7.1.3 Methods for evaluating the effectiveness of staff labor

The concept of staff performance. The most important task of personnel management ^{* of the} company is to evaluate its activities. Evaluation of the performance of each employee’s work is aimed at determining the level of efficiency in the performance of his work. It characterizes their ability to exert a direct influence on the activities of any structural unit of the organization. The result of the employee’s work may influence the achievement of the goal of the unit or organization as a whole. Evaluation of staff performance has the following objectives:

• staff performance improvement;
• the appointment of adequate remuneration for the work of staff;
• making a decision ^* related to the employee's career.

In the practice of domestic enterprises, the problem of adequate and accurate assessment of the labor of an individual employee still remains unresolved. This means that the model of labor relations and human factor management must be seriously reformed in the direction of substantially better (by an order) use of human creative abilities.

A person’s creative abilities are manifested through his competence, which is the central concept of the entire concept of personnel management ^* .

Competence is a rational combination of abilities, personal qualities and motivation of the company's personnel, considered in the time interval (Fig. 6.3).

Fig. 6.3. Content and essence of the concept "competence"

Assessing the competence of staff, we evaluate in the most general form:

• staff abilities (level of education, amount of knowledge, professional skills, work experience in a certain area, etc.);
• personal properties (initiative, interpersonal skills, reliability, etc.);
• motivation (range of professional and personal interests, the desire to make a career, etc.).

The competence of the staff is a very dynamic, developing category. It can be significantly enhanced through continuous training, self-education, the reception of workers from the side, and especially motivation. Therefore, the tasks of personnel management is to optimize the effectiveness of its actions, which depends on the competence and motivation.

Victor Vrum - the author of the procedural theory of motivation (the theory of expectations) - proposed to consider performance as a function of the skillful motivation of competence, i.e.

Efficiency = f (competence? Motivation ^* ).

Hence the conclusion that, in order to increase the efficiency of a company, it is necessary, firstly, to develop the competence of each employee and, secondly, to improve the forms of labor motivation. The development of competence can be carried out both at the expense of vocational education, organized by firms, and at the expense of self-education of the employee. In this connection, the desire of many firms to invest huge funds in vocational training, quality circles, staff rotation, foreign internships, etc. becomes understandable.

Management ^* competence can take place both at the firm level and at the individual level. At the personality level, competence management is carried out in the following sequence:

• the employee evaluates his competence in comparison with the requirements of his position;
• activates their knowledge and skills in case of non-compliance with the requirements of their position;
• decides on the need for additional training if these skills do not lead the employee to the level of compliance with the requirements of the position.

The competence management at the firm level is carried out by special workers and provides for:

• assessment of the needs of the company in the staff in accordance with the goals and objectives of the company;
• assessment of the level of competence of employees;
• comparison of cash and required resources at the level of competence;
• making decisions on ensuring compliance with cash and required resources (by training employees or attracting workers from the labor market).

In assessing the performance of labor, it is of practical importance to correctly determine quantitative and qualitative indicators that reflect the ultimate goals of the division or company as a whole. The indicators by which employees are evaluated are called evaluation criteria.

The concept of evaluating the labor force of a firm’s staff is based on the fact that indicators evaluating the level of competence of an employee are taken as evaluation criteria.

Studies conducted on a number of US firms have shown that the frequency of using different criteria was: quality of work - 93%; amount of work - 90%; knowledge of work - 85%. The personal qualities used as criteria were: initiative - 87%; communication skills - 87%; reliability - 86%.

The choice of criteria for evaluating the performance of an employee depends on its belonging to one or another category of workers: managers, specialists and other employees.

The result of a manager’s work is usually expressed in terms of the results of a firm’s operation: profit growth, market share, increase in the number of clients, etc., as well as through social and economic working conditions of employees (for example, pay growth, benefits increase, etc P.).

The results of the work of specialists are determined on the basis of the volume, quality, timeliness, completeness of performance of the duties assigned to them.

Certain requirements are imposed on the criteria for evaluating the performance of employees. They have to:

• to have a direct and decisive influence on the results of the work of the company's division;
• to achieve the goals of the company;
• Influence at least 80% of the work results of workers.

Criteria for assessing the performance of labor should not be more than 5-6.

