How Can I Manage Performance Appraisals and HRD Alone for 500 Employees?

Performance Appraisal Process and HRD Mechanisms

Please suggest to me as I have a few queries on the Performance Appraisal Process, the Performance Appraisal Policy, and HRD Mechanisms. For the appraisal, I have already prepared the PA policy as well as the form:

1) The total staff is approximately 500 employees. So, according to the MBO process (KRAs, KSAs, rating scale), is it possible to implement the entire process as I am the only one handling the entire HR?

2) When and how should the appraisal process start? Should it be through an online form-filling process? When I joined this company, I was a fresher, but after gaining experience, I have been working on each and every HRD mechanism as I have to develop each one systematically and set up the structured HR department.

3) I am also working on the manpower planning process, Role Analysis, Recruitment & Selection, Performance Appraisal, and Training & Development. These are the areas I am focusing on. Please help me out.

Please suggest your opinions.

Thanks and Regards,
Shraddha Jadhav

As the performance appraisal process is an essential part of every organization, without the appraisal process, you can't get a clear idea about your employees' performance in a cumulative form. However, the progress of the process is very important to every organization. In my company, where only 50 plus employees are working, I implemented a very simple appraisal process which has two sets of forms to be filled out by each employee and their supervisor separately. After the process is completed, the management and HR team discuss the feedback and make decisions regarding salary and other benefits.

In your company with 500 employees, you can consider hiring performance appraisal software and following its suggestions with the help of your own and the community's knowledge.

It would be fine if you implement the PA cycle in an automated environment. Online filling up of the appraisal sheet will help you reduce paperwork, eliminate unnecessary hassles associated with manual processes, and save time, money, and labor.

Things That Should Be of Concern:

1. You will need some helping hand, as one administrator should be monitoring the online process and maintaining the online system.

2. One person, which can be you too, should carefully follow the feedback loop and ensure the whole system with the feedback loop is a continuous process.

3. Your employees should be well-educated about the online PMS structure. Provide them with literature or a short interactive session before implementing the online system, as you may encounter some resistance to the change from a paper-based to an online system.

4. The system should be transparent and simple. It should be rational.

5. KRAs should be known to the appraisee, and they should relate well to the KRAs they are responsible for. A clear master KRA is desired after analyzing each job description.

Most importantly, employees should feel ownership of their performance, which can be achieved through self-appraisal. It increases the sense of responsibility.

6. It should be yearly, as you have less manpower in the HRD section. Carrying out a quarterly or half-yearly appraisal process would be very stressful for you, sir.

7. The appraisal process or method you choose should relate to the organizational culture. Mere selection of any method without analyzing the organizational environment or culture could be disastrous.

8. Your PMS system should not only provide performance ratings but also be developmental in nature. Put emphasis on developmental matters such as:

- Providing skill gap analysis
- Conducting training needs assessments (this would help increase the credibility of training and its cost incurred)
- Providing feedback at regular intervals
- Ensuring a good linkage of performance with variable pay
- Conducting one-on-one interactive sessions at regular intervals with mentors or coaches to rejuvenate the motivation and energy in the appraisee.

9. Goals should be realistic and not burdensome. Check goal criticality with the STRETCH TOOL.

10. Lastly, always remember, no one likes to be measured or rated. Your system should not act as a mere performance calculator but rather as a support system for every employee, providing help when needed.