Deloitte's 2017 study takes a swipe at the assessment and talent identification tool HRDs love: the annual interview.
Indeed, 70% of HR managers consider this evaluation system ineffective in any environment, but even more so in the case of start-ups. Some additional figures are interesting to note:
- 25% of employees do not understand the interview process
- 55% of HRDs do not receive completed interview materials
The annual appraisal interview, a static tool to be developed
Orange, Netflix, General Electric… The list of companies that have put an end to the annual appraisal interview practice continues to grow. Digital transformation has contributed greatly to the obsolescence of traditional HR tools in favor of more engaging daily solutions for managers and their employees.
In this respect, the annual appraisal interview is undermined by its time lag, which renders the information obsolete and unusable. The ADE requires the gathering of information after a long period of time, yet the expectations of generation Y or Z from their manager are based on fluid and permanent communication.
Why should the annual interview evolve?
- The lack of adaptation to the “project” model in which companies evolve, which requires regular feedback to achieve their short-term objectives.
- The inadequacy of the interview medium, which requires repeated entry of information.
- The focus is on performance objectives when it should be on development objectives.
Faced with short-term imperatives, support for actions and projects based on daily observations is more suited to today's management. As a result, the annual periodicity of this traditional interview no longer matches its expectations.
Continuous feedback promotes increased HR agility
During the course of their career, managers may encounter difficulties in effectively managing their teams and setting up an efficient HR Dashboard . Today, 70% of team managers are asking for a complete overhaul of their management system. The agility stemming from“Lean management” methods is reflected in management tools. Louis Vuitton has taken this step by choosing the Performance et Engagement solution. Here’s whatArnaud Garni, Director of Employee Experience and Commitment, has to say about the experience.
Our ongoing approach to performance management enables us to become more cooperative, to give more autonomy and a greater role to the employee in the managerial relationship.
The choice of a digitalized system responds to the need for collaboration in setting, updating and achieving objectives. Faced with the expectations of this collaborative environment, the individual nature of the annual performance review loses its interest and takes the form of an administrative obligation that is 95% rejected by managers.
We recommend 2 collaborative tools Manager/Collaborator :
- The evaluation of skills in real time in the form of self-evaluation and validation by the manager
- Real-time evolution of performance objectives, shared by both actors
Continuous feedback is a guarantee of commitment and performance
The recognition of work and efforts made brings a feeling of co-responsibility and learning in the face of each situation encountered.
A Gartner study shows that continuous feedback increases engagement by nearly 40% and performance by 26%.
Feedback becomes an HR development tool for the benefit of the team, it empowers employees and promotes internal cooperation which is a natural performance factor. The talents of a company, whose main expectations are to express themselves and to contribute to improvements, become as legitimate as their managers in recommending actions. The gradual establishment of this form of managerial culture is all the more effective as feedback is accompanied by “feedforward “, which allows employees to reflect on future-oriented options. Without any positive or negative judgments, this technique leads to a behavioral change that empowers employees to find solutions.
What are the challenges in creating a culture of continuous feedback?
Any company whose management model is not necessarily collaborative but more top-down will have difficulties. In order for this culture to come to life, it must be embodied by top management. This means focusing on the work actually done and complementing the results.
Before choosing this talent management preference, it is best to conduct a diagnosis and set objectives: what do we want to solve in the way we evaluate and identify talent? It may be a question of declining retention, a difficulty in making high potentials aware of the company's vision, etc.
While Benoit Serre – Deputy Vice President of the ANDRH speaks of“quiet quitting” to characterize the progressive attitude of employees, the time is ripe for innovation in the modes of employer/employee relations.
The challenges are therefore human and cultural in nature:
- The support of local managers. Managers must be the essential vectors of this new managerial culture.
- Dissemination of the benefits of continuous feedback. For the individual and collective good, this approach must be communicated and experienced by the stakeholders.
- Measuring renewed trust requires a simple solution that embodies the new culture.
