Internet Placing the Performance Appraisal System on

¶ … Internet Placing the performance appraisal system on the Internet should save Otis Elevator time and money by reducing the number of staff required to process appraisals. For example, it eliminates the creation, distribution and collection of forms and should automatically tabulate and aggregate results. Required information is more readily updatable as evaluation needs change because the appraisal is in a centralized electronic format and data can more easily be integrated with other HR systems as necessary.

Further, it should now be easier to compare results across managers for corporate-wide improvement strategies and to create a history of the evaluations that will facilitate tracking ongoing progress. Otis Elevator could also take advantage of the new online system to increase the frequency of performance appraisals and the number of participants in the performance appraisal process. Increased employee access might have the indirect benefit of increasing morale if employees feel more valued because there input is being solicited.

For Otis Elevator employees, access is more ubiquitous, convenient and secure than the older, paper-based system. 2. Otis Elevator most likely encountered challenged related to internal business processes after implementing its 360-degree feedback system (Koebelin, 1999). Now that it has the feedback, the company needs to understand how it can support the implementation of a corporate strategy or a corporate goal. This could be a problem if the initial performance appraisal system design did not have clearly defined objectives.

Otis Elevator will need to decide what employee development plans should be created based on the feedback and how these plans will be used to align behaviors needed to successfully implement the corporate strategy or goal.

And, from a learning perspective, the organization will need to address the following questions for the 360-degree feedback to have meaningful impact (Koebelin, 1999): How will individual development needs identified in the process be addressed? Will supervisors require training in order to address the identified needs of subordinates? Will HR utilize aggregate data on employee needs to create an organization-wide development plan? Often, corporations rushed into 360-degree feedback without laying the foundation for success (Linman).

Resulting issues that Otis Elevator may experience include: Feedback tied to merit pay or promotions rather than employee development Comments traced to individuals causing resentment between workers Feedback not linked to organizational goals or values does not accomplish objectives Use of the feedback tool as a stand alone without follow-up limits effectiveness Poor implementation of 360-degree tool negatively affects motivation Excessive number of surveys are required of each worker with few tangible results provided to individuals 3.

360-degree feedback is used as an assessment for personal development rather than an evaluation form that ranks individual performance (Linman). 360-degree feedback is a continuous evaluation method/process that incorporates feedback from the worker, his/her peers, superiors, subordinates, and customers. Results are tabulated and shared with the worker. Interpretation of the results, trends and themes are discussed as part of the feedback, not to rank performance, but to improve performance.

Based on this feedback, the worker should be able to set goals for self-development which will make them better managers and benefit the productivity of the organization. Evaluation forms, on the other hand, are primarily used as one-time rankings of performance that determine merit pay or promotions. 4. Ultimately, the success of 360 degree feedback process depends on whether it truly addresses, and is perceived to address, an important performance strategy or goal in the company (Koebelin, 199).

Therefore, in addition to overcoming the challenges discussed in question number 2, the following recommendations will help to increase the chances of a successful 360-degreee feedback system (Koebelin, 1999): Link the effort to a strategic initiative or a business need. Get senior management to participate in and drive.