Performance Management Gaps: Monitoring Employee Performance

In my blog ‘Performance Management: Mind the Gaps!’ I talked about what happens when there is a gap between good performance management practice and our performance management practice – when there’s a gap between what we know we should be doing in performance management and what we are actually doing or, more often, not doing

In this blog I’m looking at what happens when there’s a gap where our monitoring of employee performance should be

Performance Management Gap 2: Monitoring Employee Performance

A quick reminder. We monitor employee performance against objectives because research tells us that performance objectives with effective measures improve employee performance. And we can’t measure performance if we don’t monitor it! Also, when we monitor performance we demonstrate to our employees that we value their work (why would we be monitoring it otherwise?)

When there’s a gap where our monitoring should be these are some of the ways our employees close that gap

1. People do what they’ve always done 

So we agreed the new performance objectives. Good. And then?  Nothing. On the basis that we haven’t mentioned these performance objectives since, and we’ve made no effort to monitor our employee’s actual performance against the objectives can we really be surprised when our employees conclude that these new objectives weren’t very important anyway? That they might as well go back to ‘business as usual’?

2. People focus on the last thing you mentioned

Remember when you made the passing comment ‘we really could use some space around here’? Yep – that’s why everyone is moving furniture instead of talking to clients

3. People assume you don’t value what they do (on the basis you don’t seem to want to know what they do)

When we don’t monitor employee performance (or encourage our employees to monitor their own performance) we give a pretty clear signal to our employees that they and their performance aren’t terribly interesting. Or useful. Or significant

Performance Management Gaps Summary

Employees do struggle when there is a gap in their manager’s performance management practices. They struggle when there is a gap in monitoring because they aren’t clear on what their manager considers important and valuable about their performance. And they struggle because it seems their manager doesn’t really care about their performance.  Closing any of our ‘performance management gaps’ can have a really positive impact on our employee’s performance and job satisfaction.

Would you like to learn – in just 10 minutes – some new strategies for monitoring employee performance?

Then why not take a look at my Kindle book ‘A step-by-step guide to easily and effectively monitoring employee performance’

Just like the ad – this 10 minute guide does just what it says it will do. A useful aid memoire prior to staff appraisals to remind me, as a manager, what I can do to make the process more effective and productive for staff and myself. Logically written, easy to read with relevant work place examples you can follow and relate to – would recommend.

You can check it out on Amazon (and try a sample) HERE