Applying the 1+3 principle to enhance management efficiency

Every fourth quarter, companies are busy with performance evaluations and interviews, often finding themselves in a state of confusion without realizing it. The two most common types of confusion are "weighing down managers with light evaluations" and "untimely performance feedback." Analyzing the key factors reveals that the two main causes are "unclear performance evaluation purposes" and "performance evaluations that do not align with the company's developmental stage."

This article by Aniday focuses on how to conduct performance evaluations by applying the "1+3 (one belief and three key considerations) to enhance management efficiency."

I. Performance Evaluation and Performance Assessment

"Performance is a measure of the extent to which an employee fulfills their responsibilities in their position, reflecting whether the employee meets the requirements of that position or not." The significance of performance management includes a comprehensive management process (the PDCA cycle) with the hope of achieving positive results for the company's long-term goals. Its essence lies in combining both the process and the outcomes.

Performance evaluation is just one of the important tools in the performance management cycle, focusing on the implementation of the entire performance management process. Simply put, it involves "what the position has accomplished in the past, confirming the effectiveness of the output" and "what should be done in the future, and what expected benefits it will bring."

II. Organizational Growth Leads to Personal Development

When an organization establishes a comprehensive individual performance evaluation system for employees, it must consider the entire performance management cycle of "goal setting, standard confirmation, continuous implementation, and improvement." It needs to combine the suitability of the evaluation system (prioritizing current management) and the effectiveness of performance evaluations (whether the evaluation output meets expectations).

Therefore, when businesses establish or review their evaluation systems, they must grasp the factors that influence performance in order to achieve the positive effects of "organizational growth leading to personal development." The following points are important to note:

1. Clear company stage objectives: The company's developmental path or vision must be clear to support the establishment of mid- to long-term goals. Especially, focus on strategic goals, analyze financial and non-financial objectives that have a cause-and-effect or logical relationship with each other. Only after clarifying these can appropriate evaluation indicators be developed to ensure timely achievement of goals.

2. Adjust evaluation indicators appropriately: Use the organization's most familiar management tools to clarify or determine the cause-and-effect or logical relationship between non-financial and financial performance. After clarifying these, effective evaluation indicators can be developed to address the issue of cross-functional authority and leverage the overall effectiveness of departments above and below.

3. Determination to remove barriers in the implementation process: Performance evaluations are led and launched by the HR department, implemented by different levels of management in various departments. It is recommended to "provide training to different levels of management on performance evaluation before implementation, support different levels of management in overcoming difficulties during the implementation process, and collect system or execution-related issues for continuous improvement." It would be great to incorporate it into the knowledge management system as important reference material for continuous improvement.

4. Commitment to continuous improvement: Due to the different characteristics of industries or the life cycle of businesses, learning can only occur through work processes and relying on top-down improvement implementation within the organization. By examining the performance management cycle, identifying problems, and making improvements, a performance evaluation mechanism suitable for the company's culture can be developed.

III. How to Apply the Performance Evaluation Mechanism to Improve Management Efficiency

The performance evaluation mechanism must align with the company's development strategy. As the business progresses through different stages, the emphasis on performance will vary. This is an ongoing process of continuous improvement and dynamic adjustments.

Below, we will summarize several years of practical experience that have helped businesses adopt a "1+3 (one belief, three principles)" approach:

(1) One belief: Discover trainable talents early

First and foremost, managers must recognize that performance evaluation is not about adding extra workload but about helping managers discover trainable talents early. They should treat employees in a more sincere manner, starting from the process of "what has been done in the past, confirming the production benefits." In this process, it is crucial to rationalize "what is expected to be done in the future and what anticipated benefits it will bring."

Managers are encouraged to maintain a sincere attitude in their daily management and always consider two things for their employees: First, for those who meet performance standards, how to continue improving or present greater challenges. Second, for those who do not meet performance standards, how to collectively enhance performance or overcome difficulties in their work.

(2) Three principles:

From the organization's long-term perspective: Establish continuous improvement within the organization or incorporate it into the existing continuous improvement system. Regularly collect issues or problems encountered by departments during different stages of the performance management cycle, examine and propose improvement solutions, and monitor the effectiveness of the improvements.

From the manager's short-term perspective: After establishing a "firm belief in discovering trainable talents early," the focus should be on efforts in daily management, reminding managers of the following three principles:

1. Evaluation system: Do I truly understand it?

Eliminate the notion that "evaluation is simply filling out a form, it's just a daily task that needs to be completed." Self-demand to "prior to evaluation: have a clear understanding of the job details, and if not clear, ask for clarification." “

During evaluation: When encountering difficulties or doubts during the process, seek support or assistance as soon as possible, while summarizing and noting the issues. "After evaluation: Summarize the problems and propose possible solutions, providing them for the responsible unit or improvement team's reference."

2. Performance interview after evaluation: Am I fully prepared?

The purpose of the performance interview after evaluation is: "Through direct communication, to help the individuals being evaluated have a clearer understanding of the organization's expectations for them and jointly develop a development plan."

The interviewing skills of managers may not be good enough and can be supplemented through training. However, the most important issue is that most managers are not adequately prepared. For example, managers may not show enough interest in employees' performance, which naturally makes it difficult to provide valuable performance feedback.

3. Concern for performance: Have I truly done my best to help employees improve their performance?

To ensure that the performance interview after evaluation can yield positive results, it primarily depends on the manager's concern for the employees' performance process. Therefore, it is important to remind managers to pay attention to performance in their daily management, as this naturally leads to better expected outcomes. More importantly, by assisting employees during the performance process, managers can not only identify and eliminate performance bottlenecks but also discover early talent development opportunities.

Lastly, managers are reminded to select the 3-5 most important performance targets for their departments and incorporate them into the daily management goals. Utilize familiar management tools or methods and combine them with activities. We hope this article from Aniday is helpful to you.