PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

MODULE 6.
PERFORMANCE
MANAGEMENT
SKILLS AND
FEEDBACK
Reference:

Aguinis, Herman (2013). Performance Management, 3e. Pearson

Education, Inc.

Jaika Almira R. Agena

INSTRUCTOR
MODULE CONTENT
This module is intended for the discussion of the
topics of developing performance management,
coaching, the role of line managers, and giving
feedback.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
6-1 Describe the importance of having
development plans as part of a performance
management system
6-2 Recognize the role of direct supervisors in
the design and implementation of development
plans
6-3 Define coaching and describe its major
functions
6-4 Identify and understand the various purposes
served by feedback and performance reviews
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENTAL PLANS

Personal development plans specify courses of action to be taken to improve

performance. Achieving the goals stated in the developmental plan allows employees
to keep up with the changes in their fields or professions. Personal development
plans allow employees to answer the following questions:

How can I continually learn and grow in the next year?

How can I do better in the future?
How can I avoid performance problems faced in the past?

No matter how high up in the position, there is always room for improvement. Hence,
regardless of which complexity or nature of the job, each employee should have a
developmental plan created for them. A developmental plan can be designed based
on the performance evaluations evaluated. In addition, these plans should focus on
the knowledge and skills that are needed for more long-term aspirations to improve
performance.

Another important benefit of including development plans, and in more general terms
the inclusion of the identification of employee strengths and weaknesses as part of
performance management systems is that employees are more likely to be satisfied
with the system.

Developmental Plan Objectives

The overall objective of a developmental plan is to encourage continuous learning,
performance improvement, and personal growth. Here are the more specific
objectives:
1. Improve performance in current job. A developmental plan suggests courses of
action to address each of the performance dimensions that are deficient.
2. Sustain performance in current job. A good plan provides tools so that employees
can continue to meet and exceed expectations regarding their current job.
3. Prepare employees for advancement. A good plan indicates which new
competencies and behaviors should be learned to help with career advancement.
4. Enrich the employee's work experience. A good plan provides employees with
growth opportunities and opportunities to learn new skills.
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
ROLE OF DIRECT SUPERVISORS

Performance management systems are not

likely to help employees develop and improve
their performance if managers do not have the
necessary skills to help each employee
accomplish these goals. Such skills include
being able to serve as coaches, observe and
document performance accurately, give both
positive and negative feedback, and conduct
useful and constructive performance review
discussions.

COACHING

Coaching is a collaborative, ongoing process in which the manager interacts with

his or her employees and takes an active role and interest in their performance. It
is a day-to-day function that involves observing performance, complimenting good
work, and helping to correct and improve any performance that does not meet
performance standards.

Here are the four guiding principles that provide a good framework for
understanding successful coaching:

A good coaching relationship is essential. For coaching to work, it is a must

that the relationship between coach and employee be trusting and
collaborative. To achieve this type of relationship, the coach must (a) listen
in order to understand, (b) search for positive aspects of the employee, (c)
understand that coaching is not something done to the employee, but done
with the employee.

The employee is the source and director of change. The coach must
understand that the employee is the source of change and self-growth. The
purpose of coaching is to change employee behavior and set direction for
what the employee will do differently in the future. This will not happen if
the employee does not take charge.
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
The employee is whole and unique. The coach must understand that each
employee is a unique individual with several job-related and job-unrelated
identities and a unique personal history. It will be beneficial if the coach has
the knowledge of the employee's life and can help the employee connect his
life and work experiences in meaningful ways.
The coach is the facilitator of the employee's growth. A coach must direct the
process and help with the content but not take control of these issues. The
coach needs to maintain an attitude of exploration; help expand the
employee's awareness of strengths, resources, and challenges; and facilitate
goal setting.
Table 6.1 presents the major functions and key behaviors that coaching involves.
Based on this list of functions, coaching does require a lot from managers. But
coaching can also turn feedbacks to results. However, for that to happen, coaches
need to engage in different behaviors.

Table 6.1. Coaching

Major Functions Key Behaviors

Establish developmental
Give advice
objectives

Provide guidance Communicate effectively

Give support Motivate employees

Document performance
Give confidence
feedback

Promote greater
Give feedback
competence

Diagnose performance
problems

Develop employees
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
Coaching Styles

A manager's personality and behavioral

preferences are more likely to influence his or
her coaching style. There are four main
coaching styles:
1. Driver. In this style, coaches tell the
employees being coached what to do.
2. Persuader. Here, coaches try to sell what
they want the employees being coached on
what to do.
3. Amiable. In this style, coaches want
everybody to be happy and so would be
subjective rather than objective because it
"feels" like the right way to do.
4. Analyzer. Here, coaches prefer analyzing
the performance in a logical and
systematic way and then following rules
and procedures when providing
recommendations.

