Performance Management For Poverty And Injustices – Oxfam New Zealand

Definition of Performance Management

Discuss about the Performance Management for Poverty and Injustices.

Oxfam New Zealand is a non-profit organization guided by its rules and objectives to offer lasting solutions to poverty and injustices. The company focuses on vision and missions of safer, fair and a sustainable world for all to enjoy in the breath of hope and opportunity.  The organization’s fight for justice and poverty eradication bestowed upon its robust performance system. Oxfam New Zealand has improved in the role performance and real satisfaction possibly of the organizational process adopted by the entity and employees.

Organizations depending on the most flexible and adaptable performance management enjoy not only employees’ performance but also high workers’ retention. Employees are more than motivated to efficiently and productively carry their duties with dear diligence and dedication. Rather its right to state that Oxfam New Zealand puts the positive and dedicated system to boosts the work force therein achieve the best effort and skills to organization’s interest.

Organizations practicing adequate performance appreciates the importance of every step of the system and their contribution to the firms’ effective retention and motivation of workforce (Buckingham & Goodall, 2015). They dignify the planning concept, monitoring, development and succession planning stage as a component of an effective performance management.

Companies depend on performance management to style up their organizational process to create a working environment that empowers employees to perform at the best of their abilities. The best performance management takes a consideration of parties contributing to the business growth and development (Wolpert et al., 2014). However, organizations exhibit different performance management systems. Though the primary target coined on the goals setting, evaluation, and rewards. Both disseminated by the coaching of the parties. The parties include;

• Executives and senior leaders
• Managers
• Human resource manager
• Employees

The stage of planning is concerned with the setting of achievement goals for the employees and their managers. The managers are expected to discuss the expected levels of performance for the job (Wolpert et al., 2014). The expectation of each employee is designed to fit its departmental role. While planning the employee and the manager must come into terms on the expected. The set goals are achievable within the described period of operation, most probably a year.

Employees then work with the motive of achieving the set goals within the specified period. They keep the track and remain communicating on regularly to their managers as well as taking a full personal responsibility for their growth both professionally and career-wise.

The Process of Performance Planning

Under the stage, the company strategically define each worker’s goals and align them to with the strategy of the corporate (DeNisi & Smith, 2014). The process is usually collaborative in nature. After the creation of the plan, the company defines the primary job functions and responsibilities through a goal framework of SMART analysis.

The stage is concerned with the employee surveillance and assessment by the responsible manager. The assigned manager remains focused on the employee’s progress towards goals. The procedure hits the expectation of the coaching requirements (Wang & Sarkis, 2013). The manager ensures either a monetary or non-monetary rewards to an employee that hits the target. The Oxfam New Zealand can adequately sustain the process by keeping the managers also on the self-progress tracking. The managers are also expected to track their progress on the set goals. The monitoring process accumulates reliable information for appraisal purposes.

Employees are, therefore, encouraged to motivate themselves through success and challenges hoping from the improvement. The managers, on the other hand, recognize and reinforce the employees’ roles and performances by maintaining persistent as well as endless conversations on their performances (Kerr & Hayward, 2013).

It incorporates the manager’s role and the worker commitment on professional growth and development. Managers’ define the clear and measurable expectations as well as provide a climate conducive to success.  They guide performance and guide consistence of high level improvement over time as well as certainly make employee tasks to contribute to the departmental goals attainment (Kerr & Hayward, 2013). Also, they determine the issues of performance and set a clear course to correct as well as improve the challenges. The employees are provided with constructive conditions on improvements to sustain their growth. They as well held responsible and accountable to meet their performance goals through a clear communication strategy by the managers.

Often, policies about performances are well set, and training and consultations captured. The communicated management’s guidance through the best practices in performance to employees. If properly followed, a company enjoys high employee motivation and retention.

It evaluates the workers’ performance by coordinating feedbacks from employees to managers. The managers consider the comments by proper observation. It asses the previous year’s evaluation in comparison to the current performances ((DeNisi & Smith, 2014). It enforces the acceptable performance boundaries by promoting effective communication and staff recognition as well as motivating employees to perform the best of their all.

The Performance Monitoring

If done fairly and objectively, the workers’ morale rises and expectations level improve. A good evaluation does not asses only the job performances but also the employees’ motivational skills and offers directional communication strategy to solve the issues.

The appropriate evaluation gives employees a chance to capture on their jobs and related expectations. Their contributions are valued on the larger picture of the organization’s success. They end up accomplishing their goas as well as achieving additional benefits (Rabl et al., 2012). The goals of performance evaluation cut across employees’ goals and outputs, development and organizational growth, performance and documentation and non-discriminating employee performance appraisal processes. The Oxfam New Zealand can improve its performance by applying an evaluative system appealing to employees’ career and professional success.

