Narrowing Skill Gaps for Employees

The employee without skill gaps is somewhat unusual. Sure there are superstars with few, if any, performance issues, but those are few and far between. Performance management should include not only the recognition of the gaps, but a plan to help close them.

Achieving desired performance outcomes is at least partially achieved through accurate identification of performance gaps and the application of appropriate training and development to reduce or eliminate the gaps. Effective performance management processes include both of these important elements.

When effective mapping of learning content to competency gaps is part of the performance management "infrastructure" in an organization, performance gaps tend to close faster and more completely. This stems from the fact that there is a much higher level of matching training and development efforts to areas where employees are weakest and need the most attention. Without this level of mapping there is usually a shotgun approach to training and development efforts.

ASTD reports that "Organizations are linking learning to performance and the bottom line, and they understand the relationship between creating a skilled workforce and achieving enterprise-wide success." The linkage between performance, learning, and higher levels of profitability is difficult to deny. Intuitively we would expect there to be a higher level of success and much less waste in the training process if attention is focused on closing performance gaps rather than painting employees with a broad development brush.

Training for the sake of training alone is a very bad idea and consumes valuable cash that can be applied more appropriately elsewhere. But when training is specifically linked to performance, training expenditures that are essentially thrown out the window are reduced dramatically.

Reviewsnap’s Latest White Paper Helps Your Company Move Ahead with Performance Management — Without Any Dread!

Reviewsnap, the leading cloud-based performance management software solution, today released its new white paper, “From Dread to Moving Ahead — Take the Pain Out of Performance Management.” Download a complimentary copy now.

Cue the shaking of heads, the rolling of eyes, and the murmurs of “not again” heard up and down the office corridors. How could a process so ingrained in organizational culture cause so much anxiety? Simple. By emphasizing form over function and process over performance acceleration. Too often, activities focus on compliance rather than creating lasting value for the organization and its people.

An effective performance management strategy can set the stage for a high-performance culture. Discover how to create a results-oriented performance management process that will advance your organization’s position in the market while also nurturing your best and brightest talent when you download your complimentary copy of Reviewsnap’s new white paper, “From Dread to Moving Ahead — Take the Pain Out of Performance Management.”.

“It’s time to take a deeper look into performance management,” said Chris Arringdale, Reviewsnap’s vice president of marketing. “Organizations that are serious about moving their businesses forward should stop thinking of performance management as an ‘annual event’ and instead create a process of continual improvement using ongoing goal setting, coaching and feedback. This agile model of performance management helps to keep everyone on track and moving in the right direction.”

When you download Reviewsnap’s new white paper, you’ll learn valuable tips and best practices that will help your company:

• Determine organizational readiness for performance management
• Establish a culture of performance
• Use goal-setting, coaching and feedback to drive engagement and results

Drop the dreadful process of once-a-year, paper-based performance appraisals and start using these best practices to help your organization move ahead. An effective performance management process is a proven solution for getting the highest possible return on the company’s greatest asset — its people.

Calibrating Performance Appraisals

Calibration, according to Webster's Dictionary, is a set of graduations to indicate values or positions. In the realm of performance management, calibration can be important to getting performance appraisals as accurate as possible by introducing graduated review of the performance appraisal to help ensure it is as accurate as possible.

Because of inherent individualized bias that we all tend to have when it comes to how we perceive the behavior and performance of those who work for us, having a process in place where others are allowed to review the ratings, comments, goals and development plans for employees will generally yield better performance appraisals. Yes, there are new biases introduced into this process, but by inserting multiple people into the performance review process, there is opportunity for new perspectives and for alternative views to help create an appraisal that is reflective of the employee's performance.

The process of having other individuals or groups review appraisals is the basis for performance management calibration. In a recent SHRM study, fifty-four percent of HR professionals who responded said their organizations conduct some form of calibration and 35 percent said ratings were changed as a result of the calibration process.

With more than one-third of the appraisals being changed in some manner, it is likely that the quality of performance appraisals is enhanced on an overall basis. That is a significant quality assurance process that is lacking in many organizations.

Some calibration processes involve a simple escalation from the manager to his or her manager for review of the appraisal. Others are more stout in that they involve a group that is responsible for looking appraisals over and working closely with the manager in refining appraisals.

It's important that the process be kept agile and to not involve too many people. By doing so, you can help avoid paralysis by analysis. A performance management calibration process is intended to be a quality assurance measure and not a means by which criticism is levied against the manager.

