Performance Appraisals: Forms, Methods, and Best Practices

Introduction to Performance Appraisal Forms

The use of the four basic types of performance appraisal forms is important to ensuring that each form serves a purpose suited to specific job types. By using a management/supervisory form, employers can focus on the duties of managers and supervisors during performance appraisals. Managers are not only responsible for their own work but also for the work of their subordinates, so they face special circumstances that must be considered during the evaluation process. Forms that target managers and supervisors tend to focus on the individual's accomplishments, managerial style, and results.

Appraisal Forms for Different Job Types

Forms used for professional and technical workers are targeted to address specific job duties and are more individualized. Since these workers are responsible mainly for their own performance, managerial style and the oversight of subordinates are not relevant concerns. These forms therefore stress individual accomplishments and results.

The role of the nonexempt worker, or service employee, is typically tailored to a very specialized area of the company, and the duties of service workers are well delineated and specific. As a result, performance appraisal forms for this group focus more on behaviors and traits. These factors are most telling when evaluating nonexempt workers' performance because the jobs are relatively straightforward and success is easily measured and apparent. What makes the difference in these roles is behavior and attitude.

Executives occupy a unique position in organizations because their work is simultaneously managerial, professional, service-oriented, and often technical. An executive is essentially responsible for everyone else in the company, so performance appraisal forms for executives must take into account results, behavior, traits, managerial style, and accomplishments.

Peer and Customer Input in Performance Appraisals

There are several different ways to conduct performance appraisals, and each has both advantages and disadvantages. Having peers, coworkers, or customers provide appraisal input is valuable because these are the people who observe an employee's working style, behavior, and attitudes most frequently. Coworkers and customers are directly affected by what an employee does or does not do, and they are well positioned to speak to how effective the employee is on a daily basis. This type of input can also be valuable because employees sometimes behave differently around their peers and customers than they do when a supervisor is present, allowing a more accurate view of reality to emerge.

On the other hand, coworkers and customers are not necessarily privy to the bigger picture in terms of the company's goals, and they may not even know exactly what an employee's duties are supposed to be. Personal perceptions can also cloud evaluations from coworkers and customers, and an employee could be penalized for having a bad day rather than being judged on the whole of his or her work. This broader approach is sometimes called 360-degree feedback, which attempts to gather input from all directions to create a more complete assessment.

Conclusion: The Value of Multi-Source Appraisals

Input from managers, subordinates where applicable, coworkers, and customers is crucial to getting a full picture of how well an employee is performing his or her job. No single method or form captures every dimension of performance. A well-rounded appraisal process draws on multiple perspectives — each with its own strengths and limitations — to produce the most accurate and fair assessment possible.