This informal CPD article How to appraise training and performance was provided by Ayming UK, who aim to improve Business Operational and Financial Performance.
How to appraise training and performance
There is no question that training and development are crucial to the success and growth of a business. But how do you know how effective training actually is, or if development is leading to improved performance?
Monitoring our people development efforts is essential. There are tried and tested methods from training evaluation forms to performance appraisals of both learners and trainers. Outcomes such as sales, output, service quality and financial measurements may also serve as indicators.
The mix depends on the nature of the business and activities undertaken by employees, but usually includes both hard and soft indicators: measurable factors like productivity and more subjective signals such as attitudes and job satisfaction.
In the ideal scenario, training and development is part of a continuous and virtuous cycle of improving performance, high satisfaction and career progression. However, barriers to learning can make this impossible. Financial resources may not allow employees to be sent on training courses, line managers are reluctant to release team members from their duties, employees doubt the value of the training on offer, or worse, senior management don’t see the need to invest in people’s development.
At least some of these barriers can be overcome, whether through government training grants, skills audits, positive communication about training opportunities, matching learning needs and organisational objectives, or lifelong learning agreements.
Monitoring employee training and development
Career development
Each individual is responsible for the path their career takes, but as managers we can help our direct reportees chart the way and make progress. The most powerful contribution is feedback, which is – in any case – an integral part of the manager’s job.
Constructive feedback can help a person plot a career strategy and development goals. And it nurtures ambition and commitment. This is not only central to motivation and job satisfaction, it helps an organisation attract and retain staff, and supports succession planning.
The immediacy of informal and regular feedback is also conducive to behavioural change. It should also dovetail with the organisation’s performance assessment appraisal system. Performance review is a crucial element of the entire training and development process, which also facilitates the individual’s career planning.
Traditional notions that performance appraisals may be little more than a bureaucratic box-ticking exercise need to be challenged. An effective performance appraisal process is more dynamic and interactive.
For the manager, reviews offer the opportunity to identify training needs and aspirations, motivate employees, and sustain high levels of performance – or address the underlying causes of poor performance.
If the employee sees their appraisal as an extension of the ongoing, informal dialogue with their line manager, they have no fear of surprises, and will engage and contribute more. Self-appraisal is an essential part of the process in most organisations. This should involve setting draft objectives for the year ahead, which the line manager will consider in advance of the formal performance review meeting.
This may be annual, but one or more interim reviews are advisable, not least because they help nurture a culture of continuous performance improvement and personal development. At their meetings, employee and manager discuss performance, goals, training and development, and any other relevant issues. Outcomes are recorded and agreed actions included in work plans.
The entire process of performance appraisal and reviews must be conducted in a way that is open, fair and unbiased, and seen to be. This requires both confidentiality and consistency, which can be achieved by strictly observing clear policies and procedures. Objectivity can be harder to assure. Managers need clear and measurable performance objectives, and should avoid overfamiliarity with their team members.
When we follow these simple principles, the entire cycle of training, evaluation, and performance appraisal should be a positive experience both for the employee and the organisation.
We hope this article was helpful. For more information from Ayming UK, please visit their CPD Member Directory page. Alternatively, you can go to the CPD Industry Hubs for more articles, courses and events relevant to your Continuing Professional Development requirements.
