Managing Staff Development

Institute of Leadership & Management

MANAGING STAFF DEVELOPMENT How to develop your staff

Contents • Click on the headings to be taken to that section.

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Copyright © The Institute of Leadership and Management 2015. These materials may not, in whole or part, be copied, reproduced, communicated, or otherwise distributed without the prior written permission of ILM.



IntroductionAppraisal is about reviewing the performance of team members, giving them feedback on how they are doing and agreeing what else they can do to further improve their performance. It is an essential part of the continuous development of your team.

As a team leader, you need to understand how people learn and the different types of learning methods used in the workplace, so that you are able to help your team develop in their jobs, in their careers and help them perform better.



• Task one: Appraisals

A lot of people admit to not liking appraisals, whether they’re doing the appraising or being appraised themselves. Why do you think this might be?

Type your answers below.



• Task two: Developing skills and knowledge

Think about how you have developed skills and knowledge over the last few years. How do you think you have developed them?

Type your answer below.

Now ask two other people about how they developed their own skills and knowledge.

• Type their answers below.

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The first section will help you examine your role, and show you techniques to improve your team’s performance.

Section one:

Carrying out performance appraisals



What are appraisals?Regular staff appraisals are one part of the performance management process. They are used to review progress to date, explore solutions to problems and plan for the future in a way that benefits the organisation overall. If good practice guidelines are followed, appraisals can also be used to increase staff morale and engagement with the organisation.

Each organisation that formally practises regular appraisals, or encourages informal regular appraisals, has its own way of going about it.

• Roll over the icons to find out about some types of appraisals.



The most common type of appraisal is top-down.

In some organisations appraisals are very formal, and the same forms and procedures are used across that organisation. Others leave it to each of their managers to decide the best way in which to do it. Despite these variations, research has shown that successful appraisals all have certain things in common, which the rest of this section will examine.

For example, reviews should be regular and the appraisal should review past activity and behaviour as a basis for planning future improvement and development.

At its best, an appraisal interview should provide an opportunity to do all the following:

• Review performance and give objective feedback (ie feedback based on facts)

• Establish mutual expectations • Identify problems and need for support • Find out what particularly motivates and engages

the appraisee • Identify unexploited potential and further capacity • Set work objectives. These should be “SMART” –

specific, measurable, achievable/agreed mutually, realistic and time-bound. It is best if they are mutually agreed to get the appraisees to buy into them.

• Consider the appraisee’s career development

Nothing you say to a team member in an appraisal should come as a surprise to them. Remember that praise and constructive criticism given at the time of any particular incident is far more effective in terms of performance than saving up that feedback for an appraisal meeting. But an appraisal meeting is the best opportunity to stand back and look at the situation overall together, and use that to engage and motivate your staff and plan for the future.



• Task three: Correcting assumptions

Imagine going to work somewhere as a team leader where regular appraisals are not done, and that you want to persuade your new boss to give YOU regular appraisals. In the boxes on the left are some of the things your boss might say. What might you say to correct those assumptions?

Type your answers into the spaces provided.

‘It’s a bit backward-looking. It’s no use crying over spilt milk.’

‘OK then, but it may make me realise I ought to have sacked you…’

‘Don’t worry, I’ll tell you immediately if you do anything wrong! We don’t need regular appraisals.’

Incorrect assumption/belief

What you would say in reply



• Type your answers into the spaces provided.

‘You should be able to figure out where you’re going wrong for yourself.’

‘I really don’t have the time for all that.’

Incorrect assumption/belief

What you would say in reply‘I don’t see how your future career is my responsibility.’

‘If I didn’t think you could do the job I wouldn’t have hired you.’



PreparationThe importance of preparing thoroughly for an appraisal cannot be overemphasised. Both appraiser and appraisee should prepare carefully and thoughtfully for the meeting. This gives the appraisee a chance to self-appraise by reflecting on their performance and any difficulties they have had during the period. Before the meeting you should ensure that the appraisee has thought about the following:

• Have they fulfilled the objectives set at their last appraisal or in their job specification? If not, why not?

• What have they been doing particularly well? • Where do they think they could be doing

better and why? • What do they believe they know and can do

which is not being made use of at the moment? • Where are they going with both the job and

their career? • What new SMART objectives do they think that

it is reasonable to set for their job now? • How are they going to achieve them? • What do they need to learn? • What support or guidance can be provided by

the organisation/manager?

As an appraiser, you should think about the answers the appraisee might give to the above questions. In addition, you should try to find evidence, specific examples from the whole period – what the team member has done well and what they could improve upon – so that you are in a position to give fair, open, honest and sensitive feedback.

You also need to think about what new goals and objectives the organisation requires for the team member. As mentioned before, it is important that these are SMART – specific, measurable, achievable/agreed mutually, realistic and time-lined (ie what will be done by when).



