Use Job Descriptions to Support the Appraisal Process

03/05/07

You can’t have a good appraisal system without good job descriptions. The description is the starting point for formulating the performance goals and objectives upon which you’ll rate employees.

Make sure your job descriptions spell out the job’s main tasks and responsibilities, as well as standards for each of these tasks.

Here’s an example: Say your outfit has a job called “Mechanic B.” According to the job description, the main task is to “Perform tune-ups, minor repairs, oil changes, front-end work, safety inspections, and tire rotations and changes.”

Good job descriptions attach numerical or qualitative standards to as many tasks and responsibilities as possible. For example, “The jobholder will perform fifteen tune ups per month, fifty oil changes, and ten safety inspections.”

Such specific and measurable standards define expectations clearly and tell the employee on what precise standards he or she will be judged. Good standards, in addition, make it easier for managers to rate employees and for employees to accept the ratings.

One last thing: Job descriptions should change as the job changes, and as an employee expands its boundaries. (Be careful making changes, however, when a single description applies to a whole class of employees.) Appraisal meetings are the perfect time to edit the job description to better reflect current reality.