The choice of criteria is determined by the appointment of evaluation criteria, i.e. for what specific tasks the evaluation results are used. For example, if the main objectives are to improve performance and determine the wages ^{* of} workers, then the assessment should be made according to the performance criteria. If the goal is to move up the corporate ladder, criteria are needed that would determine potential performance in a new place, etc.

The periodicity of the assessment depends on many factors: the specifics of the employee’s work, the expiration date of the contract, the period of the working cycle, a significant change in labor productivity, the end of work for each individual task, etc.

Evaluation of employee performance is aimed at the implementation of three goals: administrative, informational and motivational (Fig. 6.4).

Figure 6.4. The main objectives of employee performance assessment

Administrative purposes. Evaluation of employee performance is carried out to make administrative decisions:

• increase, decrease in work;
• transfer to another job;
• encouragement, punishment;
• directions for training, retraining;
• termination of the employment contract.

Informational goals. Evaluation of the effectiveness of the employee’s work allows you to inform about the relative level of his work. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of the work and correct their behavior.

Motivational goals. The result of the assessment itself is the most important motive of behavior, and the identification of strong workers allows the administration to objectively reward them.

Studies show that regular and systematic staff evaluation has a positive effect on employee motivation, their professional development and growth.

Thus, the assessment of the performance of each employee is a mandatory element of control of any company. This is one of the functions of personnel management, aimed at determining the level of performance of work. Assessment of the level of labor efficiency characterizes the ability of an employee to directly influence the activities of a particular department or company as a whole.

In general, the assessment of employee performance should include the following activities:

• clear wording of requirements, standards for a particular position;
• formation of a system of criteria for assessing the level of competence of the employee, focused on the fulfillment of job requirements;
• comprehensive (quantitative and qualitative) assessment of the employee;
• assessment of the employee’s ability to meet the requirements of a particular position (determination of the measure of proximity between job requirements and the level of competence of the contractor)
• the creation of a mechanism linking the results of the evaluation of the employee’s work with the system of remuneration for work, that is, with the determination of wages, the size of bonuses, benefits, etc .;
• the creation of a mechanism linking the results of the evaluation of the employee’s work with the system of career advancement (career) and employee development within the company;
• the creation of a mechanism linking the results of the evaluation of the employee’s work with the system of staff development and retraining.

Methods of personnel assessment . In the majority of firms, heads of all ranks are participating in the assessment, as well as employees of the personnel department. Managers and employees of personnel departments should master modern methods of employee assessment.

In the practice of foreign firms, such assessment methods as the graphical rating scale are the most common; alternative ranking method; pairwise comparison method; forced distribution method; critical case method; rating scales related to employee quality; management method for the objectives.

Consider the content, advantages and disadvantages of some methods for assessing the results of work activities, which have proven themselves in practice in various companies in Germany, the United States, and Japan ¹ .

Graphic assessment scale is the easiest and most popular method of certification of employees. A typical graphical rating scale is shown in Fig. 6.5, where quantitative and qualitative characteristics (criteria) are presented. Each criterion corresponds to the level of performance of duties (from unsatisfactory to excellent). Employee rating for a specific criterion is expressed in certain numerical values ​​specified in the rating scale, which are then summed up and determine the level of professional work.

Figure 6.5. Graphic rating scale with space for comments

Considering the fact that it is impossible to evaluate a large number of common characteristics and factors, many firms identify only the most important ones. In fig. 6.6 the form of an assessment of a post of the secretary of the president of firm is given. This form presents the five main responsibilities of a secretary, indicating the duration of each percentage. The right part of the form provides a place for comments and an overall assessment of the performance of duties (timeliness of the report on the work done, adherence to the mode of operation).

Figure 6.6. Example of certification form []

The alternative ranking method provides for ranking employees from best to worst according to selected criteria. The best and worst employees are easier to identify in any team. Therefore, first in the form shown in fig. 6.7, it is necessary to record the best and worst employee by the selected criteria. Then repeat the procedure until all employees are ranked in this way.

Figure 6.7. Alternative ranking scale []

The pair-wise comparison method is most effective for certification. According to selected parameters of competency assessment, the employee is compared with another one working in a pair. In fig. 6.6. An example of a pair-wise comparison by five employees of a unit is presented When comparing the "+" is placed the best employee of the compared pair. In Fig.6.8, it is clear that Maria has the highest rating for the quality of work, while Arthur has the highest rating for creativity.

