong in File 13.
What do you think about performance management systems? Pro or Con?
