July 26, 2005

Haneberg confronts naked emperor

Lisa Haneberg hates performance appraisals. She's going to spend the week talking about them. I like this statement from her first salvo:

If you are expecting an objective journalistic article about the pros and cons of performance appraisals here, you have come to the wrong place. I don't think that would be a good use of time or space. Most people in their heart know that appraisals don't work, but the question is always what to do instead. The purpose of this series is to explore the scrap appraisals point of view and the potential alternatives. All week, I will go deep into this one topic.
I have been out of corporate ville for such a long time now, I struggle to remember my last performance review. Personally, I wonder if HR folks have considered a new breakthrough technology: talking to people, finding time to reflect on how things are going, sharing experiences, appreciations, complaints etc day-to-day. But maybe they prefer the ritual of the appraisal and, of course, the exit interview? And of course, it's not so easy to sell an expensive consulting solution consisting of recommending honest conversation.

Posted by Johnnie Moore at 12:31 in Facilitation
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Dick Richards says

About this: "it's not so easy to sell an expensive consulting solution consisting of recommending honest conversation."

It ought to be easy to sell because many people truly don't know how to have an honest conversation, and because the norms in many organizations really do discourage them. I recall coaching a manager who was very confused about a subordinate's behavior. "Have you asked her about it," I said. He seemed stunned by the suggestion that he might simply ask.

On second thought, I suppose that what isn't so easy is being honest about the fact that you can't be honest.

July 27, 2005 20:39 Permalink for comment

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