It is MOST PROPHETIC that the blog on Performance Appraisals is getting published on April 1st….All Fools Day!! Appraisals are about making a fool or getting fooled!!
Am sure most of my readers have got appraised & received feedback in their careers. It is that time of the year!!! but tell me sincerely & truthfully How many of you were HAPPY with your appraisal? How many felt it was fair & correct? That you indeed got their legitimate due? That your Boss did “justice” to their efforts and contributions? My 34 years in HR & 9 Years in consulting have taught me time & again that no one is ever happy!!! Happy with Appraisal is a NULL SET!!
Even on the happenchance that you feel good with your feedback & rating, the joy lasts till you exit the Boss’ cabin : as soon you come to know that Falana got the same Rating (“How could he?”); Dhikana got a better salary increase (How could she? we all know her work in the whole year!!) & that Third Person got a promotion!!! ( My God! is management blind? Or are they appraising over drinks in a most casual manner? I should never trust the system”). Sounds familiar? Welcome to the Annual Appraisal Cycle.
Sometimes I feel this is one sure shot time when the entire employee strength is unhappy, across the length & breadth of the company!! Remember the Anna Karenina principle: all unhappy families are unhappy in their own way. Similarly each employee is upset for his/her own reason. Some HR heads have confessed to me that it takes nearly 2 months for employees to overcome their “appraisal depression” & get back to normalcy & team-working.
One part is to wrap your head around what the appraisal lottery got for you. After a while you do reconcile, as you know that nothing will change, now you have to wait another year. The more hurting part is to see others’ promotion, others’ increment. तेरी साड़ी मेरी साड़ी से सफेद कैसे ? as Lalitaji made famous in the iconic Surf ad years ago. It is not what you got or did not get, but what your colleague got that adds fuel to the fire raging inside.
The bleeding heart, the raging fire requires assuaging & you most naturally turn to your boss. And here you hear the most classic reply ringing from times immemorial in all such interactions,” Your appraisal is not in my hands” “I tried a lot for you, but the seniors did not agree”. “You know the Moderation Committee, some unknown people take decisions without knowing the details”. “I did my level best. But the process is set by people bigger than me. Can’t help”. “I argued a lot, took up multiple times & yet…Your final rating is not in my hands”. And if you insist on meeting the Boss’ Boss to press your case, his reply is also the same from years, ” We had recommended, but you know HR”.
Interestingly, the Bell Curve guideline, the appraisal system, the process of review, the appeals process, the Promotion Policy is all discussed in Senior Managers’ meetings. It has the tacit acceptance & consequent approval of all. It has always been so!! But as soon as an individual challenge comes, the solution is standard….Blame HR!! They do not appreciate what we go through. How we have to get work done. They sit in their offices & pontificate. Let them manage my department for once. All such discussions invariably succeed each Appraisal Cycle. Par-for-the-course?
Lalitaji had made a plea for समजदारी in her ad. But in the corporate world this समजदारी is a rare bird. Personal pressures, individual agenda, & relative equity rules the roost. I am never happy with the one piece of mithai in my thali. I am always more bothered by the two pieces in my neighbor’s thali or the fact that his mithai looks better than my plain white one. My happiness is determined by what you have got & not by what I have. This could be the general human condition, but it is never more exacerbated than at appraisal times!!
Maybe all this is normal & after so many years it is what an employee should expect & accept. But what I cannot get is my boss saying It is not in my hands. Then whose hands is it, pray? Through the year have worked for you. You gave me projects. You got me to work extra hours. You got the desired output from me. And you thanked & complimented me from time to time for my work & maintaining time-lines. But when it comes to the finish line, suddenly It is not in your hands!!?? I struggled, I worked & delivered for you. What if your style was my approach when you were giving me timelines & deliverables? At that time we were best friends & close colleagues, in the boat together. So now why try to push me off the boat? Why distance yourself from me? Why do I suddenly become an orphan?
