Performance Management - Essay Example

Performance management is a process that came into the scene during the period of 1980s and continues to impact the business environment (Armstrong, 1998, p.47). This research paper will focus on the topic of performance management while focusing specifically on the subjects of its definitions, purpose, benefits as well as methods used to conduct this process. Definition of Performance Management Researchers have provided the world of business with several definitions of performance management.

For example: Samsonowa defines performance management as a process that is conducted on continuous basis in order to attain the objective of improving individual’s performance of tasks while involving activities including setting of goals, providing feedback along with reinforcing behavior as well as training of employees (Samsonowa, 2011,p.33). According to this definition the process of performance management is conducted with the sole aim of enhancing individual task performances by providing certain aims and targets to employees for achievement and ensuring that these targets are met by providing training and development to employees and if employees fail to attain those targets, they are provided with further training and development in order to decrease their performance gaps.

The definition even pays emphasis to involvement of feedback, rewards as well as punishments in order to reinforce behavior. This means that with the assistance of performance management, employers first identify how well employees have performed and if they perform according to set targets and standards, they are provided with rewards to ensure that similar behavior occurs again in future and if they fail to attain targets they are punished in order to ensure that certain behaviors are not repeated.

Purpose of Performance Management The process of performance management and creation of performance management systems is done on the basis of either one or of the two purposes or for both the purposes including administrative/decision making purposes and developmental purposes (Smither, 2009). When performance management is conducted for the purpose of decision making/administrative purposes the aim of the organization is to use the process to document the performance of individual employees and to make decision regarding the rewards and punishments to be offered to employees.

The rewards and punishments that might be offered to employees on the basis of the process of performance management may include promotion or downgrade of an employee from one position to another increasing or decreasing compensation and benefits of the employees in order to either reinforce their performance or encourage them to perform better in future. On the other hand when the purpose of conducting performance management is developmental in nature, current performance of individuals is compared to either historical performance or set targets and if a difference between current and budgeted performance is figured out, employees are provided training and development in order to close the gap in performance levels.

Both purposes have their own strengths and the purposes cannot be rated in order to figure out which purpose is more effective and efficient. Advantage of the Process of Performance Management One of the main benefits of performance m