Calibration generally involves other managers, supervisors or team leads who have a fair amount of knowledge about the employee in question. The preference is that they be in a position to provide input based on some level of first-hand experience working with the employee.

There are some organizations, however, that will place an individual with little or no knowledge of the employee's work or workplace behavior into the group reviews. The thinking here is that that individual can ask appropriate questions and take an unbiased view of how the appraisal is being conducted. What they can't offer though is any substantive input on the performance of the employee. But, if performance notes (journal entries) have been used extensively throughout any given appraisal period, that individual will have a fair amount of information to use as a basis for discussing the employee's appraisal.

Having some sort of calibration laid over the top of the performance management process is something most organizations should consider. From a morale perspective, employees will feel better knowing that more care has been taken to complete their appraisals.

I Was Sentenced to 5 Years at The Office! - Employee Morale

Employee morale is yet another issue that is talked about a lot, but rarely addressed effectively. Organizational culture plays into morale and engagement so deeply that the process of improving morale can be a long, tough road.

Here are just a handful of things that should be considered in trying to elevate morale:

- Create an environment that's fun and lively. If your work environment resembles a prison more than a theme park, employees probably aren't excited about their surroundings.
- Carefully evaluate your management style. Is it facilitating in nature or is it dictatorial or overly assertive and direct.
- Encourage employees to come forward with problems, suggestions and issues. Listen carefully and acknowledge their concerns. Follow up on them and communicate results of your findings back to them. Don't leave them hanging.
- Address compensation and benefits to make certain that you're at least competitive with the market.
- Be consistent in how you administer rules and policies.
- Be fair and reasonable with all employees.
- Set expectations for employees about team work and working cooperatively. Let it be known that you expect employees to get along while on the job. Morale can be impacted heavily by fellow employees who don't work and play well with others.
- Be clear in your expectations and follow up when they aren't met.
- Don't ignore low performers. If they can't become good employees, terminate them. Bad employees affect those around them.
- Don't allow double standards. What's good for one employee is good for all of them.
- Eliminate a punitive mentality. Don't make employees feel that they will be punished if they make mistakes. Accountable, yes. Punished in some manner, no.
- Encourage innovation and creativity.
- Show employees that you care about them. Taking an appropriate personal interest in employees lets them know you care about them as people and not just as worker bees.
- Communicate as much as possible to all employees. Keep them well informed about what's going on in the organization.
- Look at the work environment. Is it light and airy or is it dark, dreary and counterproductive? Does it seem lively or more like a morgue? Don't underestimate the impact of decor.

Reviewsnap Partners with OpenSesame for Enhanced Delivery of Performance Management Solution

Reviewsnap, the leading cloud-based performance management software solution, today announced a powerful partnership with OpenSesame, the e-learning marketplace. The alliance integrates the services of both companies, giving customers of either vendor greater and more streamlined access to performance management content.

“With this partnership, our customers will have the tools to instantly act on performance information to more directly and immediately enhance their organization’s capacity to bring learning into the workflow,” said Chris Arringdale, vice president of marketing for Reviewsnap. The combination of the Reviewsnap and OpenSesame platforms will “ultimately accelerate the speed of innovation and improvement for any of our customers,” Arringdale said.

Reviewsnap is a performance management system that lets managers and supervisors give real-time, detailed feedback to employees, while capturing meaningful data about performance at the organizational level. OpenSesame is an online marketplace of corporate training courses. Its clients can choose from thousands of courses, read customer reviews, watch course previews and instantly use purchased courses.

The two companies will offer an integrated platform for the employees of Reviewsnap customers to connect with online training opportunities based on gaps in performance competency identified through the Reviewsnap performance system.

“OpenSesame has reviewed and selected course curricula based on core competencies defined by Reviewsnap,” said OpenSesame CEO Don Spear. These include courses in areas such as business acumen, customer service and communication skills. “Excellent training courses from OpenSesame’s 100-plus developers will be embedded in the Reviewsnap platform, giving employees instant access to performance improvement opportunities,” Spear said.

About Reviewsnap

In times like these, growth is earned by companies that align their people behind shared goals. If you are working to get everyone on the same page, Reviewsnap is with you. More than performance management software, we offer true partnership through genuine customer service and support. And unlike those other guys who care more about shareholders than customers, we can’t sleep at night unless you can. We are all together now. We are your performance management partner. We are Reviewsnap. Visit us on the Web at www.reviewsnap.com or follow @reviewsnap on Twitter.

