PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Performance Management is the facilitation of high achievement by employees. Performance management involves enabling people to perform their work to the best of their ability, meeting and perhaps exceeding targets and standards. Performance management can be coordinated by an interrelated framework between manager and employee. Key areas of the framework to be agreed are objectives, human resource management, standards and performance indicators, and means of reward. For successful performance management, a culture of collective and individual responsibility for the continuing improvement of business processes needs to be established, and individual skills and contributions need to be encouraged and nurtured. One tool for monitoring performance management is performance appraisal. For organizations, performance management is usually known as company performance and is monitored through business appraisal. (BNET, 2010)

Appraisal at work. When I used to work for Bupa Care Services, once a year my manager would call me for an appraisal and every two months for supervision. As a line manager, I needed to do the same for my staff. At the appraisal my manager would ask me questions about my performance. I could receive feedback on areas in which I should improve. I had a team of ten people working with me and I needed to answer questions about their performance too. My manager had rated my performance between 1-5 and my score was always 4. Every time on the appraisal I was getting target to achieve for the next year it was very hard to reach manager expectations because during the year she was changing her decisions too often and it was difficult to follow her ideas.

Mentor is person who has skills and experience to help other people, by giving advices or listening. A mentor leads as an example and is a role model. He/she can help to find ways to deal with immediate difficulties as well as helping to plan a long-term career strategy. Skills which mentor should have are:

· Analytical skills

· Experienced in areas

· Good at listening

· Good teacher

· Is approachable with any sorts of queries ( Business Times Online, 2008)

When i was sixteen I started my six form education in completely new school. I was lost and did not know anyone and because of that I had a school mentor who helped me through my two years of education. She introduced me to students with the same interests so that I could make friends quicker. She guided me trough whole study and helped me to build my confidence. By having a mentor I never felt alone. I knew that I could get help whenever I needed. My mentor taught me to always think positive and to be confident.

Performance management will not succeed without mentors because mentoring is one of the biggest way to develop staff and is a great way to help organisation to achieve their goals. A good mentoring program will provide motivation and inspiration.

REFERENCES:

1. Business Times Online, 2008,Business/Entrepreneurs: mentor can tune your skills-online source

Available from:

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/entrepreneur/article3778514.ece

(Accessed 02 May 2010)

2. BNET, 2010, Business dictionary-online source

Available from:

http://dictionary.bnet.com/definition/Performance+Management.html

(Accessed 02 May 2010)