Which do you think is your preferred coaching style? Which do you

think is the best style?

To be fair, there's not one style that is superior to others. Coaching

will sometimes demand the coach to be a driver, a persuader,
sometimes show empathy and create positive effects, and
sometimes pay close attention to following established rules and
procedures. Styles that are most effective should be adaptive and
adjusted according to the employees' needs.
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
The Coaching Process

The coaching process involves the

following:
1. Setting developmental goals
2. Identifying developmental resources
and strategies
3. Implementing said strategies
4. Observing and documenting
developmental behavior
5. Giving feedback

In documenting performance and

performance in developmental activities,
here are some recommendations:
1. Be specific
2. Use adjectives and adverbs sparingly
3. Balance positives with negatives
4. Standardize procedures
5. Describe observable behavior

Figure 6.1 The Coaching Process

GIVING FEEDBACK

Giving feedback to an employee regarding

their progress toward achieving their goals
is a key component of the coaching process.
Feedback is information about past behavior
that is given with the goal of improving
future performance. It also includes
information about both positive and
negative aspects of job performance and
lets employees know how well they are
doing with respect to meeting the
established standards.
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
Feedback is not a cure-all for performance improvement, however it serves different
purposes:

Helps build confidence. Praising good performance builds employee

confidence regarding future performance. It also lets employees know
that their manager cares about them.

Develops competence. Communicating clearly about what has been done

right and how to do the work correctly is valuable information that
helps employees become more competent and improve their
performance.

Enhances involvement. Receiving feedback and discussing performance

issues allow employees to understand their roles in the unit and
organization as a whole.

Unfortunately, the presence of feedback even if it is delivered correctly does not

necessarily mean that all these purposes will be fulfilled. In many cases,
implementation of feedback can lead to lower performance levels, for example when
feedback does not include useful information or is not delivered the right way, such
as when it focuses on the employee as a whole, instead of focusing on different
behaviors at work.

Here are some suggestions on how to enhance

feedback:
1. Timeliness
2. Frequency
3. Specificity
4. Verifiability
5. Consistency
6. Privacy
7. Consequences
8. Description first, evaluation second
9. Performance continuum
10. Pattern identification
11. Confidence in the employee
12. Advice and idea generation
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
Praise

Good feedback includes information about both good and bad performance.
Although most people are more comfortable giving feedback on a good
performance than a bad performance, some guidelines must still be followed:

1. Praise should be sincere and given only when it is deserved.

2. Praise should be about specific behaviors or results and be given within
context so that employees know what they need to repeat in the future.
3. In giving praise, managers should take the time and act pleased rather than
rush through the information looking embarrassed.
4. Avoid giving praise by referring to the absence of the negative, but should
emphasize the positive.

Negative Feedback

Negative feedback includes information that performance has fallen short of

accepted standards. The goal of providing negative feedback is to help
employees improve their performance in the future, and not to punish, embarrass
or chastise them. Giving negative feedback is important especially when it is
warranted because the consequences of not doing so can cause a huge impact on
the organization as a whole.

When managers avoid providing feedback, a feedback gap happens. This is when
managers and employees mutually instigate and reinforce a lack of
communication which creates a vacuum of meaningful exchanges about poor
performance. A typical consequence is that in the absence of information to the
contrary, the manager gives the employee a message that performance is
adequate.

Regardless of whether the feedback session includes praise or a discussion of

needed areas of improvement, it should provide answers to the following
questions:
1. How is your job going? Do you have what you need to do your job?
2. Are you adequately trained? Do you have the skills and tools you need to do
your job?
3. What can be done to improve your and your unit's / organization's
job/products/services?
4. How can you better serve your internal and external customers?
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
PERFORMANCE REVIEWS

Supervisors who manage employee performance often feel uncomfortable in these

roles because it often entails both judging and coaching at the same time.

Supervisors serve as judges by evaluating performance and allocating rewards.

they serve as coaches by helping employees solve performance problems, identify
performance weaknesses, and design developmental plans that will be
instrumental in future career development. Supervisors feel uncomfortable
because they feel they need to convey bad news and employees may react
negatively.

Because supervisors play these opposing roles, it is usually helpful to separate

meetings related to performance. This can help minimize the possibility of
surprises. When meetings are separated, it is easier to separate the discussion of
rewards from the discussion of future development. This allows employees to give
their full attention to each issue one at a time.

