Setting Performance Standards

Setting performance Standards



Every company has performance standards that must be met in order to remain competitive and successful. However, ensuring that these standards are consistently met can be a challenge, especially as businesses grow and become more complex. Both large and small organisations have established performance measures to improve operational success while rewarding employees for their performance outcomes. Establishing meaningful performance measures is one of the most important and difficult challenges facing Management Today. Before Managers or supervisors develop and implement organisational measures, they should consider the following guidelines.

Measurement is the key to the success of incentive plans because it communicates the importance of established organisational goals. What gets measured and rewarded gets attention. For example, if the organisation decides to be a leader in quality, the performance indexes may focus on customer satisfaction, timelines, or error-free.






Set performance benchmarks

At all organizational levels- performance must be consistent with the organization's strategy goals. Avoid non-relevant measures or measures that are not closely related to the business or employees' work. In order to meet your company's performance standards, it's important to set clear benchmarks for your employees to work towards.


  1. Review Job descriptions 
  2. Discuss with the employee whether their duties are aligned with their job descriptions.  
  3. Review past performance goals and achievements. 
  4. Determine organisation value. 
  5. Choose the distinct areas or parameters that would be considered successful in the employee’s job. 
  6. Find metrics that can reliably measure these parameters on an ongoing basis 
  7. Creating a rating scale system for performance. (Such as Need improvement, meet expectation, good, outstanding etc,) 



Define the intent of performance measures and champion the cause relentlessly

Demonstrate that performance measures are, in fact, good business management and hold managers and employees accountable for their success.


Involving employees

A critical step in any measurement programme is the development of an employee involvement strategy to outline the nature of employee participation, implementation and ongoing management of the performance management program. Segment the workforce based on the nature of work and potential for impact. Consider which metrics require customization. Acceptance of a performance measurement program is h heightened when employees "buy into "the process. 


Consider the organization’s culture and workforce demographics when designing performance measures. For example, organizations with a more traditional Hierarchical structure may need more time to introduce performance metrics than flatter organizations, which are more fluid and less steeped in control and command characteristics.


Widely communicate the importance of performance measures. 

Performance Measures are the principles and guidelines that communicate to employees about required performance levels and why the organization needs to achieve those levels of success.



Conclusion


When selecting a performance measure, evaluating the extent to which the employees involved can influence the measurement is necessary. Finally, Employers must guard against "ratcheting up" performance goals by continually trying to exceed previous results. This eventually leads to employee frustration and employee perception that the standards are unattainable. The results will be a mistrust of management and a backlash against the entire incentive program.


References 


  1. Bobko, P. and COELLA, A., 1994. Employee reactions to performance standards: A review and research propositions. Personnel Psychology, 47(1), pp.1-29.
  2. Cizek, G.J., Bunch, M.B. and Koons, H., 2004. Setting performance standards: Contemporary methods. Educational measurement: issues and practice, 23(4), pp.31-31.
  3. Dowling, P., Festing, M. and Engle, A.D. (2017).International human resource management. Delhi: Cengage Learning India Private Limited. pp.153–160.
  4. Hambleton, R.K. and Pitoniak, M.J., 2006. Setting performance standards. Educational measurement, 4(1), pp.433-470

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