Managing the Performance Management Process: The Importance of Employees’ Performance in Determining the Organisation’s Viability and Efficiency

Abstract

Many organisations for a number of years have been placing emphasis on performance management (PM) as they have noticed the profound impact of PM on organisations’ human resource capacity and its overall productivity and sustainability. Traditionally, PM was seen as a human resource function but has now become the lifeblood of organisations and subsequently, is a joint effort of all heads of departments/units as well as employees alike. PM is predominantly about managing people and business processes and if not effectively managed can impact negatively on employees’ overall performance by lowering staff satisfaction level, decreasing staff morale and as a consequence impede productivity. Models such as the Balanced Scorecard, the European Foundation of Quality Management (EFQM) or the Ability Motivation and Opportunity (AMO) are crucial in determining how smoothly the PM process flows. How employees are managed throughout the performance management cycle is of utmost importance in determining the viability of any organisation. This paper is intended to discuss the extent to which the PM process can increase productivity, staff morale and job satisfaction within the organisation. Keywords: Performance Management, Performance Appraisal, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Performance Models, Performance Measurement