Regardless of which meeting it is, the following is

the typical sequence for these "performance review
meetings"
1. Explain the purpose of the meeting
2. Conduct self-appraisal
3. Share ratings and explain rationale
4. Discuss development
5. Ask employee to summarize
6. Discuss rewards
7. Hold follow-up meeting
8. Discuss approval and appeals process
9. Conduct final recap

These performance review discussions serve

important purposes:
1. Allow employees to improve their performance by
identifying performance problems and solutions
for overcoming them
2. Help build a good relationship between
supervisor and employees because the supervisor
shows that they care about the employee's
growth and development
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SKILLS
AND FEEDBACK
However, these purposes are not always realized especially if employees become
defensive. To prevent defensive responses, supervisors may consider the following
suggestions:

1. Establish and maintain rapport

2. Be empathetic
3. Be open-minded
4. Observe verbal and non-verbal cues
5. Minimize threats
6. Encourage participation

END OF MODULE TEST

CASE ANALYSIS: WAS ROBERT EATON A GOOD COACH
Robert Eaton was CEO and chairman of Chrysler from 1993 to 1998, replacing
Lee Iacocca who retired after serving in this capacity since 1978. Eaton then
served as cochairman of the newly merged DaimlerChrysler organization from
1998 to 2000. With 362,100 employees, DaimlerChrysler achieved revenues of
EUR 136.4 billion in 2003. DaimlerChrysler’s passenger car brands include
Maybach, Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, and Smart. Commercial vehicle
brands include Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner, Sterling, Western Star, and Setra.
From the beginning of his tenure as CEO, Eaton communicated with the
people under him. He immediately shared his plans for the future with his top
four executives and then took the advice of his colleague, Bob Lutz, to look
around the company before making any hasty decisions concerning the state of
affairs at Chrysler. Eaton and Lutz ascertained that Chrysler was employing the
right staff and that they did not need to hire new people; they just had to lead
them in a differ- ent manner, that is, in a more participative style.
Eaton listened to everyone in the organization, including executives,
suppliers, and assembly-line workers, to determine how to help the company
succeed. Eaton also encouraged the employees at Chrysler to talk with one
another. The atmosphere of collaboration and open-door communication
between Eaton and Lutz (the two men sat across the hall from one another and
never closed their doors) permeated the entire organization. Eaton and Lutz’s
walk- around management style indicated to employees that they were
committed to and engaged in the organization. Furthermore, Eaton and Lutz
held meetings with their executive team on a regular basis to exchange ideas
and information from all areas of the organization.
Eaton even reorganized the manner in which Chrysler designed cars based
on a study, previously disregarded by Iacocca, that indicated that Chrysler
needed to be more flexible and its executives needed to be in constant
communication with the product design team. One employee was quoted as
saying, “Bob Eaton does not shoot the messenger when he hears something he
doesn’t like or understand. He knows that not every idea is right. But Bob is
off-the-wall himself. . . . He’ll say something, and we’ll tell him that it’s a crazy
idea. . . . He may not change his mind in the end, but he’ll spend the time
explaining to you what is behind his thought processes. Do you know what kind
of confidence that inspires?” This type of open communication at the top
proved extremely successful, as summed up by one designer: “It’s a system that
recognizes talent early and rewards it, and that creates a sense of enthusiasm
for your work, and a sense of mission.”
END OF MODULE TEST
CASE ANALYSIS: WAS ROBERT EATON A GOOD COACH
Another program that Eaton describes as empowering employees at Chrysler
includes requiring all employees, including executives, to participate in the
process of building a new vehicle. Eaton explains that this shows all of the
employees in the plant that executives are concerned about the proper
functioning of new cars, and it gives executives the opportunity to understand
and solve problems at the factory level. Eaton states, “When we’re done with
our discussions, these guys know where we want to go and how we want to get
there, and they go back and put the action plans together to do that. This goes
for every single thing we do.” He concludes, “Clearly at a company, there has to
be a shared vision, but we try to teach people to be a leader in their own area,
to know where the company wants to go, to know how that affects their area,
to benchmark the best in the world, and then set goals and programs to go
after it. We also encourage people not only to go after the business plan
objectives but to have stretch goals. And a stretch goal by definition is a fifty-
percent increase . . . . If we go after fifty percent, something dramatic has to
happen. You have to go outside of the box.”
Based on the above description, please evaluate Bob Eaton’s coaching skills
using the accompanying table. If a certain coaching behavior or function is
missing, please provide recommendations about what he could have done more
effectively.

Major Functions Present? (Y/N) Comments / Recommendations

Give advice

Provide guidance

Give support

Give confidence

Promote greater competence

Key behaviors

Establish development
objectives

Communicate effectively

Motivate employees

Document performance

Give feedback

Diagnose performance problem

Develop employees