Purpose of Performance Evaluatons in Any Organization

The typical focus of performance evaluations at the workplace are based on negatives, focusing on what the individual employee needs to improve on not what the individual does correct. This approach is not the best way to either motivate or develop an employee. Focusing on one’s strengths provides many two main benefits. Recognizing one’s achievements encourages that person to build on what he or she does well. By doing this, the individual’s confidence will increase. Because of the increased self-confidence, the employee will be better able to develop his or her skills in areas noted as weaknesses. The concept is simple; success breeds success. This approach to labor management and motivation I have personally experienced in my current role in my company. Further, it is one that has been effective.

The main goal of this approach for any manager would be to not only maximize the individual’s performance but also align that performance to company goals, ideally maximizing the company’s profit potential from that employee. The first step is that the manager must understand what that person’s strengths and weaknesses actually are. The best method to obtain this information is to collect feedback on that individual from a variety of sources. Those sources can include family members, friends, past coworkers, present coworkers, friends, etc. The next step is to take the feedback and create a “portrait” of that person. This is used as a reminder of the contributions made and as a resource to determine future actions steps. Finally, the individual’s position needs to be tailored to meet the person’s strengths and be aligned with company objectives. Only then will the employee maximize his or her contribution to the company and thereby maximizing that individual’s contribution and value to the organization.