It is important to manage performance positively and not just hope all will be well. Most people benefit from knowing what they do well and when changes should be made in order to be more effective.
It is important not to allow bad habits or practices to become confirmed before raising concerns with the post holder. In many cases informal advice and coaching will bring about an improvement.
Concerns which arise during the early weeks following the start of employment should be discussed in regular one to one meetings before the end of the probationary period if possible. It is not good practice to wait until the review meeting to raise issues. Sometimes this cannot be avoided however and it becomes necessary to extend the probationary period before it is possible to confirm the person in post.
On-going or serious concerns and the extension of the probationary period should be set out in writing. The letter should specify the areas of concern and the standards required, the date for review and, if appropriate, that the probationary period is being extended. Advice should be sought from the District Lay Employment Secretary before such a letter is issued.
It is good practice to hold an appraisal meeting at least once each year. An appraisal is an opportunity to review performance together. It is not intended to provide the supervisor or Line manager with an opportunity to ‘sit in judgement’ on the post holder. An effective appraisal will look at what is being done well, areas for improvement, training needs and so on. It is recommended that any objectives for the next period are recorded as they can then be used as a starting point at the next review.
Some employer’s link pay reviews to performance reviews but this is not recommended.
Top tips for managers
- Raise performance issues early - don't leave them until the yearly appraisal or the final probation review meeting.
- However, raising issues in an annual appraisal is better than not raising them at all - an employee will never improve if they have not been told what is expected of them.
- Deal with matters informally at first by having a quiet word with the employee. Try to find out if there are any underlying issues (for example, a recent change in personal circumstances) which could be relevant.
- Keep file notes of all meetings and conversations with employees about their performance so that you have an evidential paper trail should this be necessary further down the line.
- Ensure that comments made in file notes are accurate, appropriate and professional, as such documents are likely to be disclosed in any subsequent litigation or if an employee makes a data subject access request under the Data Protection Act 2018.
- In formal meetings ask a third party to take notes - having these conversations is difficult enough without having to speak and write at the same time.
- Accept that an employee's performance may sometimes dip for a short period, but make sure you continue to give feedback to help them return to what is required.
- If you want employees to improve their skills, then training and mentoring should be provided, any performance issues should be addressed at regular one- to- one meetings
- Do not spend too long dealing with matters of poor performance informally. If it appears that an improvement is not forthcoming move to invoking a formal procedure.
- The foundation of a fair procedure, as required by the ACAS Code, is to tell the employee what the problem is, hold a meeting to discuss it (allowing them to be accompanied), decide on appropriate action and give an opportunity to appeal any sanction imposed.
- You may not have a dedicated capability procedure within your organisation and may be using the framework set out in your disciplinary policy, but remember that you are dealing with capability not conduct. This requires a subtle difference of approach from the employer who should be prepared, initially at least, to be as supportive and constructive as possible to assist the employee to improve.
- Keep the momentum of the process going as part of the monitoring process. For example if an employee goes off sick, you would first need to manage their sickness and support their return to work, however it is is important that the performance management process is resumed as soon as possible after they have returned to work.
- Set reasonable targets and time periods for improvement and get the employee to agree to these.
- How long do we need to give an employee to improve? This will vary from case to case depending upon the circumstances, but where an employee has already has completed their probationary period use the existing procedure for managing performance. Any targets set must be measurable and realistic.
- Be consistent in appraisals, and when operating any capability procedure, to help avoid potential allegations of discrimination or bullying.
- Performance management should be an ongoing process and takes time. Employers should not just issue a warning and then forget about it. Regular reviews, both formal and informal, should ensure that management efforts are beneficial.