Managing Performance - Competency
Definition: Manages the performance of subordinates. Plans and sets goals and performance expectations for work outcomes; determines measures of performance and communicates those expectations to the employee. Measures and monitors performance and conducts regular performance reviews using standardized performance measures. Recognizes and rewards performance that exceeds expectations and implements remedial actions if necessary.
360-Feedback Survey Managing Performance:
Survey 1 (4-point scale; Competency Comments)
Survey 2 (4-point scale; Competency Comments)
Survey 3 (5-point scale; Competency Comments)
Survey 4 (5-point scale; radio buttons)
Survey 5 (4-point scale; words)
Survey 6 (4-point scale; words)
Survey 7 (5-point scale; competency comments; N/A)
Survey 8 (3-point scale; Agree/Disagree words; N/A)
Survey 9 (3-point scale; Strength/Development; N/A)
Survey 10 (Comment boxes only)
Survey 11 (Single rating per competency)
Survey 12 (Slide-bar scale)
Survey 13 (4-point scale; numbers; floating anchors)
Survey 14 (4-point scale; N/A)
What is Managing Performance?
Managing performance is the structured process of setting clear goals and expectations, defining measurable success criteria, and ensuring accountability to drive organizational success. It involves aligning individual and team objectives with broader company goals, articulating performance requirements, and regularly communicating roles and responsibilities to employees. Through continuous monitoring, measurement, and performance reviews, managers assess progress, provide constructive feedback, and make necessary adjustments to keep teams on track.
Effective performance management also includes training and development initiatives that support employees in enhancing their skills while identifying opportunities for increased responsibilities and career growth. Leaders address poor performance proactively by implementing remediation plans that focus on improvement while reinforcing positive behaviors through rewards and recognition. By maintaining fairness in evaluations, offering incentives, and systematically administering reward programs, organizations cultivate a motivated workforce that consistently meets and exceeds expectations.
A strong performance management system fosters a culture of accountability, continuous learning, and operational efficiency. By leveraging structured assessments and proactive feedback, organizations ensure employees understand their contributions and are equipped to meet evolving business challenges. With well-defined metrics, leadership can optimize talent development, enhance productivity, and create a dynamic environment where employees thrive, driving long-term success for the company. Core Components of Managing Performance
- Goals and Objectives: defining specific, measurable targets that guide individual and team success over time. This dimension highlights long-term and short-term goal-setting, tracking progress, adjusting objectives to meet department needs, and ensuring alignment with organizational priorities.
- Performance Expectations: clarifying the standards, behaviors, and requirements necessary for employees to meet organizational goals successfully. This dimension centers on establishing work expectations, ensuring employees understand how tasks should be completed, setting performance benchmarks, and obtaining commitment to meeting job responsibilities.
- Determines Measures: establishing clear performance indicators, criteria, and benchmarks to define success. This dimension highlights setting OKRs, KPIs, operational standards, and measurable goals that align with company objectives.
- Communicating Expectations: clearly defining roles, responsibilities, and performance requirements to ensure employees understand what is expected of them. This dimension highlights setting OKRs, updating job descriptions, articulating expectations for key tasks and metrics, and making sure commitments are understood.
- Accountability: ensuring employees take ownership of their tasks, meet objectives, and uphold performance commitments. This dimension centers on assigning responsibility, holding individuals and teams accountable for meeting performance expectations, and reinforcing the importance of completing work successfully.
- Measures Performance: assessing employee output against predefined benchmarks, quotas, and performance objectives. This dimension highlights using standardized metrics, reviewing reports, recording production figures, and evaluating job performance against measurable criteria.
- Monitoring: continuous oversight and regular assessments to ensure employees remain on track toward their performance objectives. This dimension centers on routine audits, ongoing feedback, performance tracking through meetings, and establishing indicators to measure progress in real-time.
- Performance Reviews: the formal evaluation of employees through structured assessments and feedback processes. This dimension centers on conducting regular appraisals, reviewing how employees meet their goals, ensuring consistency in evaluations, and providing feedback on individual progress.
- Training and Development: providing employees with the necessary skills, knowledge, and resources to enhance their performance and reach their full potential. This dimension highlights structured job training, remediation programs, skill improvement initiatives, and opportunities for professional development.
- Increasing Responsibilities: rewarding high-performing individuals by expanding their roles and assigning them new challenges to facilitate career advancement. This dimension centers on giving additional assignments, promoting internal growth opportunities, and recognizing exceptional contributions with greater responsibility.