In focused companies, succession planning determines the future of business in case an executive or an employee resigns or gets fired. The ultimate goals of the planning factor the reality in continuous of the firm’s operation regardless of labor issues (Rabl et al., 2012). An organization natures and develop its workforce through educative and training programs to improve their skills, knowledge, qualities and experience in relevant areas of specialization. The well-groomed employees fit the vacant positions left by the company.

Through the process, the current and future needs of the business are determined based on the goals and objectives. The recognized opportunities are matched based on the qualities and capabilities of the available employees as well as developing a plan appropriate for gap management (Wang & Sarkis, 2013). The Oxfam New Zealand can efficiently achieve the succession plan by continuous supplying qualified and motivated workers with a motive to take over from the current senior staff after they leave the organization.

The five stages critically enhance the performance management that best suits the company’s demands to retain and motivate employees.

The company may have problems with its workforce due to non-compliance with the rules. To affectively perform its disciplinary steps while handling such cases, the company can opt for the system. The progressive system advocates for a fair and best practice to fire an employee as well as lies with the legal considerations (Van Dooren et al., 2015). The Oxfam New Zealand Organization can use the model as outlined in the stages;

The issuance of verbal reprimand lies upon notification of the worker’s performance problem by the supervisor. The supervisor should interrogatively determine the problem and the corrective measures to take (Buckingham & Goodall, 2015). The complete copy of the discussion is kept to help for retrieval purpose in case future necessary steps are required.

The Performance Development

In the persistent of the problem, a supervisor provides a worker with a written warning detailing the behavior and related consequences. The writing outlines the standards of behavior and judgement criteria upon failure to improve the performance (Van Dooren et al., 2015). The supervisor attaches the copy of the writing on the employee’s work profile.

Failure to improve welcomes the final written warning containing the probation status of the employee. The attached are the copies of the previous warnings as well as the defined period of improvement (Seuring & Gold, (2013).

After failing to improve within the specified period, the supervisor notifies the Human Resource Manager on the persisted problem. The stage looks at the issues of contractual relationship claim by an employee, compensation claim, and matters of good faith and fair dealing before effecting the step (Seuring & Gold, 2013).

The stage gets implemented if there are enough assurance that an employee had sufficient time to improve though failed. The copies of the previous warnings either oral or written documented for the best interest of the company in case the case goes to a court.

The purpose of performance management depends on the benefit of an organization. Some entities define their performance management on administrative use while others build theirs on the productivity basis (Seuring & Gold, 2013).

The organizations guided by administrative performance management have the following as their reasons;

• To make decisions on promotions, payment, and other actions.
• To identify employees performing poorly as well as keep them accountable.
• To provide documentation against legal challenges they may encounter.

However, to the entities with performance management aligned on the productivity, the reasons are as listed;

• To help employees’ growth and development.
• To improve communication between managers and employees.
• To achieve the organization’s success by aligning the employee role.
• To help individual employee and teams to perform to their best ability.

The above two perspective suit the company’s purpose considering what it aims to achieve (Poister et al., 2013). Although, for the best approach in the modern economy, an organization should select a plan with the following critical points;

• Allow employees align their efforts to have a maximized contribution to the goals and objectives of an organization.
• Guide employees and monitor their behavior as well as results with adjustment required to maximize performance (Poister et al., 2013).
• Help employees eliminate by identification the boundaries of performance.

The three primary purposes above contribute effectively to an organization’s effectiveness by giving new hires opportunities to learn and gain experiences as well as skills and knowledge. The practicality of the contribution relies on the improved customer coverage, increased profitability, and production efficiency (Rolstadas, 2012).

The Induction Program for Canterbury College Staff

The constructed induction program is appropriate for Canterbury College in recruiting its new employees.

Introduction to Canterbury College and area of work

• A new employee familiarizes with the College’s mission, vision, and objectives within his/her area of work.
• The outlining of the requirements of the work and its contribution to the College.
• An employee visits the operational and social areas key to the roles within a job description (Mazur, 2013).

Introduction to staff members

• An employee familiarizes with the team members as well as having contact with work partners.
• The functions and responsibilities discussed in generality.
• An employee goes through the College chart.

Terms and conditions

• They go through terms and conditions of the job description.

Performance standards

• Outlines job descriptions, goals, objectives and expectations.
• Get a review of probation, performance and development as well as appraisal terms.

The work culture

• Covers the working hours, holiday concerns, sickness excuses, dress code, overtime duties and lunch and breakfast arrangements.

Systems of the office

• Use of computers, telephones, printers, photocopier and voicemail. The review of using libraries, laboratories, and other relevant areas.

Job training and development

• The software of use, the specific and general duties and possibility of growth to the college staff.
• It also covers the personal development tools.

Health and safety

• It includes the areas of firs exits, fire extinguisher and fire alarms.

Monitoring and evaluation

• There should be a review of training through meetings as well as having checklists and assessment.

Probation

• Applicable to the recruits.