About OpenSesame

Based in Portland, Ore., OpenSesame is an open marketplace connecting e-learning buyers and sellers. Buyers browse thousands of courses in a wide variety of subjects, from workplace safety to business skills, all compatible with any learning management system. For more information, visit www.OpenSesame.com or follow @OpenSesame on Twitter.

Employees in Denial

The employee who refuses to believe anything that might be remotely negative about their performance or behavior can be frustrating to say the least. That unwillingness to listen and accept something that could actually help them improve no doubt partially explains why their performance may be less than acceptable.

If denial is a pattern for an employee, it can be next to impossible to get through to them. When conducting their performance review, there is a strong likelihood they will become argumentative and try their best to confuse the issue.

The inability or unwillingness to see one's own weaknesses and skill gaps is not uncommon. Employees who fall into this category are distinctly different from those employees who take feedback well and use it to grow and achieve at new level.

The challenge with these employees is that because they are not able to get past insecurities or whatever is causing them to be in denial, it may be difficult to get them to change their behavior enough to remain on the team. This also points out why documentation of performance on an ongoing basis is so important. When employees default to denial as a defense mechanism, it's critical for the manager to have readily at hand specific examples or even a complete list of those performance "events" that relate to the ratings and comments the employee is questioning. Having these close at hand provides the opportunity to present factual supporting information that the employee may still dispute, but will have a difficult time proving to the contrary.

When an employee has a tendency toward denial, the manager should be focused on being as clear as possible and choose words carefully. Also, employees in this category often can't consume large doses of coaching in one sitting. Incremental coaching using smaller bites of information is often more effective with this type of employee. In other words, give them a tidbit to think about and then revisit that point in a follow up to determine if the employee is positively assimilating the feedback and accepting it in a way that could lead to behavioral change.

No performance review should be a surprise to an employee. But with an employee with a leaning toward denial, it is even more important to provide ongoing feedback and coaching so there is not "feedback overload" when the performance review is conducted.

Yes, employees in denial can be challenging. But with proper ongoing documentation, feedback and coaching along with a well done and well supported performance review, there is a chance that something will click with the employee and performance will improve.

The "You Serious Clark?" Look

Have you ever wondered what those looks some employees shoot your way really mean when you're conducting a performance review session? Here's our rendition of what some of the more common looks mean:

The "You don't know #%$@" look - A common look among low performers...the one with the wry little smile, arms crossed, and slightly red face. What this really means is "Oh, oh, they're on to me".

The "You Serious Clark?" look - It's the eyes wide open and slight head shake look that says "I had no idea I wasn't doing my job even though I spend hours on the Internet shopping every day".

The "I've got this in the bag" look - You know it as the lean back in the chair, head slightly cocked and slight smirk look.

The "It's the company's fault" look - Here's one most of us have seen...you know, the dilating of the eyes, red face and know-it-all grin look.

And last but not least, the "I'll play along, but couldn't disagree more" look - Yep, that one...the one where the employee tries hard to be a good soldier, but shows their disagreement by unconsciously furrowing the eyebrows, sighing heavily, and giving phoney smiles now and again.

During your upcoming review sessions, keep an eye out for any of these looks. You might get a quiet little chuckle when you spot one.

Do Disengaged Employees Impact Engaged Employees?

It's no secret that people in organizations have an impact on those around them...both positively and negatively. According to Gallup, 72% of US workers are not engaged in their work. To what extent the exact level of disengagement might be, we can't say for sure, but any material level of disengagement will affect overall results.

And, also according to Gallup, 18% of disengaged employees actually undermine the success of fellow employees....18%! So what we have here is a group of employees who who are disengaged at some level who intentionally or unintentionally wreak enough havoc among other employees that the actual impact of disengagement is much bigger than one might imagine.

Here are a few ways that could happen:

- The disengaged employees talk disparagingly enough about the company or management on a regular basis that the engaged employee starts to have doubts and becomes somewhat less engaged.
- The disengaged employee's work is sub par and/or the level of productivity is so low that other employees become irritated and blame management for allowing it or causing it to happen.
- The engaged employee's work is dependent on work performed by the disengaged employee and productivity/output of the engaged employee suffers.
- The engaged employee intentionally disrupts or sabotages the work of the engaged employee.

The bottom line is that engagement, while perhaps an overused term, is a real issue in most organizations. It's important to have a plan to minimize disengagement and to "manage out" those individuals who have a negative impact on those around them. Is that plan in place in your organization?

