Performance apprisal in the army free essay sample

Appraisals are where you get together with your team leader and agree what an outstanding member of the team you are, how much your contribution has been valued, what massive potential you have and, in recognition of all this, would you mind having your salary halved. â€Å" Guy Browning PREFACE I wish to thank all those who have helped me in completing the study paper. I have had informal discussions with serving and retired senior officers, colleagues as also with the concerned branches of the Armed Forces and their inputs have been invaluable for completing this study paper. We will write a custom essay sample on Performance apprisal in the army or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I also acknowledge the contributions of various writers and peoples who have expressed their views in various websites on the internet, which have been accessed and used by me. I thank my guide Professor for his valuable guidance and assistance without which I would not have been able to complete this study paper. I also thank all the staff and Faculty of Bharatiya Vidhya Bhawan who extended their whole hearted support to me in the process of writing this study paper. INTRODUCTION Definition 1. A performance appraisal (PA), performance review, performance evaluation, (career) development discussion, or employee appraisal is a method by which the job performance of an employee is evaluated. Performance appraisals are a part of career development and consist of regular reviews of employee performance within organizations. ‘Mansa K. Reddy, N. (2009). Role of Training in Improving Performance. The IUP Journal of Soft Skills’’ 2. Performance Appraisal is the formal and structured system of measuring and evaluating an employee’s job related behaviours and outcome to determine how and why the employee is performing on the job and how the employee can perform more effectively in the future to the benefit of the employee, the organization and the society. 3. It is evident from the above that performance appraisal is a measure of both current performance as well as the potential for future employability. It provides information upon which promotion and salary decisions are made. It also provides an opportunity for the employer and the employee to review the work related behaviour of the employee. This in turn allows them to develop plans for correcting any deficiencies noticed during the performance appraisal and reinforce the strengths of the employee. Finally the performance appraisal is central to the career planning process as it provides a platform to review the career plans of the employee in light of his exhibited strengths and weaknesses. 4. Almost all organizations practice performance appraisal in some form to achieve certain objectives. These objectives may vary from organization to organization or even within the same organisation from time to time. There are two primary objectives of performance appraisal – as an evaluation system and as a feedback system. The aim of the evaluation system is to identify the performance gap that is to determine the gap between the actual performance of the employee and the requirement or desired performance by the organization. The aim of the feedback system is to inform the employee about the quality of his work. This is an interactive process where the employee can discuss his work related problems with his manager. Historical Perspective 5. The history of performance appraisal is quite brief. Its roots in the early 20th century can be traced to Taylors pioneering Time and Motion Studies. But this is not very helpful, for the same may be said about almost everything in the field of modern human resources management. 6. As a distinct and formal management procedure used in the evaluation of work performance, appraisal really dates from the time of the Second World War not more than 60 years ago. 7. Yet in a broader sense, the practice of appraisal is a very ancient art. In the scale of things historical, it might well lay claim to being the worlds second oldest profession! 8. There is, says Dulewicz (1989), a basic human tendency to make judgements about those one is working with, as well as about oneself. Appraisal, it seems, is both inevitable and universal. In the absence of a carefully structured system of appraisal, people will tend to judge the work performance of others, including subordinates, naturally, informally and arbitrarily. 9. The human inclination to judge can create serious motivational, ethical and legal problems in the workplace. Without a structured appraisal system, there is little chance of ensuring that the judgements made will be lawful, fair, defensible and accurate. 10. Performance appraisal systems began as simple methods of income justification. That is, appraisal was used to decide whether or not the salary or wage of an individual employee was justified. 11. The process was firmly linked to material outcomes. If an employees performance was found to be less than ideal, a cut in pay would follow. On the other hand, if their performance was better than the supervisor expected, a pay rise was in order. 12. Little consideration, if any, was given to the developmental possibilities of appraisal. If was felt that a cut in pay, or a rise, should provide the only required impetus for an employee to either improve or continue to perform well. 13. Sometimes this basic system succeeded in getting the results that were intended; but more often than not, it failed. 