• Task four: Preparing for an appraisal

Carry out preparation for any member of your team (or a colleague) as if you were about to have an appraisal meeting with them.

Type in your answers to the questions below.

What objectives were set at their last appraisal, or what are the main objectives of their job at the moment, and have they achieved them?

If the answer to the last question is no, say why you think that is.

If the answer is yes, have they managed to achieve that in particularly difficult or unanticipated circumstances?

What have they been doing particularly well and has this been helping them achieve their objectives?

What could they be doing better?



• Type in your answers to the questions below.

Do they have potential or capacity that the organisation is not using (and what is it)?

What do you think their career aims are (or could be, in your opinion)?

What are the two most important objectives – Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) – for them to achieve over the coming period? Justify the SMARTness of each one.

What support and resources will they need to achieve these? What obstacles need to be removed?

In what ways, specifically, do they need to develop and how can this be achieved?



• Task five: Keep it private

How would you ensure any appraisal you carried out in your own organisation would be private and uninterrupted?


How would you ensure the appraisal was private and uninterrupted?


You also need to find an appropriate place and time to hold the appraisal meeting that is private and where you will not be disturbed. This usually needs planning in advance.



• Carrying out the appraisal itself

Quite frankly, the reason many people dislike appraisals is because of the way they are carried out. Yet there are straightforward techniques that both you and your appraisee can use to avoid stress. These techniques can also help improve the effectiveness of the appraisal.

How can you make an appraisal meeting less stressful but more effective? Click on the arrows to find out.



After the appraisal meetingNormally the items agreed at the appraisal meeting are written down, and after consideration they are signed as accurate by both appraiser and appraisee. The appraisee may also write down their personal development plan.

You need to regularly monitor and evaluate your team members’ performance compared with the expected work outcomes agreed at the appraisals and give them regular feedback on how they are doing, spot any shortfalls and agree changes or actions to improve their performance, on an ongoing or monthly basis. Always imagine being in any team member’s shoes before you decide how to give feedback.

Remember that not following up on objectives, plans and solutions to problems agreed at the appraisal meeting will affect your team’s performance adversely, sometimes very badly indeed.



• Task six: Best practice for appraisals

Read the often believed statements below and then explain why each one is incorrect (refer back to the previous sections on preparation, carrying out the appraisal and after the appraisal if you are unsure).


Managers should conduct appraisals based on their own experience.

NO – this might be wrong because...

NO – they should be based on specifics because...

They should be, but many are not because...

It’s OK to conduct appraisals based on general observations.

Managers have to be good at performance appraisals to be promoted.

Incorrect statement Correct statement

Employees are always accurately appraised on a regular basis.

NO – but they should be, because...



NO – managers must look at the person’s job and...

NO – because…

NO – the sandwich technique is…

There is no need to prepare for appraisals, just do it.

Employees can forget about appraisals as soon as they are over.

The ‘sandwich’ technique is giving lunch to the person being appraised.

KPI stands for Key Political Index NO – it stands for…

And these are used to indicate…




NO – SMART stands for…

NO – instead they should…


The person being appraised has to look smart in appearance.

At the end of the appraisal, the two parties just agree to meet next year.

Managers should give appraisees a thorough rundown of all their personal shortcomings.

The manager should do most of the talking in the appraisal interview.


Because…




NO – these should be mutually agreed because…

A manager can avoid causing stress for the appraisee or themselves by…

They can effect significant change if…

The manager tells the appraisee what their objectives are for the coming period.

Appraisal meetings are too stressful.

Appraisals don’t change anything.


Your organisation may have its own prescribed procedure and forms to complete for this process, as well as for the appraisal meeting itself, and for personal development planning. You need to check on and use these in line with your organisation’s policies and procedures.



• Task seven: Your procedures

What is the prescribed procedure used in your organisation, and what forms are used?.


How can you use those procedures to embody best practice? (Refer to the previous sections on preparation, carrying out the appraisal and after the appraisal.)

• Type your answer below.



This second section will help you examine your role in accelerating your team’s learning and the techniques and interventions you can use.

Section two:

Developing your staff


Ways of developing in your job



People should never stop learning at work. Sometimes they need to learn things to improve their performance, and sometimes simply to maintain good performance and keep up to date with new developments. Developing people for future challenges in their existing jobs or so that you can promote them is also important.

It is also worth remembering that morale and motivation are higher in employees whose bosses value them enough to have invested in their development (see the MacLeod Report ‘Engaging for Success’).

People can use almost any kind of relevant experience as a learning opportunity. These new experiences all help to gain knowledge, to learn new skills, attitudes or behaviours.



Learning opportunities and interventions may be formal or informal, structured or self- directed, on the job or off the job. Each one has its own advantages and disadvantages, for example:

• Click on the icons to find out more.