- Poor Performance: identifying and addressing performance issues in a timely and consistent manner, ensuring corrective actions are applied when necessary. This dimension highlights disciplinary measures, clear feedback, probationary actions, and swift responses to underperformance.
- Remediation Plans: developing structured improvement programs with clear objectives and measurable progress to help employees improve their performance. This dimension centers on follow-up evaluations, tailored improvement strategies, and formalized plans for enhancing workplace effectiveness.
- Rewards and Recognition: acknowledging contributions that positively impact the organization, ensuring employees receive appropriate recognition and rewards for their accomplishments. This dimension highlights structured reward programs, distinguished service awards, and appreciation for exceeding goals.
- Rewards Good Performance: recognizing exceptional individuals based on unique contributions, perseverance, leadership, or innovation. This dimension centers on rewarding employees for overcoming challenges, demonstrating creativity, or showing long-term dedication to their roles.
Why is Managing Performance Important?
Managing performance is essential for a manager because it ensures employees understand expectations, receive consistent guidance, and stay accountable for their roles. By setting clear goals, monitoring progress, and providing timely feedback, managers create an environment where employees can improve, develop new skills, and contribute effectively to organizational success. Strong performance management fosters productivity, motivation, and fairness, helping teams operate efficiently while reinforcing a culture of continuous learning and growth. What are key aspects of Managing Performance?
- Goals and Objectives
- Performance Expectations
- Determines Measures
- Communicating Expectations
- Accountability
- Measures Performance
- Monitoring
- Performance Reviews
- Training and Development
- Increasing Responsibilities
- Expectations
- Poor Performance
- Remediation Plans
- Rewards and Recognition
- Rewards Good Performance
How can I improve my ability to Manage Performance?
- Set Clear Expectations: Clearly define job responsibilities, goals, and performance standards to ensure employees understand what success looks like.
- Communicate Regularly: Hold frequent check-ins and performance discussions to provide guidance, address concerns, and keep employees aligned with objectives.
- Monitor Progress Continuously: Track performance using measurable indicators, identify strengths and improvement areas, and adjust plans as needed.
- Provide Constructive Feedback: Offer timely and specific feedback that is both encouraging and corrective to foster employee growth and development.
- Encourage Professional Development: Support employees in gaining new skills, taking on additional responsibilities, and advancing their careers.
- Recognize and Reward Achievements: Acknowledge employee contributions through incentives, praise, and formal recognition to boost motivation and engagement.
- Address Poor Performance Proactively: Tackle issues early by implementing remediation plans and coaching employees toward improvement.
- Lead by Example: Demonstrate professionalism, accountability, and a commitment to high standards to inspire employees to follow suit.
What questions could you consider for including on a 360-degree feedback assessment regarding Managing Performance?
The questionnaire items below will measure "Managing Performance". These questions are grouped into different facets of performance management. When creating a 360-degree or other performance assessment, try to select one or two items from each group. 360-Feedback questions that measure Performance Management
Goals and ObjectivesGoals and Objectives focuses on defining specific, measurable targets that guide individual and team success over time. This dimension highlights long-term and short-term goal-setting, tracking progress, adjusting objectives to meet department needs, and ensuring alignment with organizational priorities. It prioritizes strategic planning and achievement, ensuring employees have a clear roadmap to accomplish meaningful outcomes.
- Sets long and short term goals.
- Aligns individual and team goals with the organization's goals and objectives.
- Measures performance of goals and objectives.
- Sets specific and measurable goals for others and follows through to completion.
- Provides employees with necessary resources to accomplish their goals.
- Ensures that team goals are met 85 percent of the time.
- Sets clear and ambitious goals to be met.
- Makes sure the team's goals are met.
- Ensures team members understand the department goals.
- Measures job performance of subordinates against defined goals and objectives.
- Adjusts performance goals as needed to meet the demands of the department/organization.
- Sets challenging goals and objectives.
Performance ExpectationsPerformance Expectations emphasizes clarifying the standards, behaviors, and requirements necessary for employees to meet organizational goals successfully. This dimension centers on establishing work expectations, ensuring employees understand how tasks should be completed, setting performance benchmarks, and obtaining commitment to meeting job responsibilities. It prioritizes clarity and accountability, ensuring employees know what is required of them to perform effectively.
- Ensures employees understand their performance expectations.
- Sets performance expectations that are clear, specific and concise.
- Obtains commitment from employees regarding completion of tasks.
- Sets and maintains high standards for self and others.
- Sets the Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) required for the position.
- Plans and sets work expectations.
- Aligns individual and team performance expectations with the organization's expectations.
- Creates clear standards that are understandable and fair.