14. For example, early motivational researchers were aware that different people with roughly equal work abilities could be paid the same amount of money and yet have quite different levels of motivation and performance. 15. These observations were confirmed in empirical studies. Pay rates were important, yes; but they were not the only element that had an impact on employee performance. It was found that other issues, such as morale and self-esteem, could also have a major influence. 16. As a result, the traditional emphasis on reward outcomes was progressively rejected. In the 1950s in the United States, the potential usefulness of appraisal as tool for motivation and development was gradually recognized. The general model of performance appraisal, as it is known today, began from that time. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 17. Performance Management is the essence of managing and the primary â€Å"Vehicle† for getting the desired results from the employees at all levels in the organization. The performance management process provides an opportunity for the employee and the performance manager to discuss the development goals and to jointly create a plan to achieve them. The plans for the employee should also contribute towards the organizational goals and the growth of the employee. 18. In the absence of a performance management system the staff members are unclear as to the expectations of the employers regarding their performance objectives and standards / targets leading to low productivity, costly mistakes, stress, demotivation and conflict. A sound performance management system subscribes to the crucial principle â€Å"What gets measured, gets done†. The days of having a â€Å"One set of measure fits all† performance management system is inherently flawed and are gone. Performance objectives and measures need to be specific to job categories and individual roles. 19. Performance management is the systematic process by which the organization involves its employees, as individuals and members of the group, in improving organizational effectiveness in the accomplishment mission and goals. Performance management is a holistic process bringing together many activities which collectively contribute to the effective management of individuals and teams in order to achieve high levels of organizational performance. Performance management is strategic in that it is about broader issues and long term goals and integrated as it links various aspects of the business, people management, individual and teams. It strengthens both, individual effectiveness and organizational effectiveness. It is essential that individuals are suitably empowered; however authority and accountability should be commensurate with each other. Such checks and balances would improve the effectiveness of the performance management system. Pre-requisites for Implementing an Effective Performance Management System 20. Certain pre-requisites govern the effectiveness of the performance management system. These are :- (a) Strong commitment from the top management (b) High level of participation of all concerned. (c) Clear definitions of what constitutes performance in a given role/job. This emanates from the objectives of the organization and the department. This should also reflect in the linkages of role with others. (d) Identification of performance parameters and definition of Key Performance Indicators. What comprises the performance has to be communicated to the individual, so that he has an idea about the work expectation from his superior’s (e) Consistency of application. (f) Adequate organizational training to be provided to the individuals to achieve a better performance. (g) Strong commitment to recognize good performance. Introducing a Performance Management System 21. In implementing a Performance Management System, it must be emphasised that the Performance Management System has been designed within the overall strategic framework appropriate for the organization / department. It is also necessary to link individual contributions to the strategic objectives of the organization. It will therefore be necessary for the performance management system to be customised for each organization / department. (a) Strategic Intent. The strategic intent of an organization should cascade into strategic and operational objectives at the departmental level. (b) Individual Assessment. This is the process of self-evaluation and structured discussion aimed at personal, professional and individual development. This process is not intended to be merely judgmental but one that is also developmental. It is intended that the process will provide a regular, open and systematic discussion of how an individual may enhance his role. The process should be seen as providing a means by which an individual contributions are recognised, feedback on individual performances is given, assistance provided to help developing the potential and overcoming problems in an agreed manner. Part of the role of the reviewer is to assist the individual being reviewed in assessing his own performance and development regularly and fairly. The role also extends to assisting the individual in setting objectives and measuring the extent to which these objectives are achieved. Where objectives are not achieved, this can be discussed between the reviewer and