The employee is informed of the managerial decision regarding future remunerations, and a date for a new meeting is set. The new meeting will establish goals for the following year, ergo the cyclic characteristic of the appraisal system (Grote and Grote). Aside for meeting the three scopes previously identified, performance appraisals also present the company with several benefits. For instance, they create a context in which the employee is introduced to his own core competencies and limitations, based on which he can better direct his future formation. Then, the employees take an active role in their own evaluation and get to know themselves better and to understand their competencies through organizational lenses. Another advantage is that the performance appraisals take the relationship between employee and manager to a more mature level, at which the interaction occurs in terms of equality. Consequently, the employee gets the sense of better treatment and is as such motivated. His commitment to the entity would as such increase. Additionally, throughout the evaluation process, the supervisor is able to identify new training needs and resolve them, with the final outcome of improved organizational results. Finally, all these developments regarding the quality of work are discussed without the traditional emphasis on financial aspects (Falcone and Sachs, 2007).

Despite these benefits however, there are some sources which argue that performance appraisal systems are in fact harmful to proper organizational development. Three such authors are Tom Coens, Mary Jenkins and Peter Block (2002), who argue that appraisals fail to achieve the objective for which they are initially intended. In their view, employee evaluation mechanisms reduce the morale and commitment of the employee and prevent the proper propagation of information. In their own words, appraisal "impedes the reception of feedback, and there is no solid evidence that it motivates people or leads to meaningful improvement. Due to its inherent design flaws, appraisal procedures distorted and unreliable data about the contribution of employees. Consequently, the resulting documentation is not useful for staffing decisions and often does not hold up in court. Too often, appraisal destroys human spirit and in the span of a 30-minuyte meeting, can transform a vibrant, highly committed employee into a demoralized, indifferent wallflower who reads the want ads on the week-end."

4. Performance Appraisals at the Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino

The Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino prides on being an excellent destination for tourists, people looking for some relaxation or some entertainment. In their perceived quality as premier casino and resort, Chukchansi expects to hire premier employees. The salaries and incentives offered to the staff members are competitive within the industry, but the expectations are among the highest ones.

Prospective candidates are attracted through the possibility of being part of a dynamic community, in which the provision of offering entertainment to customers has reached the peaks of perfection. Prospective employees are met with the presentation of the hotel and casino in a means that convinces them of the beauty and stimulates their desire of being part of the Chukchansi gaming and entertainment community. Unlike other resorts and casinos which recruit through mass media, employment agencies, word of mouth and so on, Chukchansi promotes online recruiting, through their own website. This method is generally more restrictive than others as it reduces the numbers of applicants. Still, its benefit is that it also reduces the tedious work behind the selection and recruitment of the prospective employees. The very necessity to apply online ensures that only people with the desired skills of basic it experience will apply.

The demands and expectations from employees are high even before hiring, and they continue to intensify throughout the employment duration -- while it cannot be said that the working conditions are unfair, it can easily be said that the expectations are elevated and that the staff members have to complete their tasks at high levels of quality and commitment. Still, the company recognizes and rewards the efforts put in by the personnel. "Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino offers great salaries, great benefits, great co-workers and a world-class place to work" (the Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino Website).

Yet, in order to enjoy these benefits, the employee has to go through a rather complex performance appraisal system. The evaluation of the employee takes part at four different stages. At the first level, the direct supervisor of a respective employee assesses his work. At the second level, the results of the evaluation...

At the third level, the improved appraisal is passed on to the human resource management department. Finally, in the fourth stage, it is handed over to the payroll manager. The stage which completes this operation revolves around another meeting between employee and his direct supervisor.
1. Appraisal by the supervisor

This first stage is the most important part of the appraisal process because it involves directly the employee -- who is being evaluated for the work he had performed throughout the previous year -- and his direct supervisor -- who is best capable to recognize the employee's efforts, to follow the degree to which the worker has managed to reach the pre-established goals and so on.

The supervisors at Chukchansi Gold Resort and Casino follow the theoretical highlights which have been revealed throughout the previous section. In this order of ideas, they gather all the necessary information on the employee -- after having observed him throughout the year. They then fill in all organizational documents required in the assessment of employees. They form an individual conclusion based on the results of the filled in documents, as well as the direct observation of the employee and the interaction between the supervisor and the employee. In some cases, generally middle management positions, employees are themselves asked to fill in appraisal documents and evaluate their own performances. Since this demand increases the complexity of the appraisal process, it is not requested in most cases.

Once the supervisor has completed the documents and has formed an opinion, he invites the employee for a discussion. This discussion is centered on the achievements accomplished by the employee throughout the duration of the past year, or, in some cases, since the time of the last appraisal. The supervisor will launch questions and the employee will be asked to answer them. Such questions could include the nature of the customer comments relative to the employee's ability to satisfy their needs or the capacity of the employee to become integrated in the Chukchansi team and strive towards achieving the overall goals of the organization. The supervisor will check if the arguments forwarded by the employee are similar to the results of his evaluation in the filled in documents. If differences occur, the supervisor will direct the conversation in the sense of identifying the source of the differences.

2. Appraisal by the general manager

Once the employee and his direct supervisor end the conversation on the evolution of the worker's performances throughout the duration of the past year, the supervisor rounds up his conclusion and forms a recommendation. He then forwards his recommendation to the general manager, or his direct supervisor, if there is such a figure between the employee's supervisor and the general manager; there generally is not however.

The functions of the general manager are often demanding and complex, and he does not possess sufficient resources to handle the appraisals in detail. So he generally relies on the recommendation made by the respective workers' supervisor. He will however look over the filled in documents, and will place the findings and the recommendation in context with the organizational needs and the employee's actions he recollects. In most instances, the general manager agrees with the supervisor as he is trained to promote the interest of the organization, while in the same time support the formation and equitable treatment of employees.

3. Appraisal by the human resource department

As the manager and the supervisor come to an agreement relative to the performances of the employee throughout the ending period, the report is forwarded to the human resource department. This department is virtually in charge of enhancing the quality of the relationship between employee and organization and it oversees all actions and decisions made relative to the staff members.

In terms of the actual appraisal, the implication of the human resource specialist is more significant than that of the general manager, but less so than that of the employee's direct supervisor. The human resource specialist will generically assess the report in terms of grids. He will assess the evolution of the worker based on the initially established goals and his ability to meet these goals. He will also assess the developments in light of those registered by his team mates and other organizational members occupying similar positions. An important function of the human resource department is that of integrating the recommendations of the employee's supervisor in the grid decided upon by the company. For instance, the department will…