The Impact of Staff Appraisal on Personnel Performance
Chapter One
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
- To help improve communication line between the superior and their subordinates in work environment.
- To acknowledge high performance and motivate high performance.
- To be able to tell the employees how well they are performing. A good appraisal system provides employees with the desired feedback and helps to guide their general environment, growth and improvement.
- To provide the employer with the data that could be used for staff deployment to serve in greater capacity.
- To present an excellent opportunity for both parties, the employee’s supervisor and the employee themselves, to express their opinions on job performance.
- To point out employee’s specific needs for additional educational, training and development which will lead to their improved performance and of the overall organizational performance.
- To guide management or organizations to take major decision on transfer, promotion, career planning and termination.
- Performance appraisal helps to remove or adjust the waywardness of an individual in the organization.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Introduction
This chapter presents the theoretical framework and models that are relevant and suitable for the current study; and which will be applied and used to analyze collected data and information.
The Concept of Performance appraisal
Performance is an outcome, or result of an individual’s actions. An individual’s performance therefore becomes a function of ability and motivation (Ainsworth et al., 2002). Performance Assessment (also performance appraisal, evaluation, measurement) becomes a continual review of the job related task accomplishments or failures of the individuals within the organization. A major consideration in performance improvement involves the creation and use of performance measures or indicators; which are measurable characteristics of products, services, processes, and operations the company uses to track and improve performance.
Shelley (1999) describes performance appraisal as the process of obtaining, analyzing and recording information about the relative worth of an employee. The focus of the performance appraisal is measuring and improving the actual performance of the employee and also the future potential of the employee. Its aim is to measure what an employee does. Shelley again considers PA as a systematic way of reviewing and assessing the performance of an employee during a given period of time and planning for his future. It is a powerful tool to calibrate, refine and reward the performance of the
employee. By focusing the attention on performance, performance appraisal goes to the heart of HR management and reflects the management’s interest in the progress of the employees.
Moats (1999) corroborate Shelley’s (1999) position and further add that performance appraisal is a process by which organizations evaluate employee performance based on preset standards. Moats describes the main purpose of appraisals as helping managers effectively staff companies and use human resources, and, ultimately, improving productivity. According to Moats when conducted properly, appraisals serve the purpose Shelley describes by: (1) showing employees how to improve their performance, (2) setting goals for employees, and (3) helping managers to assess subordinates’ effectiveness and take actions related to hiring, promotions, demotions, training, compensation, job design, transfers, and terminations.
The above expositions given by Moats and Shelley collectively establish performance appraisal as a clear and concise, regular and unbiased system of rating an employee’s performance in her current position, which can also be used to determine how far the employee can go in career development. The benchmarks of such an appraisal, according to Moats, are usually the job description in tandem with stated company objectives, and often includes rewards and incentives.
An organization engages a person for the purpose of employing his skills to achieve certain goals and objectives. Every so often, the employer needs to take stock and
determine the value of each employee, his potential, and what his future in the company is likely to be. In the researcher’s opinion this is accomplished through the practice of performance appraisal.
Moats (1999) explains that in the early part of the twentieth century performance appraisals were used in larger organizations mostly for administrative purposes, such as making promotions and determining salaries and bonuses. Since the 1960s, however, companies and researchers have increasingly stressed the use of employee evaluations for motivational and organizational planning purposes. Indeed, for many companies performance appraisal has become an important tool for maximizing the effectiveness of all aspects of the organization, from staffing and development to production and customer service (Moats, 1999).
As Moats puts it, that shift of focus was accompanied during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s by a number of changes in the design and use of appraisals. Those changes reflected new research and attitudes about organizational behavior and theory. Traditional appraisal systems were often closed, meaning that individuals were not allowed to see their own reports. Since the mid-1900s, most companies have rejected closed evaluations in favor of open appraisals that allow workers to benefit from criticism and praise.
Moats asserts further that another change in appraisal techniques since the mid-1900s has been a move toward greater employee participation. This includes self-analysis, employee input into evaluations, feedback, and goal setting by workers. Appraisal
systems have also become more results-oriented, which means that appraisals are more focused on a process of establishing benchmarks, setting individual objectives, measuring performance, and then judging success based on the goals, standards, and accomplishments.
