Managing Performance in Organisations
— Lecture 4: Monitoring and analysing performance
Managing Performance in Organisations
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Recap – Lecture 3
The KPI framework
How KPIs are used to monitor performance
Operational plans: What’s the dealio with them?
Explain the relationship between operational plans and performance management
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Learning overview
Identify what to monitor in the workplace.
Explain the benefits of monitoring for staff and managers.
Identify potential problems in analysing performance
Use a framework to analyse performance
Explain issues with each step of the analysis framework
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Monitoring Performance
Performance management includes monitoring.
KPIs guide what should be monitored.
Monitoring is an information gathering process.
Monitoring allows decisions to be made and action taken.
Gathering useful information is key to the performance management system.
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Why monitor?
Allows quick response to new situations or changes in performance.
Monitoring enables you to:
keep people on track
form a foundation on which to base feedback
negotiate changes
collect information
maintain the performance management system
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdp4sPviV74
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Monitoring
Monitoring enables analysis of performance
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What to monitor
Two main types of monitoring
End of performance
During performance
What to monitor will depend on
Your KPIs
Specific performance standards
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Evidence and feedback
Evidence needs to be:
collected over whole period
relate to agreed standards or objectives
collected on excellent, satisfactory, and unsatisfactory performance
explicit and accurate
Quality of evidence effects quality of feedback
Effective monitoring ensures evidence is representative
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Evidence: When should I collect it?
Evidence collected according to monitoring system.
Evidence collected at milestones for action of standards.
Evidence covers good and poor performance.
Manager and staff collect evidence whenever it is useful.
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I always feel like somebody’s watching me…
Staff encouraged to self monitor.
Self monitoring increases:
commitment to process
increased job satisfaction
skills development
awareness of problems
early intervention
ability to ask for assistance.
Two way communication is important.
Managers should regularly discuss monitoring with staff.
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Whatchu talkin’ bout Willis?
At monitoring don’t make judgments about evidence. Being non-judgmental:
Ensures proper analysis of evidence
Reduces biases, personal beliefs and prejudices
Reduces risk of litigation
Reduces risk of damaging relationships.
Intervention without analysis may decrease staff:
Productivity
Motivation
Organisational commitment.
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Analyse This!
Analysing performance needs to be done daily and longer term.
The framework ensures managers:
Consider possible causes of unsatisfactory performance
Reward exceptional performance.
Managers need to review actual performance of individuals.
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Analyse That!
The process of comparing actual performance with agreed performance standards and looking at why gaps have occurred between the two.
Analysis uses evidence collected over the performance management cycle.
Managers need to answer the following question:
Why is performance at the level it is?
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Problems with analysis
Human error
Halo effect
Horn effect
Categorical statements
Simplification
Stereotypes
Inflexibility
Leniency
Central tendency
Discrimination
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A Framework
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Review
Performance standards
To know what is expected
Use standards whilst analysing performance
Identify conditions such as time, equipment, information
Managers review what they promised they would do
Evidence collected
Review evidence
Is evidence valid
Use examples
Is evidence sufficient
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Nothing compares to you
Agreed performance vs. actual performance
Compare evidence
Sort evidence
If there is not sufficient evidence collect more
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Determine
The performance problem
The nature of the problems
What exactly is the performance problem
The importance of the problem
The impact of the problem
Important enough to solve?
Possibly set a new performance standard
Context of performance need to be considered to ensure a fair outcome.
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Skills
Are the right skills possessed?
Have the skills been used before?
Are the skills used regularly?
Refresher training may be required
Job aids
Individual practice
Demonstrations, coaching and observation
Redesign of job to incorporate skills
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Performance
Does performance result in ‘punishment’ ?
Does poor performance get rewarded?
Is performance meaningful?
Are there barriers to performance?
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The (almost) final word
Poor analysis is associated with the use of bias.
The analysis framework helps to:
promotes objectivity
helps develop interpersonal skills
forces people to look widely for causes of performance
minimises human error.
Need to identify causes so action can be taken.
Managers must be prepared to invest time and effort.
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Review Questions
What are the potential problems in performance management that monitoring helps to overcome?
What are the benefits of monitoring for managers?
How might contextual issues in the workplace shape performance?
Isn’t it creepy that Facebook has targeted ads towards us?
Have you ever noticed the “easy to open” packages are anything BUT easy to open?
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