the person being reviewed and necessary remedial measure taken. (c) Development of the Individual. One of the main objectives of the performance management system is to provide a systematic means not only of reviewing the past performance, but also to consider future development of the individual. At the departmental level the system can help identify, agree upon and plan the staff development activities that can in turn lead to improved departmental planning and performance. It can also facilitate a better understanding of how all staff members contribute to a department’s activities. Such an engagement can also improve communications between staff members. All staff members regardless of grade or category have the ability to develop their potential in their area of work. The performance management system provides a mechanism for clarifying what is expected of them in their job. It can also help bring about an improved understanding of organisation / departmental objectives and priorities and how individuals’ work and responsibilities relate to these. There will always be strengths and weaknesses at all levels. The process allows these to be identified and the means of overcoming these can be devised. (d) Enhancing Quality. The development of the individual and the delivery of superior quality outcomes is the joint responsibility of individual staff, supervisors and the organization as a whole. The process enables all to agree to relevant goals which are clearly linked to the strategic plans and objectives of the organization. In so far as individual staff is concerned, the process will help them to identify their contributions and how it can be improved upon. (e) Process Review. These should normally be conducted at least twice a year. Procedures for all should be similar in their core contents but may vary as necessary to account for different responsibilities and management structures. A one-to-one discussion and feedback between the reviewer and the person being reviewed should be the norm for review. (f) Self-Monitoring. The formal review meeting would take place once in a review period. It is therefore important that the person being reviewed should monitor his own progress in achieving the objectives on a regular basis. In addition, if the person being reviewed feels there are issues or constrains which are preventing him from achieving the objectives, he should be able to discuss these with his reviewer or if necessary the departmental head Performance Management Of Government Employees 22. Traditionally governance structures in India are characterized by rule based approaches. The focus of the civil services in India is on process regulation that is compliance with centrally prescribed standards and rules; in other words, how things should be done and how inputs should be aligned. Compliance with rules is not sufficient for achieving outcomes and obviously, the objective must be to shift the focus away from traditional concerns such as expenditure and activity levels towards a framework that would manage for results by developing robust indicators to assess performance in terms of results. 23. As performance of an organization / agency is dependent on the performance of individual civil servants, over a period, an elaborate mechanism to evaluate the performance of individual government servants has evolved. These individual performance appraisal systems can be categorized as follows: (a) Conventional Closed System Of Annual Confidential Report (ACR). This is the traditional system, where at the end of a pre-set period (usually a calendar year); achievements of the officer are recorded and graded, absolutely or relatively. The significant feature of this method is the complete secrecy of the exercise, both in process and results, unless the rules specifically mention otherwise. Adverse remarks are communicated to the officer reported upon. (b) Performance Appraisal With Openness . This system is an improvement of the above, with the added feature of transparency and involvement of the officer at different levels. It involves setting goals at the start of the assessment period, reviews during the period and final assessment against achievement of goals. Finally, performance excellence is decided by a number (grades of 1-10) to be assigned by the reporting officer. 24. System in India. The performance of every Government servant is assessed annually through his / her Confidential Report, which is an important document providing the basic and vital inputs for assessing the performance of the Government servant and his / her suitability for further advancement in his / her career on occasions like confirmation, promotion, crossing of EB, selection for deputation, selection for foreign assignment etc. Performance appraisal through confidential reports is a tool for human resource development in order to enable a Government servant to realize his / her true potential. It is not a fault finding process, but a development one. The Reporting Officer, at the beginning of the year, has to set quantitative / physical targets in consultation with each of the Government servants, whose reports he / she is required to write. Performance appraisal is meant to be a joint exercise between the Government servant reported upon and the Reporting Officer. While fixing the targets, priority should be assigned item wise, taking into consideration the nature and the area of work. The Confidential