Having worked in HR for 34 years I am quite used to being used as a whipping boy. After all we are the last mile! The blame accumulator!! But it’s high time the line leaders stood up & accepted that HR was never in the equation for 11 months of the year. So how come they become so important in the 12th month? Do they have the power & clout to change things which the line leaders are passionately pushing? Or are they just convenient pegs in the blame game of corporate appraisals cycle?
Having said this let me put down my conclusions:
- Bell Curve began purely as a budgeting exercise. While there are issues with the Bell Curve, no one has yet found a viable alternative.
- There is no simple solution to this issue. I have yet to come across a company in my 43 years HR experience, where employees are happy with appraisals & the compensation system
- Managers must learn to take responsibility both for their actions, as well as the corporate guidelines. They are senior leaders & telling their teams that I have no control does not behoove their status. Managers cannot shun accountability.
- Moderation Committees exist for a purpose. If no ratings from immediate supervisors are changed, then Moderation Committees are not fulfilling their purpose. Managers must understand & communicate that ratings & increments which go to Moderation Committees will change. That is the nature of the beast
- Employees must remember it is employment at will. If you are not happy, walk. Being a bleeding heart and cribbing, helps none.
Let me end with an advice I got from Khandekar who was Personnel Director in Siemens. He told us. ” Keep an updated CV in your top right hand drawer. Once in a while float it in market. You get a higher salary, higher title, just GO. You will be happy & the company will survive… If you don’t get another job, be happy with what you have. Put your head down & work”
Remember it is not the load that breaks you down, it is the way you carry it: vikas
PS: many thanks to my nephew Abhishek who challenged me with the “It’s not in my hands” line & motivated me to pen this blog
Vikasblog 
straight from the horse’s mouth, eh!
thanks for this candid blog… it’s a good guiding light to all the players – the appraisers, the appraisees as well as the referees and management – to know their role, not shun it, and get over this annual ritual with minimum heartburn as possible!
LikeLike
Sir, truth put out there candidly! 🙏
The appraisal system as practiced is marred by several elements
A ccouple of suggestions for improving this (I could be wrong though)
LikeLike
🙏🙏It was excellent read, विकास ! Lot things I could read. I have stored it separately. Thanks for sharing, dear.
LikeLike
Dada my pleasure thank for your encouragement
LikeLike
This new article tricked me for a moment making me think this would be a great piece of philosophy, from a broader view, on the reality of life. We humans love to judge others. It is at times even more important than the nourishment we acquire from the junk food we consume. This judgemental being is taught to begin with, by our elders (parents – teachers), then peers (siblings – friends) and later by the society at large (spouse, office colleagues, even our children) to be appraised, as a part of seeking validation for everything we do.
Early in my life I learnt it is better to overcome the fear of hearing the bad and ugly side of your knowledge – skill – competence – behaviour – attitude, directly, as part of the feedback than unknowingly be caught with it just when you thought you’ll complete your century in your path to success. That feedback is the appraisal that comes whenever – wherever you create an open, honest environment to receive the feedback giver’s perception – again, without being judgemental. If in doubt, seek validation from alternative sources which more often than not may give a counter perception. If validated, accept it as a plausibility to be mindful of. Being reactive than responding in most cases, our behaviour is controlled by our environment that we react to. So, take time and effort to respond, even to yourself, as you must, for self-actualisation.
As you learn to compete with the better version of yourself, you’ll find your neighbours and peers are left in the stable much after you’ve bolted from your feedback sessions, annual (for God’s sake don’t wait for that) or otherwise. To say, almost always, 99/100 times HAPPY to accept what I believe to be true, improvement for my betterment and offer to negotiate and influence a change in perception equiped with genuine data when critical to my path of success. If there’s one thing my 36 years (…32 plus as HR head/President//Group President/CHRO/ Life & Leadership Coach) has taught me, it is to genuinely smile and receive feedback only when you are ready with singular openness to receive with gratitude and give only after preparing the receiver that you have no ulterior motive other than his or her development as a better version of their current self.
