HR Industry News

Employee appraisals rated a "waste of time" by employees

— 4 December 2007 —

Research has shown that many employees view personal appraisals as a waste of time. A worrying 44% of people surveyed even believe that their manager has lied to them during an appraisal.

Nearly a quarter of people believe that their annual review is a ‘tick-box’ exercise, and almost as many believe that their manager has given the appraisal little or no thought before entering the room.

December is a particularly busy month for many line managers, and Simon Jones, acting chief executive at Investors in People, believes that they ought to seize the opportunity.

“It’s a great chance for managers to make sure their employees feel challenged and valued for the year ahead, rather than unmotivated and without guidance. Many of the benefits will be lost if managers avoid difficult issues and hold things back.”

“Appraisals only work if both sides are committed to the process,” comments Paul Avis of the Ceridian LifeWorks team. “If a regular review is undertaken and clear milestones are set by the manager and aspirations are clearly stated by the employee and then nothing happens, then this makes a mockery of the entire process. Tangible actions from appraisals are needed otherwise both sides can view them as a waste of time.”

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