Report is initiated by the Government servant to be reported upon, who gives a brief description of his / her duties, specifies the targets set for him wherever applicable, achievements against each target, shortfalls, if any, constraints encountered and areas where the achievements have been greater. In accordance with the recommendations of the Committee constituted under the Chairmanship of Lt Gen. (Retd. ) Surinder Nath in 2002, the Performance Appraisal System for All India Service Officers has been modified and the salient features include setting of goals in consultation with the appraised officer, a numerical grading system (scale of 1 to 10), introduction of a pen picture of the person being reviewed, sharing the entire PAR with the person being reviewed officer, etc. At present, the performance appraisal system in Government of India, as described above, falls largely in the first category but for the newly introduced system for All India Services officers. Methodology 25. The Annual Confidential Report is, in substance, an assessment in depth of the character and performance of each government employee at three tiers, namely, the Recording Authority, the Reviewing Authority, the Accepting Authority. These Annual Confidential Reports form the basis for the Government to decide on the ability or otherwise of each Government employee. Therefore, considerable importance is too be attached to this work by all concerned. The three authorities mentioned should make a sincere and serious attempt with a view to rendering the assessment of each employee as correctly as possible. Personal likes or dislikes of a subjective nature should not influence any of the authorities in any manner whosever nor should the authorities be swayed by a particular incident and extraneous consideration while recording the report, defects of any nature and achievement in any form should be properly highlighted. 26. The system of writing confidential reports has two objectives. First and foremost is to improve performance of the subordinates in their present job. The second is to assess their potential and to prepare them for the jobs suitable to their personality and potential. The columns of ACR’s are, therefore, to be filled up by the Reporting, Reviewing and Accepting authorities in an objective and impartial manner. 27. The three levels of authorities entrusted with the responsibility for the recording, reviewing and accepting the Annual Confidential Report shall routed in such a manner so that the Recording Authority should be the officer who is immediately superior to the officer reported upon, the Reviewing Authority should be the officer who is immediately superior to the Reviewing Authority and the Accepting Officer should be the immediate superior of the Reviewing Officer. 28. The general system and practice in the matter of communication of adverse remarks recorded in the Confidential Reports and the existing practice that no Confidential Reports should be written on any government employees unless the Recoding Authority had seen the performance of that employee for at least three months. When a member of the service has worked under more than one authority, during the period under report, the assessment report shall be written by all such authorities. The reporting officer may use the same form i. e one Reporting Authority writing the report first and the second Reporting Authority writing later (if need by making use of additional sheets of the C. R Forms) or the second Reporting authority may initiate a separate report. When there is more than one Reviewing Authority, the same practice shall be followed. 29. All the authorities at the recording as well as the reviewing levels are expected to exercise their mind independently while writing or reviewing the assessment report and should be free from being influenced or prejudiced by the assessment made or remarks by the former authorities. In cases where there is difference of opinion at the initiating or reviewing levels, the accepting authority can play a very significant role. When there are more than one Reviewing Authority in respect of assessment report recorded by any of the Reporting Authorised, one Reviewing Authority may review first, confining his personal views of finding in pursuance to the general assessment recorded there in of the work and performance of the officer reported upon for the department under him, and the other Reviewing Authority shall likewise review later exercising his mind independently taking in view the general reported assessment relating to the department under him. In such cases, if need be, additional sheet of confidential report form specifically for the purpose of remarks by the next respective Reviewing Authority(ties) as well as the Accepting Authority shall be utilised deleting the particular items meant for the purpose by the Recording Authority. The Reviewing Authority (ties) and the Accepting Authority (ties) are expected to generally know the quality of work and merit of the officer reported upon whose work and performance they are reviewing and / or accepting. With this point of view, they are also expected to exercise their mind independently while contributing their remarks and should be free from being influenced or prejudiced by the assessment of remarks of the former authorities. Performance Appraisal In The Australian Army 30. THE new ADF Performance Appraisal Report (PAR) for officers up to the rank of Lt to Col was introduced effective January 1, 2002, and replaced the Evaluation and Development Report – Officers (EDRO). 