Personnel research is another reason why companies evaluate their employees. In this instance the evaluation will be measuring a specific issue such as the effect that a time saving tool has had on productivity, or to determine the overall job satisfaction rate within the company. In order to determine these things specific tools will need to be used that address and measure specific qualities, behaviors, and results. For example if personnel wanted to evaluate job satisfaction they would probably send out a questionnaire that asked questions pertaining to issues related to job satisfaction like if they feel that their supervisor listens to them, if they feel that their supervisor seems to make fair decisions, and if they feel that their presence within the company is appreciated. If the wrong tool is used for an evaluation then the wrong elements and issues will be measured and the information gained from the evaluation will be useless. For example if we look at the job satisfaction scenario again and instead of sending out a questionnaire that addresses issues that directly relate to job satisfaction, and instead it asks questions pertaining to their feelings about possible changes in shift schedules, then the wrong information will be evaluated. While a change in shift schedules may impact future job satisfaction, it does not reflect CURRENT job satisfaction and therefore it is not a proper focus for a survey intended to measure current job satisfaction rates.
After the reason for the employee evaluation has been determined you can then move on to the next step, deciding who will be doing the evaluation.
Step Two: Determine Who Will Be Doing the Evaluation
Supervisor
Subordinate employees
Self evaluation
Customers
Variety of evaluators
In this step you will need to decide who should conduct the evaluation. This decision should be based on what kind of information you are looking, and it may involve several different people. For example, if you are evaluating an employee to determine if they deserve a raise or promotion, then you will probably want their supervisor to evaluate their overall performance. However, you also might want to include their customers’ opinion about the employee’s performance, as well as the opinions of any subordinate employees under the employee being evaluated. It is also a good idea to have the employee to evaluate himself or herself.