Definition of performance management

1. Definition of performance management
Imagine trying to get 10 people that speak 10 different languages to work together and
achieve a complex task. It would be extremely difficult no matter how intelligent the
people were. This is how we have to think of our organizations...of intelligent people who
aren't accustomed to speaking the language of business, or more specifically, the
language of performance management.
If you've ever had to managed a project you know the importance of eliminating
assumptions and making sure that all key stakeholders are looking through the same lens
as to how the project will be carried out. In order to achieve this the first thing you did
was document the project scope. Well, a performance initiative shouldn't be any different.
Before you even think about implementing a performance program, you must first define
the scope of your performance initiative.
The performance scope sets the boundaries for the performance management team. The
performance scope defines the high level processes for how the performance
management team will approach divisions, support teams and individuals to begin
aligning performance to business objectives. Many times there is confusion about what
falls inside the boundary of the performance initiative and what does not. Who all will be
involved? What groups will be affected? Which groups will be excluded? The project
scope ensures that everyone is viewing the initiative the same. Defining a solid scope and
socializing it with the performance team, various project managers and key stakeholders
is critical. Research has shown that defining scope and objectives are among the most
important start-up activities to a successful performance initiative.
A common mistake made by organizations is not defining and communicating the scope
of the performance initiative or only defining the initiative in general terms. This lack of
definition causes managers and key stakeholders throughout the organization to make
assumptions related to their own involvement to the initiative. As performance experts,
our goal is to alleviate assumptions by clarifying roles, processes, and expectations. On
large scale performance initiatives there is often push back from teams and individuals
within the organization. Some even feel threatened (this is discussed in more detail in the
'Gaining Employee Acceptance' blog tip). A well communicated performance scope will
help alleviate the politics that could slow down progress.
Performance management scopes are not a common process yet; therefore it may be a
good idea for a consultant or a performance manager in charge of the performance
implementation to put together a scope on their own to increase the odds of cooperation
from the parties being evaluated.
Here are 8 high level steps for establishing your performance scope in a way that will
minimize problems:

2. 1. Define the outcome
2. Document assumptions
3. Define the scope of your performance initiative
4. Define deliverables
5. Define functionality
6. Define data
7. Define technical structure definition
8. Define enterprise/organizational structure
Learn more about the processes for defining a successful performance scope in the
Lifecycle Performance Management Kit. If you are REALLY serious about developing a
winning performance plan, my Organizational Performance and Best Practices Analysis
will help you plan and implement a successful performance initiative from start to finish.
http://performanceappraisalebooks.info/ : Over 200 ebooks, templates, forms for
performance appraisal.