31. The purpose of the PAR is to provide a tri-service appraisal system for full and part-time, permanent /regular and active reserve officers. The PAR covers similar reporting dimensions as the EDRO, but no longer has the overall recommendation nor allows for justifications against extreme ratings on each performance dimension. The formal appraisal of officers seeks to provide feedback, identify strengths and weaknesses and record performance. It also seeks to identify an individual’s suitability for promotion and courses and to aid career management. Preliminary Review 32. The PAR is supported by the use of the Preliminary Review of Performance (PRP). The purpose of the PRP is to discuss and record goals for the member to achieve throughout the reporting period as well as support mid-term counselling against these agreed goals and the PAR performance dimensions. Supplementary Reports 32. ADF Performance Appraisal Supplementary Report is used where the member has undertaken a detachment or substantial secondary duties. This report is forwarded to the main assessor for consideration in drafting the PAR. Where the period of detachment is less than six weeks it may be done on either the supplementary report or a PRP. 33. Where the detachment is between six weeks and four months a PRP is recommended and over four months a separate PAR is raised. The performance appraisal cycle begins when an officer is first posted to a unit or at the start of a new reporting period. The assessor and senior assessor are designated at this time. At the start of the reporting period, or within 30 days of the effective date of the posting, the assessor is to meet with the member to discuss and record the goals for the member to achieve throughout the reporting period. This is recorded on the PRP. Midway through the reporting period, or after a minimum of six weeks observation the assessor and member get back together to review progress. The assessor also provides feedback on the member’s performance by rating the member’s performance against the individual performance dimensions. Again this is recorded on the PRP. At the end of the reporting period the PAR is compiled. 33. In order to complete this report the minimum period of observation is four months for full-time and 14 days for part-time members. The report is raised by the assessor, who then counsels the member. The member must sign the report, which then goes to the senior assessor and then back to the member for a second signature. The member may initiate a representation if the they feel that the report is unjustified. Performance Appraisal Systems In The Armed Forces An Overview 34. Performance appraisal systems in the Armed Forces are elaborate and rigorous because they are the main criteria for the very limited promotions that are made to higher positions in these services. For example, in the Army, only 3% of officers make it to the grade of Brigadier and above. The highlights of their system are as follows:- (a) Officers are evaluated on a scale of 1:9 on different attributes. This evaluation is done separately by the reporting officer and the next two higher levels. (b) For the purpose of promotions, the Army generally follows two types of systems the ‘closed’ system and the ‘open’ system. In the ‘closed’ system, the Promotion Board is not privy to the names of the officers being considered for promotion. Also officers of the same rank are permitted to attend deliberations of the promotion board as â€Å"observers† though they cannot participate in the discussions. In the ‘open’ system (for ranks of Major General and above); the identity of the officers being considered is also known to the Promotion Board. (c) There is a system of rating the reporting officers wherein the reporting officers are classified as ‘liberal’, ‘strict’ and ‘rating tendency not known’. (d) The prescribed trainings and examinations have to be cleared by the officers before they are considered fit for promotion. (e) The entire performance appraisal record of the officer is compiled in the form of a matrix with the numerical points assigned to each attribute and other details of appointment and achievements, the type of rating given, details of reporting officers battle honours etc. (f) Promotions in the Army are limited to the number of vacancies available making use of the three-year moving average of vacancies likely to be available. (g) In case an officer is not promoted for the first time, his case is reviewed two more times and thereafter, if he is still not considered fit for promotion and ultimately after obtaining the benefit of time scale, he retires at the relevant prescribed age 52 years in the case of a Colonel, 54 years for a Brigadier etc. 35. There are some variations in the performance appraisal and promotions in the other two Services. For example, in the Navy, a system of peer review exists in the form of a feedback from batch-mates of the officer being considered for promotion. They are informed of the number of vacancies and are asked to list the batch-mates whom they consider most suitable for being promoted to these posts. This peer review is not shared with the Promotion Board but is used by the Headquarters to validate the recommendations of the Promotion Board. Also in the Navy, there is a four-tier system