It’s amazing how quickly folks working in organizations I get involved with learn that saying “not in my hands” is meant the same as “not my job” leaving them playing solitaire in the outdoors beyond the official ground. Managing performance … the raison d’etra for appraisal on the job and away, is about measuring, monitoring and managing outcomes. HR’s sole purpose to teach, coax, cajole, help but make the MANAGER – manage his HR – human resource besides his functional resources.
I’ve been extremely fortunate to have worked in some world-class organizations where there were no bells to curve and each member was strictly assessed by a committee on the performance delivered. A committee that the manager was required to own up and present to and HR was required to moderate the manager’s story telling from data while the internal customer evaluated on what was actually delivered. Yes, managers cannot shun accountability. Then again, when it is done honestly and with sincerity there is hardly any scope for moderation and the rating is almost obvious to all members of the committee. And yes, it is always complex effort required to keep it simple.
LikeLike
Bomi
you paint a very idealistic pic
But everyone has different experience so I will only say you have been lucky
I worked for Siemens, Johnson & Johnson, General Motors ( as world class as they come) and in 34 years did not come across a manager or an employee pair who were happy with the outcome and did not blame HR
That is why I congratulate you on your skill, capability and luck ( if that played any role) in creating a “ramrajya” in the organizations you served
having said that I must thank you very very profusely for taking the time and effort to pen your comments at length
Feedback is a gift and must be received with gratitude
but when the increment Rs and the stock options are tied to it, the personal agenda queers the pitch
I remember a senior high performer from IIMB in J&J who was transferred out of his experience zone, to groom him for a higher role ( giving him more cross functional experiences, compared to his unidirectional growth in the company till then
when the new manager gave him a rating of 5 or 6( i forget what) on a 9 point scale he was up in arms “Throughout my career I have never got a rating lower than 7 and I will not accept a lower rating ”
No amount of persuasion by the line leader and me about a learning curve in the new role justified a 5, which per se is not a bad rating
we asked him to continue to do well and we are sure he will master the new function and role well enough to go back to a 7+ would satisfy him
One good thing with Siemens & J&J GM Stock options and the potential upside was people cribbed but it was a golden cage and we had attrition of less than 1% in managerial cadres
Prima Donnas are everywhere and you have managed to keep them happy
Topic for our next Beer Sitting
meanwhile once again thanks for your comments and detailed feedback
LikeLike
More blessed than lucky, Vikas … HR bashing happens when HR does not have confidence in their own craft and allows cross functional incompetence deflected in conflict.
Will look forward to our beer n scotch to discuss how biases of rating 5 – 6 – 7 deflect from the objective of discussing the learning and development in the new functional role instead of rating and it’s linkage to compensation even in the so called “world class”. And, remember their forward thinking practices decide their class.
Meantime, you’d probably have read this shift that started way back in 2010 … https://hbr.org/2016/10/the-performance-management-revolution#:~:text=Kelly%20Services%20was%20the%20first,made%20similar%20announcements%20shortly%20thereafter.
LikeLike
Hello Vikas ,
You write so well. The article is full of illustrations, cartoons and quotations. Timing of the blog is also very apt 😁
How we choose to be unhappy by leading a life of comparison… well said. As opposed to that when one leads life with a purpose, yearly appraisal is only a data point.
When teams and organisations are able to have separate dialogue around performance look backs and career opportunities, the pain in the system is minimised. Like you said, communication about budget realities and distribution criteria could be useful too.
Hearty Congratulations once again and look forward to your next Blog!
Warm Regards,
Mangesh Kirtane .