The program contains;

• Employees get coaching on the use of their appropriate software of use. Done on one to one training after identification of weak areas. The process is practical of a theory concept (Mazur, 2013).
• Focuses on the attitude development. The college should use it for managerial employees. It is also a one to one method.
• Job rotation. Employees rotate on related jobs. Therefore, the college must rotate workers of similar job descriptions to acquaint them with different skills.
• Job instructional technique. The college through a suitable trainer trains an employee on the overview of the job, job purpose and expected results (De Jonge et al., 2012). Skills and are demonstrated then a trainee follows the procedural steps done by a trainer.

They are done in environments different from a job. They are;

• Lectures and conferences. They are verbal presentations for a large group of employees. They motivate employees’ interests.
• Vestibule training. The training creates a similar working condition with the real job condition. The knowledge and skills gained fits the actual working scenario and are applicable (Rolstadas, 2012).
• Simulation exercises. The training environment resembles the actual environment. It uses management games, case study, role playing and in-basket training.
• Sensitivity training. It allows employees reveal their personal qualities. It encourages recruits to exhaust their best through the training process.

The benefits gained by Canterbury College after training employees

• Improvement in economic operation. After training, employees minimizes wastage of resources by productive and industrial use.
• Greater productivity. Training improves skills and confidence thus a worker performs with an ability to achieve higher and quality products (De Waal, 2013).
• Reduced supervision. Adequate training reduces the call for careful monitoring.
• Motivated morale. Training equips workers with necessary skills thus they operation with a confidence of knowing and performing as expected (Mazur, 2013).
• Systematic skills impartment. Training reduces required time for reaching acceptable standards of performance.

Importance of induction to Employees

• Improved employee morale. Induction helps employees to cope positively by familiarizing with work description and expectation. Therefore, they work having no doubt on their services.
• Increased productivity. Employees’ productivity level increases due to skill and knowledge acquisition through induction.
• The employees’ sense of acceptance in the college increases as the procedure treats them as recognized members of the college even before they start their work (Ghamkhari & Mohsenian-Rad, 2013).
• Establishment of a sense of communication. New employees develop a communication sense from the interaction they get during induction. 

References

Buckingham, M., & Goodall, A. (2015). Reinventing performance management. Harvard Business Review, 93(4), 40-50.

De Jonge, J., Spoor, E., Sonnentag, S., Dormann, C., & van den Tooren, M. (2012). “Take a break?!” Off-job recovery, job demands, and job resources as predictors of health, active learning, and creativity. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology,21(3), 321-348.

DeNisi, A., & Smith, C. E. (2014). Performance appraisal, performance management, and firm Level performance: a review, a proposed model, and new directions for future research.

The Academy of Management Annals, 8(1), 127-179.

De Waal, A. (2013). Strategic Performance Management: A managerial and behavioral approach. Palgrave Macmillan.

Ghamkhari, M., & Mohsenian-Rad, H. (2013). Energy and performance management of green data centers: A profit maximization approach. IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, 4(2), 1017-1025.

Kerr, E. A., & Hayward, R. A. (2013). Patient-centered performance management: enhancing  value for patients and health care systems. Jama, 310(2), 137-138.

Mazur, A. (Ed.). (2013). State feminism, women’s movements, and job training: Making democracies work in the global economy. Routledge.

Rabl, T., Gómez-Villamor, S., Sadoghi, M., Muntés-Mulero, V., Jacobsen, H. A., & Mankovskii,(2012). Solving big data challenges for enterprise application performance management. Proceedings of the VLDB Endowment, 5(12), 1724-1735.

Rausch, P., Sheta, A. F., & Ayesh, A. (Eds.). (2013). Business intelligence and performance management: theory, systems and industrial applications. Springer Science & Business Media.

Rolstadas, A. (Ed.). (2012). Performance management: A business process benchmarking approach. Springer Science & Business Media.

Pollitt, C. (2013). The logics of performance management. Evaluation, 19(4), 346-363.

Poister, T. H., Pasha, O. Q., & Edwards, L. H. (2013). Does performance management lead to better outcomes? Evidence from the US public transit industry. Public Administration Review, 73(4), 625-636.

Seuring, S., & Gold, S. (2013). Sustainability management beyond corporate boundaries: from stakeholders to performance. Journal of Cleaner Production, 56, 1-6.

Van Dooren, W., Bouckaert, G., & Halligan, J. (2015). Performance management in the public sector. Routledge.

Wang, Z., & Sarkis, J. (2013). Investigating the relationship of sustainable supply chain management with corporate financial performance. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 62(8), 871-888.

Wolpert, M., Deighton, J., De Francesco, D., Martin, P., Fonagy, P., & Ford, T. (2014). From ‘reckless’ to ‘mindful’in the use of outcome data to inform service-level performance  management: perspectives from child mental health. BMJ quality & safety, bmjqs-2013.