Human resource management practice I also available by michael armstrong

Part 

6

  Performance and Reward

346

high performance is a way of life. More specifically, 

effective  performance  management  ensures  that 

individual  goals  are  aligned  with  organizational 

goals,  so  that  key  performance  indicators  for  em-

ployees are linked to those of the organization, and 

the contribution people can make to organizational 

performance is therefore defined.

A description of what performance management 

should contribute was defined by Jones et al (1995) 

as follows:

 

●

communicate a shared vision throughout  

the organization to help to establish and 

support appropriate leadership and 

management styles;

 

●

define individual requirements and 

expectation of all employees in terms of the 

inputs and outputs expected from them thus 

reducing confusion and ambiguity;

 

●

provide a framework and environment for 

teams to develop and succeed;

 

●

provide the climate and systems which 

support reward and communicate how 

people and the organization can achieve 

improved performance;

 

●

help people manage ambiguity.

It is assumed that managers and their team members 

working together on a continuing basis throughout 

the year to use performance management processes 

such as goal setting, feedback, performance analysis 

and coaching will create a situation in which con-

tinuous improvement in results will be guaranteed. 

This could be regarded as an unrealistic aspiration 

– an optimistic belief – but it is the one that under-

pins the concept of performance management. The 

holy grail of performance management is to provide 

evidence that this belief is justified. But it isn’t easy 

– for the reasons given below.