LikeLike
Mangesh
many many thanks for your kind words and feedback
I know of some companies who have consciously bifurcated the increment discussions from the career/developmental discussions That is indeed a good practice and less prone to emotional highjacks
Finally our Hindu philosophy says it correctly: the external situation is not what is causing misery and pain It is your expectations and desires.
and since I am expecting about me and my career, invariably there is tendency to think I am God’s Gift to mankind; Zhalet bahu hotil bahu parantu mazhya sam meech and lead your self down a garden path
But I suppose till human behaviour remain self serving this will not change
LikeLike
Hmm, this topic definitely invites comment! I have experienced this both as an employee as well as a line manager. And I will state here that HR was never really involved in the reviews so I do not think anyone really felt HR was responsible enough to be blamed.
So, as a manager, I agree that “It is not just my decision” statement. While majority of the inputs were mine, for the top and low performance ratings other line managers’ and my upline manager’s input were also involved. Infact many times during the tussle to ‘fit the HR guidelines’, there was always collateral damage.
As an employee, I always felt that I could have got a better rating, and did not get only because 1) I did not give my managers a tough time, and 2) I did not cozy up to them. But the resulting compensation never affected me too much as money was never a criteria for me. I agree that it takes some time to recover from a disappointing evaluation, but feedback should always be welcome. It truly helps one mature as an individual.
I do agree with you in that when you feel your manager is not good, change your manager. When you feel your org is not good, change the org and when you feel the system is flawed, quit the corporate and be your own evaluator! The choice is ALWAYS with you. At the end of the day, what matters is how much YOU value yourself, not how much others value you. Time is a great leveller and I’ve seen it in action many times. When you stop chasing something, that’s when it lands in your lap 🙂
I loved how you ended the post with the quote from “Dear Zindagi”!
LikeLike
Neelu thanks for your comments. I never worked in IT or ITES sector so it is news to me that HR was not involved. In fact many organizations now a days insist on HR sitting even in the evaluation/feedback meeting ostensibly to maintain impartiality and balance
Earlier HR was a fav whipping boy when it came to appraisals. Now even in brick & mortar companies I see senior managers taking more responsibility but for the junior and middle levels HR is an easy excuse
My main issues used to be what I have written: policies are not of HR, every year they are ratified by the Top Management team. And secondly when there is a moderation/review committee it is foolish to expect no changes. So discussions must happen with the employee only after everything is frozen.
Feedback is indeed a powerful gift, provided we have trained the managers to give and receive feedback. If that condition is met, it is a great tool
Frankly many friends of my vintage called to tell me we are so happy we are out of the system : neither giving not receiving feedback and appraisals
which i find is akin to throwing the baby with the bathwater
but it used to be a emotionally draining time for sure in all the companies I worked for
enough for now
LikeLike
Two things caught my eye, that human nature is so frail when it comes to hearing how good we are and secondly, we are more interested in how our colleagues were appraised. That is the irony of the whole exercise. Unfortunately, HR gets tangled in this message and has to keep justifying for others actions. Beautifully brought out as usual Sir, the paradox of Appraisals, you are wrong even if you are right.
LikeLike
Col thanks for your feedback
yes the internal comparision used to amuse m a lot
always wondered how the so called confidential comp discussions were public knowledge in a day
happy to be out of all that now
LikeLike
well presented Vikas as always.
my compliments to Abhishek for nudging you to pen the thoughts of all of us in the hR fraternity
There is no NOBELL prize for the HR community to ensure happiness for all except the satisfaction that we tried to ensure fairness at the Moderation Committee
LikeLike
Thanks Marcel for your words of encouragement
Unfortunately though Moderation Comm is a step in right direction, the way it is handled and communicated gives it a bad name
Members of the Moderation Committee also do not rise about factional and departmental pulls and so the real obj rarely gets met
to complicate it further the Mode Comm members themselves do not maintain confidentiality and decorum, driving the process faster on the downward slide
at the risk of sounding fatalistic, I must say, 43 years have proven to me that Appraisals are a zero sum game
Let us hope our next Gen HR see better times
LikeLike