of appraisal because being a comparatively smaller service the accepting authority for all officers is the Chief of Naval Staff. In the Air Force as in the Navy, the Promotion Board is an open one and in the Air Force, dossiers of the officers carry their photos. Unlike the Army which uses a three year moving average to determine the number of slots available for promotion, in the Navy and the Air Force, annual vacancies are taken into account. In the Air Force, a part of the Performance Appraisal form is filled up after discussions between the appraise and the reporting officer and both sign that portion of the appraisal report. Performance Appraisal in the Army : Detailed Analysis 36. Aim of Performance Appraisal. The aim of Annual Confidential Report (ACR) is to have an objective assessment of an officer’s competence, employability and potential as observed during the period covered by report, primarily for organisational requirements. All reporting officer must, thereof, be fair, impartial and objective in their assessment 37. Type of ACR. The Annual Confidential Report (ACR) in the army is based both upon the length of the service and the rank held by the ratee. Also the arm or the service to which the rate belongs also affects the type of the ACR. 38 Chain of Reporting. The Army follows three tiers of reporting. The ACR is initiated by the Initiating Officer (IO) who in turns forwards it to the Reviewing Officer (RO). The Reviewing Officer after reviewing the ACR forwards the same to the Senior Reviewing Officer (SRO) who after his endorsements forwards the ACR to the Army HQ (Military Secretary’s Branch) for filing and further disposal. 39. In the case of officers who are from the technical arms (for example EME, Signals, Engineers etc) there is another separate channel which reports upon the technical competence of the officer. These are the Frist Technical Officer and Higher Technical Officer) 40. The hierarchy of reporting is so designed that the IO is the immediate superior of the Ratee, the RO is the IO f or the IO and the SRO is the IO for the RO. The similar hierarchy is followed for the technical reporting also. 41. Components of the ACR. The ACR has the following components :- (a)Personal Qualities(PQ). These are qualities in the personal character of the rate officer such as Physical Attributes, Drive, Determination and Decivisiviness*, Dependability*, Moral Courage*, Integrity*, Loyalty*, Ingenuity and Imitative, Maturity and finally communication Skills. The qualities marked with the astrix sign are certain key qualities which are often referred to as the astrix qualities and any adverse grading in these qualities may seriously jeopardise the career prospects of the officer. (b)Performance Variable (PQ). These are the qualities reflect on the professional competence of the officer being reported upon. The PQ include, qualities like (i)Knowledge of own arm and service and its practical application. (ii)Knowledge of other arms and services (iii)Effectiveness in the training of his command. (iv)Ability to motivate his command. (v)Effectiveness in carrying out the administration of his command (vi)Dedication to the organization and the service. (c) Qualities to Asses Potential (QAP). Qualities to Assess Potential or the QAP are the qualities in the character of the ratee officer which indicate his capabilities and potential for the assumption of higher appointments and rank. These qualities are :- (i)Foresight and Planning (ii)Delegation (iii)Vision and Conceptual Ability (iv)Tolerance to Ambiguity (v)Professional competence to Handle Higher Appointment. (d)Box Grading. This is the overall grading given by the IO and the RO to the ratee. (e) Recommendations. These are the recommendations of the IO, the RO and the SRO for the promotion of the rate to the next higher rank, his suitability for various staff and instructional appointment’s etc. 42. Use of Various Appraisal Tools. The format of the ACR used in the Army makes use of various tools of appraisal. It has figurative assessments which are used in filling up the PQ, DVP and the QAP and the box grading. It has descriptive assessment wherein the various reviewing authorities write down the pen picture of the rate and it also has columns wherein the various reviewing 43. Transparency. The ACR in the Army is semi-transparent. About two third portion of the Appraisal written by the IO is shown to the ratee. The appraisal of the IO on the PQ, the DVP, the pen picture and the box grading are shown to the ratee by the IO and his initials obtained. However the recommendations of the IO about the promotion and future appointments is not shown to the ratee. The complete assessment made by the RO and the SRO are also not shown to the ratee. Only in case of an adverse entry in the ACR is the rate informed and his signatures obtained. 44. Role of IO, RO and the SRO. The role of the IO is to initiate the ACR for the ratee officer. The RO reviews the ACR and also comments weather the report initiated by the IO is â€Å"just, liberal or strict†. Similarly the SRO plays a role of balancer between the IO and the RO and also records his observations upon the report of the RO as being â€Å"Just, Liberal or Strict†. Action at the Military Secretary’s Branch MS Branch). 45. Internal Assessment. Once the ACR reaches the MS Branch the first step is to carry out a technical check of the ACR to see that it is technically correct. During th