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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

5 Ways to Take the 'Creep' Out of Employee Performance Ratings

On December 16, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
One of the countless complaints about performance reviews is that performance ratings are inaccurate. Whether an organization is using a traditional 5 point rating scale to evaluate performance criteria or a non-numeric determination of overall performance, the general trend is for the distribution of ratings to be positively skewed versus represent a normal bell curve.
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SUCCESSION PLANNING

Replacement Planning or Succession Planning? The Perfect Combination

On December 9, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
Succession planning and replacement planning are both strategies that are incredibly important to the lifeline of any organization. However, these two processes are often confused, even by senior organizational leaders. Despite the focus that boards and C-level leaders have placed on organizational talent strategy, I often encounter organizations that still equate succession planning with creating a list of replacements. I refer to this approach as the "names in boxes" method of succession planning. What distinguishes the two is basically the difference between executing short-term and long-term strategies. Do organizations need to employ one or the other, or are both strategies necessary to be successful? I would argue that the two talent strategies must work together.
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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Don't Forget the People in Employee Performance Management

On December 6, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
Employee performance management systems have received a great deal of attention in the business media over the past few weeks, as news that Microsoft, Motorola and Yahoo have made changes to their systems. The amount of commentary about these changes has been quite astonishing. Everyone seems to have an opinion about the best way to implement performance management. In fact, I chimed in myself in a recent editorial post, Don't Blame Performance Reviews, Blame Poor Leadership.
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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Don't Blame Performance Reviews, Blame Poor Leadership

On November 7, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
Once again, performance reviews are getting a bad rap. Several colleagues shared this recent article, The end of 'valued performers' at Motorola, in Crain’s Chicago Business announcing the ‘new’ way that Motorola Solutions is implementing performance management. The first sentence of the article really caught my attention and I felt compelled to share my thoughts.
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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

7 Steps to Writing a Winning Self-Appraisal

On October 24, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
If completing a self-appraisal as part of the performance evaluation process ‘scares’ you, now is the time to get over your fear! Organizations do not ask you to complete a self-appraisal just to make you feel involved in the performance review process. The self-appraisal process:
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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Awesome Performance Feedback in Employee Performance Management [INFOGRAPHIC]

On July 18, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
Accurately delivering and documenting performance feedback is a critical element in employee performance management. Using talent and performance management software makes the process of documenting observations, results, and the outcomes of performance feedback and coaching discussions much easier. Nonetheless, leaders at all levels find documenting performance feedback to be a challenge.
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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

10 Easy Ways to Improve the Mid-Year Performance Review

On July 9, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
The mid-year performance review is an important part of the overall employee performance management process. Conducting helpful and productive mid-year review discussions is a fundamental way in which managers can support a culture of ongoing feedback and recognition, not to mention achieve better business results.
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360 DEGREE FEEDBACK

Case Study: Starwood Hotels Uses Predictive Workforce Analytics to Link Leadership Behavior with Business Drivers

On July 5, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. owns, manages and franchises some of the most well-known brands in the hotel industry. With over 1,000 properties and approximately 145,000 associates, Starwood is one of the world's largest hotel companies and one of the most respected in the industry.
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HR SOFTWARE

Are You A HR Software Virgin?

On May 3, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
Small businesses have the same people and talent challenges that big companies do and can reap the same benefits from HR technology. The HR software available to HR leaders today makes managing people and performance easier and more effective. The bottom line is that HR software:
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PERFORMANCE EVALUATION

3 Ways Self Appraisal Makes Life Easier for Managers

On May 1, 2013 | By Karen Caruso, Ph.D.
The self appraisal process provides unique benefits and serves some specific purposes in the employee performance management process. Including self appraisal in the performance appraisal process can help managers make more accurate performance ratings and conduct productive performance review discussions with employees, if used properly. 1. Self Appraisal Provides Managers with Vital Information for Decision Making The employee performance management process requires managers to review and integrate performance data for a given period of time, analyze the data, and ultimately make decisions regarding ratings. Employee self appraisal is an important source of information on behavior and outcomes that may be missed over the course of the performance period. Performance feedback from peers or direct reports provides unique and specific insight on performance and the same holds true for self evaluation. Self appraisal, coupled with multi-rater feedback, provides a complete picture of performance so that managers can draw accurate conclusions regarding performance ratings.
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