Value The Right Things

When it comes to evaluating employee performance, it's flat out critical to make sure that you're measuring what's really important. This seems so logical, but we'd bet good money we could walk into most organizations and find examples of performance reviews with competencies that are missing from the review and competencies that are a part of the review that have no real relevance to the job in question.

A simple job analysis for each position within the company would be a great start in identifying the duties and skills required to do the job effectively. And keep in mind that identification of the competencies to be measured relate to the job and not the individual. Sometimes, review templates appear to be created around the individual(s) holding the position rather than the job itself.

There are cultural competencies and then there are job duty-specific competencies. When we think about cultural competencies, we think about things like interpersonal relationships, self awareness, team-orientation, etc. while job duty-specific competencies are those that relate directly to completion of the job tasks.....the "technical" skills if you will. This distinction is only made to illustrate the need to focus on both "soft" and "hard" skills and to place emphasis on valuing the right things when evaluating performance.

This all leads up to the question of what your company values when it comes to evaluating performance? Is there an overemphasis on the cultural variables and not enough on the job duty-specific ones? Or are the cultural competencies lacking in the evaluation process? Undervaluing or overlooking competencies that should be measured consistently can lead to problems because improper focus for the employees occurs. They need to clearly understand what they are being measured against relative to the job at hand and relative to the "cultural requirements" of the business.

There are certain competencies that would seem to be important to most jobs if the organization values interpersonal relationships, high levels of cohesiveness, and harmony among employees. When these competencies are missing from reviews there is a strong implication that technical job related skills are paramount to success while building a team-oriented and harmonious culture are not involved in overall success. Without appropriate focus on the cultural variables, various types of conflict often set in and can run rampant.

Some studies have shown that workplace conflict forces managers to spend 30% or more of their time dealing with it and as many as 50% of employees say they get less done while fuming about conflict that can arise. And in an environment where conflict seems more prevalent, more than 35% of employees became less engaged in their work. When employees aren't evaluated against cultural related competencies in a way that makes sense, reduced productivity and engagement can be the result.

Selection of competencies to measure employees against speaks volumes about what an organization values. When you look at the competencies in play in your business, what seems to be valued?

What Feeds Cultural Differentiation

One of the overused and yet most important words used in the world of business is differentiation. There is a lot of chatter about how best to differentiate a business.

The focus tends to be on things like product features, pricing, service, and other common differentiating variables. But what many seem to not recognize is the importance of overall culture in the differentiation process.

For example, suppose a company has identified customer service as its most critical differentiating variable. That's great, but it begs some questions. How will we use customer service to differentiate us from the competition? Can our people deliver a differentiated level of service consistently? Are we really providing better service than our competition or are we just kidding ourselves? These are but a few of the legitimate questions that should be asked.

Another overused word, but perhaps even more important than differentiation is culture. For any organization to achieve and sustain differentiation, there has to be a focus on its very foundation, or culture. When we think about culture, we think in terms of "habitual organizational behavior". So we believe that how a company "behaves" day in and out can create a differentiating variable not generally thought about in the true sense of differentiation.

But how does corporate culture impact differentiation? The easiest answer lies in the belief that the evolution and achievement of a culture of excellence provides a strong foundation to achieve differentiation and can, in and of itself, provide some degree of recognizable differentiation. But how? By having in place a culture that focuses on excellence in all aspects of the business, it makes it easier to isolate and take advantage of true differentiating variables.

Let's take our example of customer service discussed above. So many businesses will tell you they provide better service than their competitors. But do they really? In most cases, it's nothing more than lip service. In a culture of excellence...one that has as its foundation habitual excellent organizational behavior...customer service would be a focal point and would be relationship-oriented, urgent in nature, responsive, and truly superior to that delivered by competitors (and likely most other businesses).

Here are a few things that feed into a culture that creates a foundation upon which differentiation can take place:

- A sense of urgency about serving customers at a very high level.
- The sharing of a common goal of excellence across the organization.
- High performing employees who understand that external relationship development is important to success.
- An understanding that everyone is accountable for results.
- A shared passion for delivering the highest quality product and/or service.
- Employees who care; who want to excel; who want the business to be highly successful; who work well together; who put their own personal agendas behind organizational goals and agendas and who clearly understand that the business can set itself apart from its competition.
- Having a plan in place that is focused on gaining a competitive advantage in various areas and that is effectively implemented and one that clearly defines and communicates the important goals of the business.

It's not easy to create a culture that allows for differentiation. And that's why it creates opportunities for those who can. Most organizations nibble around the edges of trying to get there, but can't create the whole package, so to speak. Those that do are usually very successful and are great places to work.