Fig.6.8. Ranking by pairwise comparison []

The method of forced (specified) distribution allows you to distribute all employees in the ranked categories. For example, according to a specific indicator characterizing competence, it is possible to distribute employees as follows:

15% is great;
20% - above average;
30% - average;
25% - below average;
10% is bad.

In practice, this means, for example, the list of employees who fall into the category of assessment of the level of competence for a particular indicator as excellent, above average, etc.

The method of critical cases provides for a permanent fixation of successful and undesirable cases of the performance of duties by each subordinate. This work is performed by a manager who periodically, for example every six months, analyzes and discusses the results of the assessment.

The method of critical cases gives the head of the head irrefutable facts about the quality of performance of duties and therefore allows an objective assessment of the employee’s work. This method allows you to develop for each employee a set of criteria (standards). Positive and negative deviations from the standard are critical cases of deviations from the norm (see table. 6.9).

T and l and c and 6. 2.

Examples of critical cases manager ^* sales

A critical case shows that the manager has allowed the average sales price to fall by 5%. This fact is subject to talk about increasing attention to the level of the selling price in the future. The critical case method can be used in addition to ranking methods as a basis for evaluating an employee.

Rating scales related to employee qualities. This is a method of scaling personal qualities. Special success in the development of this method has been achieved by the American social psychologist F. Fiedler.

The most important component of the assessment is the list of tasks that the manager performs. Then, when studying the activity, the time of the decision, methods, and degree of effort are taken into account.

When clarifying the management style, many techniques are used, for example, according to R. Bennet. Consider the scaled version of a similar assessment (table. 6.3)

T a b l and c a 6. 3

Management Style Rating Scale

Evaluations are conducted on a 7-point scale:

7 - very high degree;
6 - high degree;
5 - above average;
4 - average;
3 - below average;
2 - low degree;
1 - very low degree.

Many experts believe that the manager should at least have the following qualities (according to R. Bennet):

From this set you can always choose the qualities that are most characteristic of a particular manager position.

In assessment centers, the following qualities of a manager are often used (Table 6.4).

T a b l and c a 6. 4

The scale of assessment of business qualities manager

Метод управления по целям заключается в том, что работнику устанавливаются конкретные, специфические, измеряемые цели. Затем периодически происходит обсуждение прогресса на пути достижения этих целей. При этом оценка работников осуществляется в следующей последовательности: установление целей организации, определение и обсуждение целей отдела, формулирование индивидуальных целей, измерение и оценка результатов труда, доведение оценки результатов труда до исполнителя.

In tab. 6.5 приводится сравнительная оценка, рассмотренных выше методов аттестации.

Т а б л и ц а 6. 5

Достоинства и недостатки методов оценки результатов деятельности работников

Неудовлетворенность многих фирм традиционными методами аттестации побуждает их искать новые методы оценки персонала. Новые нетрадиционные методы аттестации рассматривают рабочую группу в качестве основной единицы фирмы, делают акцент на оценку и способность работать в группе. Оценка каждого сотрудника и рабочей группы производится с учетом результатов работы фирмы в целом. Во внимание принимаются не только успешная работа сегодня, но и способность профессиональному развитию и освоению новых профессий и навыков.

Рассмотренные выше методы оценки результативности труда реализуются в следующей последовательности:

• устанавливается стандарт результативности труда для каждого работника и критерии его оценки;
• определяется процедура проведения оценок, т. е. сроки проведения и ответственный за оценку;
• обсуждается оценка с работником;
• оценка работника документируется и принимается решение.

Выбор метода оценки персонала для каждой конкретной фирмы является уникальной задачей, решить которую может только руководитель самой организации. В стабильных фирмах с устойчивой организационной структурой, как правило, могут эффективно использоваться традиционные методы оценок; для динамично развивающихся фирм, действующих в условиях изменяющейся внешней среды, лучше подходят нетрадиционные методы.

When assessing the quality of managers and specialists in foreign firms use the test method. Tests are divided into 4 groups: tests of mental abilities; tests of skills and aptitudes; professional tests; personality tests. In the practice of management in many countries used tests that quantify the results. The test method is beginning to get more and more widespread in Russia.