On the job learning (such as carrying out own tasks under supervision or observing someone else).

Formal structured training (such as courses or apprenticeships).



• Roll over the icons to find out more.

Self-managed learning(such as reading a book, watching television, or learning online)

Video based learning from real life experiences

Experiential learning(which means learning from experience, such as participating in a role play

or a project).



The choice of method used is determined by several factors including:

An individual’s learning needs and learning style

The organisation’s development strategy

Culture of the organisation

Available resources



• Task eight: Becoming more effective

Identify and justify some learning which would enable you to be more efficient or effective in your job. Then identify and justify some learning that would enable a member of your team or a colleague to be more efficient or effective.


Me

Team member/ colleague



Now identify the two development techniques that would be the most appropriate for gaining this learning, and say why.


Identify the development technique which would be the least appropriate, and again say why.


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• Coaching and delegating

Two methods of developing staff not specifically mentioned above are coaching and delegating.

Roll over the circles for a definition.



• Task nine: Five ways

State in which of the five broad ways of learning described above you would place coaching and say why (there may be more than one or you might want to justify it having a category of its own), then do the same for delegation.


Coaching:

Delegation:



Coaching advantages

Delegation disadvantages

Coaching disadvantages

Delegation advantages

• Now write what you think the main advantages and disadvantages are of each approach. Type your answers below.



Supporting the learning and development of team membersMany organisations have overarching policies that provide guidelines on:

• The amount of development that will be given • The scope and aims of the learning • The responsibility for individual and team development

These policies depend on the emphasis the organisation places on its human resource and its willingness to invest time and money in training and development.

The policies are implemented by managers, often in collaboration with Human Resources (HR) specialists. Managers discuss and agree with team members their learning needs in line with their workplace objectives and decide what sort of development is required to satisfy both their needs and the requirements of the organisation. There is often a specified budget for organisational development and so there usually needs to be prioritisation on how this resource will be used across the organisation. Priorities are matched to business goals and needs and funding allocated accordingly.



• Task 10: What resources are available?

Investigate your organisation’s learning and development policies and find out what resources are available. Briefly explain what you found out.




Planning, implementation and evaluationThe learning and development process is a cycle which aims to improve job performance and career potential through learning as effectively as possible.

Managers should ensure development activities are planned and implemented, and last but in no way least they must follow up to evaluate the learning and ensure it is effectively transferred to the job. Efficient managers always put time aside specifically to do this, because it pays dividends in terms of a performance.

• Click on the boxes to see the stages of the Development Cycle.

Development Cycle



Manager and learner together evaluate the development activities according to:

• The response of the team member • The knowledge gained and skills acquired • The impact on the department’s performance, organisation,

and the wider world

• You can evaluate activities using the diagram below.

Roll over the numbers to see the stages.

Evaluating learning

activities



• Task 11: Your learning experience

Think about a learning experience you have had within the last six months that is relevant to your job.

Analyse it by typing in your answers below.

What happened?

What did you learn?

How did you use the learning in your workplace?

What effect has that had on your department and in your organisation?

How could the learning experience have been improved?

What do you need to learn next (and why)?



• Task 12: Why are reviews essential?

Finally, explain why regular reviews of all employees’ learning needs and development are essential.




ReferencesArmstrong, M. & Baron, A. (2007), Performance

Management, Jalco.

Garr, S. & Liakopoulos, A. (2014), Performance Management is Broken, Human Capital Trends, Deloitte University Press, accessible at http://www2.deloitte.com/hr/en/pages/human-capital/articles/performance-mgmt-is-broken.html

Goodge, P. & Coomber, J. (2009), How to…Improve Appraisals, People Management, Vol 29, January, pp 57-58.

Leitch. (2006), Prosperity for All in the Global Economy: World Class Skills. Final Report; HM Treasury.

MacLeod, D. & Clarke, N. (2009), Engaging for Success. The MacLeod report; Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Taylor, S. (2010), Resourcing and Talent Management, 5ed, London: CIPD

Whetten, D.A. & Cameron, K.S. (2010), Developing Management Skills, 8ed, Prentice Hall.

Wilson, C. (2007), Best Practice in Performance Coaching, London: Kogan Page.

Institute of Leadership & Management39 Institute of Leadership & Management


• Task checklist

Below is a list of all the practical activities in this workbook to help you record your activity. Completing these will enable you to understand and practise the skills needed to get the best results from appraising and developing your staff.

Appraisals

Developing skills and knowledge

Correcting assumptions

Preparing for an appraisal

Keep it private

Best practice for appraisals

Your procedures

Becoming more effective

Five ways

What resources are available?

Your learning experience

Why are reviews essential?

Documents

Managing Staff Development