Should We Conduct Annual Appraisals for Employees Still in Probation? Seeking Advice!

We are a start-up company. All employees joined in October 2011 and later. We are planning for the annual appraisal process to be done in April 2012. In our scenario, most employees are in the probation period.

Annual Appraisal for Employees in Probation

Do we need to conduct the annual appraisal process for them or not? If not, then when should they be given the appraisal process (for salary hike) next? Kindly help me.

Regards,
Navya

If it is an annual appraisal, then employees who have joined in October and later shall be eligible in the coming October month. Some managements give appraisals after the completion of the probation period as well. Please check with your management and go ahead.

Regards,
Sulochana

Appraisal can either be prorated if initiated annually as per the calendar year or within a year from the date of joining of the employee. Your organization is a startup. Hence, an annual appraisal might not seem required now as the strength of the employees remains low. Keeping it to the date of joining remains simple in the beginning. However, you will need to bring everyone into the same appraisal cycle at a later point in time, which is a huge exercise.

I suggest you consider the calendar year; it would remain manageable later.

Regards

As this is the first year of appraisal, you can proceed as advised by Ms. (Cite Contribution). The prorated appraisal and increment amount is the best way to maintain high employee morale. If you wait for the completion of one year for every employee, it will be very difficult to conduct appraisals individually for all employees. Hence, implement the first year on a pro-rata basis and continue the same procedure in the future as well.

Regards.

If your company is doing extremely well, please go ahead with appraisals based on individuals' performance (do not call it annual).

Best wishes,
Surendar

If you are conducting appraisals for employees upon completing one year since joining, it can be challenging for management to locate the specific employees each month who have reached the one-year mark. However, if the appraisal process is scheduled for a particular month each year and is based on a percentage calculation for one-year and six-month completions, then it becomes more manageable.

Eligibility for Appraisal During Probation

The employee is eligible only after the completion of the probation period because the employee is not considered a permanent employee of the company during probation. Hence, he does not benefit from the benefits of permanent employees. After probation, he may be considered, usually depending on the company procedures. But before the completion of probation, he cannot claim appraisal. If the company wishes to provide the benefit, then he may benefit. There are a few cases where an employee has received a promotion in just 2 months from the date of joining. The employee has no right to claim, but the company can always appreciate good work.

Appraisal Process for Probationers and Trainees

Annual appraisal is normally only for those who are regular employees and in respect of whom Key Result Areas (KRA) and Objective Result Areas (ORA) are agreed upon. Normally, there is a separate appraisal for probationers and a separate one for trainees to evaluate their performance, discipline, commitment, etc., to the company. This helps in making an informed decision on whether they can be confirmed as regular and fit to be regular employees.

In the case of probationers' or trainees' appraisal, there is no self-appraisal part, and no discussion is held with appraisees. The periodicity is once every three or six months, ensuring that if the person is not suitable, they are not continued needlessly and are terminated.

Regards,
O. Abdul Hameed

There are two options:

1. Conduct the Annual Appraisal keeping the probation period the same, i.e., after completion of the probation, he will be confirmed without any salary hike.

2. Conduct the appraisal after completion of the probation period and consider the salary hike during that time. Also, make a rule that probationers are not entitled to annual appraisal.

This is the right time for your organization to set its policy in place. You can keep it as an annual process, in which case you can standardize October for the appraisal cycle (assuming that the organization was established then).

Alternatively, if your organization aims to align annual appraisals with the financial year, it is advisable to do so now. However, please ensure that employees are informed that this will be an annual cycle aligned with the financial year, and there will be no appraisal in October. The next appraisal will be in April 2013.

Many times, we forget to provide important communication to employees, which can lead to misunderstandings between employees and management.

Hope this helps.

Regards,
Ashfaq