Smart People Question If Performance Evaluations Do More Harm Than Good

Feb 21

You know I think performance management is broken. And I think it should be tossed out until a legitimate system that actually works is available. I’m not alone.

Yesterday, Stanford Professor Bob Sutton questioned whether performance evaluations in their present form should be ditched. In Performance Evaluations: Do They Do More Harm Than Good?, Prof. Sutton says there’s ample evidence that “performance management” doesn’t work. He’s looking for feedback. Click on the link if you’re so motivated. Or is that not on your list of goals for 2008?

About the Author

Frank Roche

Frank started IFRACTAL over 7 years ago with Sarah Chambers. Together, they've created HR communications and HR software for some of the world's leading companies. Frank is also studying Flamenco guitar and origami.

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Productivity Guy says:

February 22, 2008 at 3:39 pm

As a manager, I have found “strict” performance reviews to not be very useful. Giving number rankings to different aspects of an employee’s skill set never seemed to have a positive impact – either you give them a really good score, which really isn’t all that useful, or you give them a slightly lesser score (say, 4/5 – “Why didn’t I get a five?”) and then they’re pissed off.

I prefer less structured reviews where I can give feedback and ask for it, but not give specific scores. When scores are involved, the employee zeros in on those rather than taking to heard more open-ended criticisms and praise.s

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