Employment of Emerging Technologies in Employee Performance Appraisal

Information Technology (IT) has spread to every industry, making inroads into the most secretive parts of business operations. It has at least arrived at the doorsteps of those industries and is pounding furiously on the door until it is let in. Those who still need to integrate technological processes into their company practices are not listening to the profound shifts that technology is causing in our society. Large and powerful, technology rules all we see. However, the fact that it may also affect performance appraisal, one of the most vital human resource (HR) procedures, may surprise some [1].

For those unfamiliar, it is an assessment of an employee's performance over time about the number of criteria determined by the employer. Many of us working for private companies spend the year hoping for this promotion and wage increase. This approach to assessing performance uses various technological and non-technological resources [2]. In this piece, this article discusses the role that technology may play in enhancing the performance review process. While it is true that even time-honored approaches to evaluating performance, such as the Ranking system, use technology, forthcoming IT shifts can radically alter the performance evaluation landscape.

The HR department should put enormous time and effort into evaluating employee performance. Human resource managers may regain time and energy by relying less on manual processes and more on automated ones made possible by the widespread use of technology. Using various forms of automation, human resources departments may save a lot of time and energy formerly spent on paperwork and other tedious but essential duties [3]. There should be more room for mistakes whenever quantitative data is disputed since the performance assessment has been done largely via an automated method. When employees see this, they know their evaluation is accurate.

The Role of Technology in Performance Evaluation

·???????? Setting and monitoring goals

The HR department may now facilitate setting both short-term and long-term objectives for workers via the use of applications and software. Higher-ups may approve these objectives later, and their worth to the company's development can be measured. At assigning points to each objective, the HR director will have a quick and easy way to access information on how many objectives were met or how much value was brought to the company by the end of the term. These methods also aid in placing a monetary value on employees' accomplishments relative to the standards established by the company and in clearly revealing any gaps between anticipated and actual performance. Just think about all the other things you would have to do, like tracking down all the supervisors the worker ever reported to, interviewing them to find out how much they contributed to the company, etc.

·???????? Putting in place electronic performance evaluation systems

The HR division now has convenient online access to a wealth of data thanks to computerized performance assessment tools. They may access data on all of the company's workers from any of the company's offices worldwide. Team leaders may also be given access to these systems to update employee performance information monthly or more frequently. Take the 360-degree assessment approach; using an online appraisal system, all reviewers may provide comments at once, streamlining the process. Consider how much time will be saved if people do not have to wait in line to provide comments or fill out paper forms. Similarly, the employee's participation being reviewed is essential to the process. Using an online assessment system, employees may quickly and easily respond to specific questions or provide specific data requested by HR.

·???????? Collecting Data

Evaluating an employee's performance requires a large amount of information. Data collection is the foundation of the performance review process. This first phase is when technology may be most useful for gathering data. The most up-to-date technology allows storing information on staff absences, client complaints, recorded expressions of gratitude, participation in knowledge-oriented events, etc. Automating tasks helps keep track of data and ensure it is collected and organized correctly. By using cutting-edge technology to track employees' clock-in and clock-out hours, absenteeism, etc., organizations can provide HR departments with actionable data without overwhelming them with raw data. Utilizing technological advancements, a single page may provide all the fundamental data required to evaluate an employee's performance.

·???????? Use of Technology in Other Fields

Using these systems' combined findings helps speed up and streamline the performance review process. Data collected from these IT tools may then be used to make important personnel choices like departmental reorganizations, succession plans, assigning more difficult duties, or determining the need for further training in cases where performance falls short despite positive working circumstances. To simplify the performance review procedure, purchase a pre-made software package or have one developed specifically for your needs. Official web and mobile applications appeal to many businesses because they allow immediate data collection. Even without human intervention, certain applications can collect and organize data. The performance review procedure may be made easier and less time-consuming by using current technology and automating existing procedures, but this is entirely up to you.

References

[1] Farr JL, Fairchild J, Cassidy SE. Technology and performance appraisal. In The psychology of workplace technology 2013 Jul 24 (pp. 101–122). Routledge.

[2] Tirabeni L. Technology, Power, and the Organization: Wearable Technologies and Their Implications for the Performance Appraisal. In Performance Appraisal in Modern Employment Relations 2020 (pp. 61–85). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

[3] Sharma A, Sharma T. HR analytics and performance appraisal system: A conceptual framework for employee performance improvement. Management Research Review. 2017 Jun 19; 40(6): 684-97.