Are Your Performance Appraisals Overdue

Do you ever get behind on completing performance appraisals for your employees? Do you feel bad when you log in to your performance management software application and see all those “past due” notifications. You should feel a little guilty for letting these important due dates slip by. Missed appraisal dates can create tension in your department.

• Some employees may be biting their nails in dread, just wanting the process to be over. Ironically, these are often your most conscientious workers who take constructive criticism very personally. They’ll breathe a big sigh of relief when the appraisal period is over and they can count up all their coveted “Outstanding” ratings.

• Other employees may be planning how their expected pay bump will affect their budget. They need to know if they’ve qualified for a merit increase so they can make financial decisions. Worst case scenario, they’re mentally (or literally) spending money that they don’t have – and they’ll blame you if it doesn’t materialize.

• Still another group of employees may be plodding along, assuming their performance is fine when they actually need to kick it up a notch. They’ll feel blindsided when you finally get around to doing the appraisal. If there was such a big problem with their performance, why didn’t you make it a priority to address it sooner?

The #1 reason to do performance appraisals on time is that it shows your employees that their performance matters to you and to the organization as a whole. So, why not get started on that backlog of reviews today?

Reducing Paperwork with Talent Management Software

Does Your Talent Management Software Really Reduce Paperwork?

Talent management software has helped organizations make enormous strides toward greater efficiency in how HR operates. Now, more than ever before, it is possible for HR to partner with managers, C-suite executives and leaders to link trends and decisions in the sphere of human capital to specific business outcomes. However, the average Human Resources department can still be far behind the times in other ways. For example, HR may still be heavily dependent on paper documents even when they use software that is supposed to digitize and automate their systems.

That’s because no matter how far HR progresses into the field of strategic initiative, it is still grounded in risk mitigation. Without strict compliance, it doesn’t matter how many good ideas an organization has or how innovative they are in the marketplace. The rising cost and increasing frequency of workplace litigation is a specter that must be kept at bay. One way HR does this is making sure that every ‘i’ is crossed and every ‘t’ is dotted. This isn’t simply paper pushing for the sake of it. HR must be able to prove that employees were informed of company policies and all employer actions regarding discipline, compensations, etc. that affect workers positively or negatively.

HR applications that require electronic documents to be printed out for employees to sign can’t really help HR meet its goals for paper reduction and more effective records management. On the other hand, any electronic signature collection must be done correctly for e-documents to be legally enforceable. So, if you are shopping for a truly paperless talent management application, be sure to ask how the software complies with the ESIGN Act of 2000.

Performance Management Software Should Aid Decision Making

The true measure of good performance management software is whether it clarifies or clouds your judgment. Here are just a few of the questions that can help you understand whether your current method of performance appraisal is working: Is your organization still struggling to identify, develop, and retain talent? Do managers, employees, HR, and C-suite executives disagree on basic issues like how to measure and reward productivity? Do you have any idea whether your current workforce can meet your company’s long term business objectives? 

Many Appraisal Systems Don’t Deliver

     Performance appraisals are a fundamental aspect of ongoing talent management. Unfortunately, too many organizations rely on outdated tools and practices that are:

• Non-standardized and inconsistently applied
• Opaque rather than transparent
• Unable to provide actionable feedback
• Reality-based but not actually relevant
• Antiquated and not adaptable

If this describes your current appraisal system, it’s time to shop for some new performance management software. 

What Should You Be Looking For?

When you start comparing products, the most important thing to keep in mind is the end product. It’s not the fancy graphs or “bells and whistles” that matter. It’s the business decisions that come out of the process. Seek out a solution that helps each stakeholder make more informed and strategic choices. 

Here are just a few examples of the kind of decisions that can be driven company-wide by talent management software that does the job right:

• HR should be able to consistently identify “rising stars” who will play a role in the organization’s succession strategy.
• Managers should be able to identify actionable ways to increase accountability, motivate employees, and improve individual and team performance.
• Executives should be able to use the data to communicate with HR about upcoming human capital needs far in advance instead of at the last minute.
• Employees should be able to understand any behaviors or gaps in skills and training that are obstacles to their success – and know exactly what they must do to improve.

Talent Management Software “To Go”

The next generation of talent management software has arrived with the mobile revolution. What if you could access cloud-based talent management software anytime, anywhere, from the convenience of your mobile phone? Thanks to the record spread of smartphone and tablet technology, truly mobile talent management has become a reality. With no download required, it’s easier than ever to search and review user profiles, complete 360 surveys and selection assessments at your convenience. More and more users everyday are handling critical job functions on the go. As a result, mobile support has become a must-have for any cutting-edge talent management solution.

BYOD Holds the Key

According to a 2012 survey by the Coalfire IT security firm, almost 85% of today’s employees are on board with the “Bring Your Own Device” trend in the workplace. They regularly blur the line between work use and personal use on their mobile device (even if that means bending the rules and tweeting on the clock). It’s time for talent management solutions to start taking advantage of these trends. 

Imagine being able to deploy talent management software that’s not just web-based but truly accessible from anywhere. Participants can receive an invitation on their smartphone from HR, log in securely at their convenience and complete the assigned task. In short, because users already have (and are familiar with) the necessary hardware, increased user adoption and acceptance of talent management software are likely benefits.

Mobile 360 Surveys

The 360 review is an example of a performance appraisal tool that is ideal for mobile. The collaborative and social aspects of this type of review mesh perfectly with the way most people already use their smartphones and other web-enabled mobile devices. So, offering an opinion about a coworker’s performance will seem like second nature as well.