Performance Appraisal Interview

I interviewed Jaclyn Price, the HR Manager at VitalSmarts.  

1. How often do you perform employee evaluations?
These are done twice a year.

2.  What categories do you rate your employees on?
The overall categories for which VitalSmarts employee are evaluated are goals, budget management, and attitude.
 
3. How important do you feel an employee evaluation is?
These are important for the employees because they determine pay increase or punishments for not meeting goals.
 

4. How long do your evaluations take you to prepare?  
Not very long, since the HR manager does not meet with the employees. The employees do a peer review and then meet with their direct manager. 

5. How long is each meeting with your employees?
The employees don't meet with the HR manager, but after they do the peer evaluation, they meet for 1 hour with their direct manager.


In conducting this interview, I learned more about what we learned in class concerning the different forms performance evaluations can take.  I like the idea of a peer evaluation since they work directly with you and managers may not see how you work, just when you work and your attitude when they happen to see you working.  That gives a more realistic view into how you work with others and how that influences the workplace.  That being said, if you don't have that many people that work with you, then you will know where the feedback is coming from and, if it's a poor evaluation, then some people could get offended. A meeting with the direct manager is how most companies complete evaluations, I believe, since HR representatives don't work with the employees.  It's important to know what form your company does evaluations so that you as the employee or as the manager can properly prepare.