- Revises the Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) required for the position on a quarterly basis.
- Ensures employees understand performance standards/requirements.
- Ensures employees understand how work is to be completed.
- Establishes standards for expected performance.
Determines MeasuresDetermines Measures focuses on establishing clear performance indicators, criteria, and benchmarks to define success. This dimension highlights setting OKRs, KPIs, operational standards, and measurable goals that align with company objectives. It prioritizes framework development and standardization, ensuring there is a structured approach to evaluating employee contributions.
- Establishes standards for expected performance.
- Links qualitative objectives to quantitative key results.
- Determines the operational standards needed for performance of the job.
- Ensures that OKRs are aligned with company objectives.
- Monitors performance on a regular basis.
- Uses existing performance frameworks to define measures of performance.
- Identifies the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the position.
- Establishes indicators to measure levels of performance.
- Creates several measures of success for each goal.
- Uses established criteria for measuring job performance.
- Establishes measures of performance.
- Determines the Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) needed for the position.
Communicating ExpectationsCommunicating Expectations focuses on clearly defining roles, responsibilities, and performance requirements to ensure employees understand what is expected of them. This dimension highlights setting OKRs, updating job descriptions, articulating expectations for key tasks and metrics, and making sure commitments are understood. It prioritizes clarity and alignment, ensuring employees have a precise understanding of their responsibilities and performance goals.
- Makes sure commitments are understood and met.
- Informs the employee of the required sales/production targets.
- Ensures Job Descriptions are up to date and accurate.
- Communicates the roles and responsibilities to the employee.
- Communicates OKRs to employees regularly during monthly meetings.
- Makes sure employees understand what is expected of them.
- Ensures employees understand their performance expectations.
- Clearly articulates the performance requirements for the position.
- Conveys expectations for meeting performance metrics.
- Ensures the employee understands the key tasks, goals and KPIs required for the position.
- Is consistent in clearly communicating job requirements.
AccountabilityAccountability emphasizes ensuring employees take ownership of their tasks, meet objectives, and uphold performance commitments. This dimension centers on assigning responsibility, holding individuals and teams accountable for meeting performance expectations, and reinforcing the importance of completing work successfully. It prioritizes responsibility and follow-through, ensuring employees are actively meeting their obligations rather than just understanding them.
- Holds employees accountable for meeting performance expectations.
- Ensures employees are accountable for meeting OKRs.
- Assigns responsibility for meeting specific objectives.
- Stresses the importance of meeting production quotas.
- Holds the team leader accountable for the team meeting key performance responsibilities.
- Holds the team accountable for meeting objectives.
- Assigns tasks and responsibilities and holds employees accountable for actions.
Measures PerformanceMeasures Performance focuses on assessing employee output against predefined benchmarks, quotas, and performance objectives. This dimension highlights using standardized metrics, reviewing reports, recording production figures, and evaluating job performance against measurable criteria. It prioritizes structured evaluation and comparison, ensuring employee performance is assessed based on clear, established goals.
- Assesses employee performance against defined standards.
- Reviews job performance shortly after completion of tasks.
- Records production quotas on a daily basis.
- Reviews monthly or weekly reports of quantitative metrics (sales/production) to measure performance level.
- Measures job performance of subordinates against defined goals and objectives.
- Uses pre-established key benchmarks to measure performance.
- Measures performance using standard production quotas.
MonitoringMonitoring emphasizes continuous oversight and regular assessments to ensure employees remain on track toward their performance objectives. This dimension centers on routine audits, ongoing feedback, performance tracking through meetings, and establishing indicators to measure progress in real-time. It prioritizes active supervision and timely adjustments, ensuring performance issues are identified and addressed proactively.
- Routinely holds audits of performance on a weekly or monthly basis.
- Continuously measures performance and provides feedback to employees regularly.
- Monitors progress to ensure performance goals are being met.
- Uses weekly staff meetings to assess performance of key responsibilities.
- Establishes indicators to measure levels of performance.
- Establishes measures of performance.
- Monitors performance on a regular basis.
Performance ReviewsPerformance Reviews emphasizes the formal evaluation of employees through structured assessments and feedback processes. This dimension centers on conducting regular appraisals, reviewing how employees meet their goals, ensuring consistency in evaluations, and providing feedback on individual progress. It prioritizes assessment and improvement, ensuring employees receive meaningful feedback on their performance.
- Effectively uses the current performance review process.
- Informs team members how their performance compares to stated goals.
- Regularly conducts performance reviews of all employees.
- Conducts objectives and key results (OKR) assessments on a quarterly basis.
