Designing a Performance Management System for Manufacturing Workers: Need Help with Assessment Tools

Dear All, I am in the process of designing a PMS for workers in a manufacturing company. I have prepared the appraisal form and now I need to list the assessment tools for various parameters. For example:

- Efficiency: Target-based
- Quality: Number of rejections
- Adherence to Company Rules
- Absenteeism: Leave score
- Discipline: Grievances/warning letter
- Job knowledge
- Attitude

I would appreciate your guidance on the same.

Thank you.

Dear Jaipreet,

Following are my comments:

Efficiency: Target-based.
Quality: Number of rejections

Both the parameters are linked to their training. Please define them well in advance and communicate them.

Adherence to Company Rules:
Ok. Good point.

Absenteeism: Leave score

Please differentiate between "Employee Leave" and "Absenteeism." The former is admissible under the law. Only unauthorized absence is considered "Absenteeism." Availing leave itself should not be treated as a negative factor.

Discipline: Grievances/warning letter

Please differentiate between grievances and warnings. Raising a grievance is permissible under the law to maintain the spirit of democracy. If a worker raises a grievance against a supervisor, it should not be viewed as a negative factor. Conflict or differences are part of life. However, receiving a warning letter can be seen as a negative factor.

Job Knowledge:

The first two points, i.e., efficiency and quality, are linked to job knowledge. Hence, you may delete this point. What is the use of having knowledge if the worker is unable to deliver quality output?

Attitude:

My comments are similar to those on efficiency and quality. A person with the right attitude will be efficient, provide quality output, adhere to discipline, follow company rules, and not be absent without authorization. All these factors stem from attitude.

Regards,
Dinesh V Divekar
Management & Behavioral Training Consultant

"Limit of your words is the limit of your world"

Dear Dinesh,

Thanks for your valuable inputs. I have reframed the PMS criteria now:

Performance Management System Criteria

S.No | Parameters | Score | Assessment Criteria

1 | Quantity of Work | 50 | Efficiency: Target-based

2 | Quality of Work | 20 | Number of Rejections

3 | Absenteeism | 10 | Score

4 | Employee Behavior | 10 | Number of Grievances/Warning Letters

5 | Learning Attitude | 10 | Supervisor

Total Score (1+2+3+4+5) | 100

Let me know if we can use another assessment tool to measure employee behavior. I have included the number of grievances to prevent unnecessary conflicts among workers, aiming to reduce grievances.

Herein, only 10 scores are at the supervisor's discretion; the rest are all record-based.

Also, could I have some other parameters to assess workers' performance?

My idea is to establish a transparent and objective PMS so that anyone conducting appraisals for any worker would assign similar scores. I aim to move away from the previous concept of appraisal to eliminate bias and favoritism from the supervisor's perspective.

Please advise on this matter.

Regards,
Jaipreet

Dear Jaipreeth, Dinesh Divekar has given you sound advice. What you are trying to achieve is "Criteria-based Appraisal of Workers." Hence, kindly read about it at [Performance Appraisal (Negotiated Approach)](http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/ucce50/ag-labor/7labor/06.htm) found on [Google](http://www.google.co.uk/#hl=en&source=hp&q=criterion+based+apprais al+of+workers&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&a mp;gs_rfai=&fp=2e1cafc4d64b171b).

Have a nice day.

Regards, Simhan A retired academic in the UK

Dear Simhan,

I believe most of the parameters for assessment have been covered as far as workers' appraisal is concerned. Please let me know if any parameters need to be added or if any modifications need to be made to the assessment criteria.

Regards,
Jaipreet

Dear Jaipreet,

My paragraph-wise comments are as below:

S.No Parameters Score Assessment Criteria

1. Quantity of Work: 50
- Efficiency: Target-based
Please inform the workers well in advance about the measures of their efficiency. Secondly, when they take up a new job, their efficiency will drop. You need to consider this period as a learning curve and not as inefficiency.

2. Quality of Work: 20
- Number of rejections
The number of rejections aside, the number of pieces requiring rework should also be considered.

3. Absenteeism: 10
- Score
Please define when a worker will receive a score of 10 and when he/she will receive a score of 1.

4. Employee Behavior: 10
- Number of grievances/warning letters
Regarding grievances, I have discussed this in my previous post. The notion that a worker who does not raise any grievances is a good worker is incorrect. It may foster sycophancy. Also, concerning warning letters, please define the type of misconduct that will result in how much deduction of marks in the performance appraisal.

5. Learning Attitude: 10
- Supervisor
Please specify when a worker will receive 1 mark and when he/she will receive 10.

Total Score (1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5): 100

Let me know if we can use another assessment tool to measure employee behavior. I have included the number of grievances to prevent unnecessary conflicts among workers, thus reducing the overall number of grievances.

You can add one more point on innovation/suggestion. Did the worker come up with an idea that helped save resources or time? Also, if a worker conducts an experiment that fails, ensure that the failure is not penalized in the performance appraisal.

Ok...

Regards,
DVD

Dear Dinesh,

Thank you for your inputs. I have reframed the same. Do you have any references for books specifically meant for designing PMS in a manufacturing company? I need to design for non-productive workers as well.

Regards,
Jaipreet

Dear Dinesh,

What could be parameters to design PMS for non-productive workers? For example:

1) Dispatch
2) Housekeeping
3) Security and the like...

Other comments are also welcome.

Regards,
Jaipreet

Performance Management System (PMS) Development

PMS is not a one-shot affair. Depending on ground realities, an effective PMS will take a long time to take shape and materialize. For example, if a salesperson has been working for the last 10 years and generates maximum revenue, is everything okay? No. Check upselling, cross-selling, unmet needs, etc., of existing customers plus prospecting, both in terms of quality and quantity.

In the case of any person/position, first, keep a job descriptor handy. Next, gather data and analyze. For example, if a child secures 49, then 56, then 43 in three consecutive tests on a subject, the variance is high. Ensure three consecutive points are linear. Benchmark data - start internally at least, next with another company, and lastly on the lines of APQC. Make a Training Needs Assessment of each individual. Fix factors according to the company's situation. For example, first focus on sales, next add operating margins per account, next margins per transaction, credit cycle, etc.

Dear Dinesh,

Their job description will be as simple as that of working as a housekeeping in-charge, who is involved in dispatching, driving, security, and the like...

Regards,
Jaipreet

Dear Rana,

I am actually capturing the generic parameters to measure the performance of non-productive workers such as housekeeping, security, drivers, and the like. This is because their job roles remain the same even if they were to work in other companies.

Regards, Jaipreet

Dear Friends,

I am in the process of designing a PMS for non-productive workers in a manufacturing company. I need your guidance to calculate their efficiency.

Hope to get a positive response from your end at the earliest.

Regards,
Jaipreet

Hi Dinesh, could you please guide me in designing a PMS for a software company?

Regards,
Mitali