Likewise, appraisals have become more multifaceted, incorporating a wide range of different criteria and approaches to ensure an effective assessment process and to help determine the reasons behind employees’ performance (Bodil, 1997).
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Introduction
In this chapter the methodology of research is presented. The areas captured in this chapter are the research design, sources of data, population of the study, the sample size used for the study, the sample techniques used in selecting the respondents, the data collection tools and the data analysis techniques.
Research Design
The research design is a framework for conducting business research (Malhotra, 2007). Thus it is the basic plan for conducting the data collection and analysis phase. The researcher used the descriptive research design in undertaking this study. According to Polit and Hungler (1995) descriptive survey is about describing, observing and documenting aspects of a situation as it is naturally. A descriptive study is one in which information is collected without changing the environment (i.e., nothing is manipulated). Sometimes these are referred to as “correlational” or “observational” studies.
Descriptive data are usually collected through questionnaires, interviews or observations. The justification for using the descriptive research design is that although the descriptive research does not fit neatly into the definition of either quantitative or qualitative research methodologies, it however has the ability to utilize elements of both within the same study. Again, it is appropriate for answering the ‘what’ and ‘why’ kind of research questions posed in the chapter one.
Sources of Data
The researcher collected data from primary sources. The primary data was collected through the use of questionnaires that will be administered by the researcher to staff of First Bank being used for the study.
Primary Data
Primary data constitute original data collected from original sources. The respondents of the current study constitute the original sources from where the data were collected. It is primary because the data has not been used before.
Population of the study
A study population is a set of elements (or individuals, depending on the situation) with similar characteristics. Place, gender, age, sex, and special interests are examples of similar characteristics. The emphasis on the study population is that it is made up of homogeneous individuals or components (Udoyen, 2019). In this study, the study population constitute of the entire staff of First Bank.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered. A total of hundred and twenty (120) questionnaires were administered to respondents of which 100 were returned. The analysis of this study is based on the number returned.
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSION RECOMMENDATION
Conclusion
It was concluded from the findings of this study that FBN is faced with Staff appraisal problems which have affected their service delivery. The study established the problems affecting Staff appraisal in FBN as lack of managerial skills, emphases on connections and informal contacts, inadequate and insincere Staff appraisal, inadequate training and development.
These problems have created difficulties for the bank to perform and deliver as a regulatory financial institution. As a result of these problems in the system, the study also observed that workers are not induced to compete for excellence and greater Staff. The study also revealed that FBN designs Staff appraisal system but with relatively low level of utilization at the lowest grade levels which has affected position classification and identification of defined duties and responsibilities in the system. It was finally concluded that as a result of lack of effective Staff appraisal system in FBN, the system is perceived to comprise of lazy, lousy, ineffective and inefficient people, resulting to low employee Staff and productivity in the organization.
Recommendations
Based on the study’s findings and conclusions, we recommend that more emphases should be placed on training, retraining and development of staff. This is because training is an antidote for better employee Staff and productivity. There should be regular and effective institutionalized training in Staff appraisal and implementation for executive and administrative managers. There should be a correlation between training and training needs when designing training programs.
First Bank of Nigeria should design and implement remuneration, incentives and welfare schemes that are inconsonance with the private sector and in realities with the cost of living index or standard. Also, individual and corporate objectives should be integrated to achieve better employee Staff and high productivity in the organization. This is based on the fact that while other resources are important to the success of any organization, the human elements are the most significant because it is the people who have to coordinate and use other resources to achieve organisational objectives.
That emphases placed on all kinds of subjective and informal contacts in recruitment exercise should be discouraged. Reliable and valid selection instruments should be devised. The aim is to attract and recruit as many qualified applicants as possible.
The need to re-assert meritocracy in reward and reward management, as well as the need to improve accountability in the organization cannot be over emphasized, as higher pay alone will not automatically lead to higher performance and productivity. The enforcement should start from the top level down to lower cadre; there should be a level of accountability from those who manage the organization.
Finally, there should also be a human capital audit, organizational and physical Staff audit and audit reports should be submitted to management periodically. The immediate priority, therefore, is the need to re-examine the validity and reliability of Staff management and appraisal instruments in use in the bank. Above all, the recommendations must be sustained overtime and must be inculcated as a way of life in the study area in particular and the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in general for sustained Staff management and appraisal.
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