- Uses the established performance review forms to maintain consistency in reviews.
- Performs thorough and timely employee performance reviews.
- Performs thorough and timely employee performance appraisals.
Training and DevelopmentTraining and Development focuses on providing employees with the necessary skills, knowledge, and resources to enhance their performance and reach their full potential. This dimension highlights structured job training, remediation programs, skill improvement initiatives, and opportunities for professional development. It prioritizes learning and capability-building, ensuring employees receive the tools and support they need to improve.
- Provides employees with training as needed to increase their performance.
- Ensures employees are trained in areas where performance may be lacking.
- Requires employees to participate in additional job training as part of a remediation program.
- Participates in training as needed to improve job performance.
- Encourages employees to take additional training in areas where they had low performance scores.
- Trains and develops employees to realize their maximum potential.
- Provides support and resources employees need to do their best to accomplish goals.
Increasing ResponsibilitiesIncreasing Responsibilities emphasizes rewarding high-performing individuals by expanding their roles and assigning them new challenges to facilitate career advancement. This dimension centers on giving additional assignments, promoting internal growth opportunities, and recognizing exceptional contributions with greater responsibility. It prioritizes progression and leadership development, ensuring employees are rewarded with career-enhancing opportunities.
- Assigns additional responsibilities to facilitate internal employee promotions.
- Awards new assignments to those who are most capable.
- Increases responsibilities for high performing individuals.
- Provides additional responsibilities for employees that exceed performance standards.
- Gives additional responsibilities to individuals who exceed standards.
- Rewards exceptional individuals with additional responsibilities.
Poor PerformancePoor Performance focuses on identifying and addressing performance issues in a timely and consistent manner, ensuring corrective actions are applied when necessary. This dimension highlights disciplinary measures, clear feedback, probationary actions, and swift responses to underperformance. It prioritizes accountability and corrective action, ensuring that employees are held to standards and that deficiencies are not ignored.
- Presents performance feedback in a clear and concise manner to address performance issues.
- Uses timely and appropriate corrective/disciplinary actions.
- Addresses performance issues as soon as possible.
- Places employees on probation if they fail to meet minimum performance standards.
- Is consistent in disciplinary/corrective actions.
- Addresses poor performance sooner rather than later.
- Is consistent in corrective actions.
Remediation PlansRemediation Plans emphasizes developing structured improvement programs with clear objectives and measurable progress to help employees improve their performance. This dimension centers on follow-up evaluations, tailored improvement strategies, and formalized plans for enhancing workplace effectiveness. It prioritizes development and structured intervention, ensuring underperforming employees receive the resources and guidance needed to succeed.
- Implements remediation plans with follow up after 3 months.
- Identifies specific actions to be addressed through the remediation plan.
- Initiates probationary actions for employees with sub-par performance.
- Initiates a performance improvement plan for underperforming subordinates.
- Implements remediation plans that include specific performance goals in areas most in need of improvement.
- Implements remediation plans as needed.
Rewards and RecognitionRewards and Recognition focuses on acknowledging contributions that positively impact the organization, ensuring employees receive appropriate recognition and rewards for their accomplishments. This dimension highlights structured reward programs, distinguished service awards, and appreciation for exceeding goals. It prioritizes general acknowledgment and motivation, ensuring employees feel valued for contributing to the success of the team or company.
- Recognizes and values good performance.
- Acknowledges employee contributions that support the bottom line.
- Ensures team members receive rewards for positive performance accomplishments.
- Recognizes team members when they contribute significantly to the team.
- Acknowledges employee contributions that support the bottom line.
- Recommends employees for distinguished service awards if warranted.
- Rewards employees for exceeding goals.
Rewards Good PerformanceRewards Good Performance emphasizes recognizing exceptional individuals based on unique contributions, perseverance, leadership, or innovation. This dimension centers on rewarding employees for overcoming challenges, demonstrating creativity, or showing long-term dedication to their roles. It prioritizes celebrating excellence and distinction, ensuring that outstanding individuals receive recognition beyond standard achievements.
- Recognizes employees who have courage in persevering against great odds and difficulties.
- Recognizes employees with a long and distinguished career of service.
- Ensures team members receive rewards for positive performance accomplishments.
- Recognizes people who provide outstanding leadership in planning, organizing.
- Rewards individuals who show imagination in developing creative solutions to problems.
- Rewards employees for exceeding goals.
Administers Rewards Program
- Ensures the eligibility of the proposed award recipient.
- Is proactive in administering the rewards program.
- Administers the performance rewards program in a fair and equitable manner.