Performance appraisal is necessary for the functioning of each organization since it helps the employees understand the main strategies of the company and contribute to the fulfillment of its objectives. Creating good measures of team performance is difficult but not impossible (Brannick, Salas and Prince 15), and just like any activity of this kind it is going to take time and effort, but it will be rewarding without any doubt.
One way of doing this is to involve the team itself (Denhardt, R., Denhardt, J. V and Aristigueta 309) with the purpose of giving and receiving feedback from each employee. Performance appraisal of a health care team is even more important due to the fact that “doctors have traditionally not been trained in giving and receiving feedback about performance” (Bhugra and Bell 291). Over the years the scholars disputed which method of evaluating team performance is better, but most of the managers keep to the point that 360-degree appraisal is one of the most efficient. It is necessary to thoroughly consider this method of performance measurement in order to justify its application for evaluating the performance of the health care team.
To begin with, it is relevant to clarify the notion of the 360-degree appraisal. This kind of appraisal is all about “an assessment of the individual’s performance at the end of the year or any other performance period by himself, his subordinates (direct reports), colleagues, boss (or other seniors with whom he has a reporting relationship), and external customers if any” (Rao 242), which means that the employee is evaluated “by all who have contact: supervisors, peers, clients, and the public” (Manatt 8). However, a 360-degree appraisal may focus not only on the employees but on the manager or customer as well.
The key role of the appraisal lies on the manager who, after customers’ and employees’ filling a specially-designed questionnaire, evaluates the obtained data “interpreting the feedback and shaping employee development” (Jackson and Greller 18). In general, a 360-degree appraisal helps “to promote teamwork, employee involvement, and other TQM principles” (Pollack 507) since, due to its anonymity, it allows obtaining honest opinions.
What else should be mentioned, is that certain problems may be faced when selecting participants of the 360-degree appraisal. The healthcare team usually involves a member of low statuses, for instance, nurses or clerical staff, who might want to participate in the appraisal as well. Since the participation in the evaluation is voluntary these members should decide themselves whether the data they can provide may prove to be important for the feedback and whether they indeed can be regarded as members of the team. If they are not an integral part of the team and its activities, their responses about the team’s performance will be meaningless and will bias the data (Heinemann and Zeiss 22).
And finally, a 360-degree appraisal is not the only way of evaluating the team’s performance. Other methods include, for example, benchmarking, when the feedback of the team of one company is compared with those from similar organizations. At this, it should be kept in mind that “the individual team member actually performs a number of roles: as an individual contributor, as a member of the team, and as a member of the larger organization” (Manager’s Toolkit 111) that’s why a combination of such methods as “peer ratings, customer satisfaction ratings, self-appraisal and team-leader review” (Manager’s Toolkit 111) is advisable.
Therefore, it can be stated, that 360 degrees appraisal is an efficient method of team performance evaluation since it increases employee involvement and helps to get reliable information. However, there also exist other methods of performance appraisal this is why the choice lies on the manager of a separate organization.
References
Brannick, M.T., Salas, E., Prince, C. Team Performance Assessment and Measurement: Theory, Methods, and Applications. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1997. Web.
Denhardt, R., Denhardt, J. V and Aristigueta, M.P. Managing Human Behavior in Public & Nonprofit Organizations. SAGE, 2001. Web.
Bhugra, B., Bell, S. Management for Psychiatrists. RCPsych Publications, 2007. Web.
Rao, T.V. Performance Management and Appraisal Systems: HR Tools for Global Competitiveness. SAGE, 2004. Web.
Mannat, R.P. “Feedback from 360 Degrees”. School Administrator 54.3 (1997): 8. Web.
Jackson, J.H., Greller, M.M. “Decision Elements for Using 360 Degree Feedback”. Human Resource Planning 21.4(1998): 18. Web.
Pollack, D.M., Pollack L.J. “Using 360 Degree Feedback in Performance Appraisal”. Public Personnel Management 25.4 (1996): 507. Web.
Heinemann, G.D., Zeiss, A.M. Team Performance in Health Care: Assessment and Development. Springer, 2002. Web.
Manager’s Toolkit: The 13 Skills Managers Need to Succeed. Harvard Business Press, 2004. Web.