GAMMON INDIA LIMITED

Performance Appraisal Guidebook

Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER CONTENTS

1 2

Introduction Overview of Performance Appraisal System

a) Eligibility b) Highlights c) Key Members of the Process

Guidelines for filling the Appraisal Forms

a) Assessment of Key Result Areas b) Assessment of Competencies c) Overall Assessment Score d) Individual Development Plan e) Career Advancement Potential

Performance Review Discussion

a) Guidelines for Appraisee b) Guidelines for Appraiser c) Pitfalls and Biases in Performance Rating

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

INTRODUCTION
A Performance Management system aims at institutionalizing a strong performance oriented culture in an organization. The purpose of this initiative is to: 1. Set & communicate the performance expectations clearly to all the employees 2. Assess performance in a fair & just manner 3. Provide a formal communication channel to provide feedback to the employees 4. Reward & recognize performance 5. Seek inputs for training needs of employees In order to make this system robust and successful, it is important for all members to understand the various process steps involved in this exercise. One must also understand the importance of each section of the Performance Appraisal form and how it is linked to the individuals rewards and career paths within the organization. Both appraiser and the appraisee need to prepare for this exercise and well understand their roles to make this system a success. We are planning to review and revamp our Performance Management System including the goal setting process in the forthcoming year. This would be designed in line with the strategic goals of the organization through a detailed exercise. However, as an interim measure, we are rolling out four different forms for different levels within the organization. Largely the modifications in the form are in the competencies and rating scales. These guidelines have been put together to give all members a detailed understanding of the above mentioned changes.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

OVERVIEW OF THE PROCESS

Eligibility and Process All the employees of Gammon who have joined the company on or before 30th September would be eligible for the performance review. The annual review would take place at the end of the performance cycle in the month of March that will entail the assessment of both the goals & competencies. The annual review would also encompass a detailed discussion between appraiser and appraisee to prepare a development plan for the appraisee. Performance linked rewards; promotions & increments communicated at the end of the performance cycle in April. will be

Highlights of the Process Key highlights of the Performance Appraisal System newly introduced in Gammon are as follows 1) Different set of competencies have been introduced for different role sets and levels. Refer to Table A 2) Multiple behavioural indicators have been defined for each competency to give a fair understanding of the competency to both the appraisee and the appraiser. However, these are only indicative lists and are not exhaustive. 3) Varying weightages have been assigned to achievement of performance goals and on competencies for various levels of employees. Refer to Table B. 4) Rating scales have been defined from 5 to 1 in descending order, for facilitating both ratings a) Rating on Goals /Performance b) Rating on Competencies. Refer to Table C. 5) Overall rating is derived by combining the Performance on Key Result Areas and Competency ratings. Refer to Table C to for the corresponding descriptions of overall ratings. 6) Self Assessment to be there both in the KRAs as well as in the Competency Assessment section.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines 7) A review and moderation process to be there is addition to ensure consistency and fairness in the entire process Table A

NOTE: Above weightages are applicable only for the Assessment Period 2006-07 and are subject to change in the next Performance review.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

TABLE B

TABLE C

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

KEY PLAYERS IN THE PROCESS The Performance Appraisal System has four key players each playing a crucial role in the process, viz, Appraisee, Appraiser, Reviewer & the Moderation Committee. Reviewer

Appraisee

KEY PLAYERS

Appraiser

Moderato r 1. Appraisee refers to the employee whose performance is to be appraised / reviewed / discussed. It is equal responsibility of the appraisee to be actively involved in this process. The appraisee has the onus of ensuring that his form with completed self assessment reaches the appraiser on time. 2. Appraiser is usually the appraisees immediate manager to whom the employee reports and interacts with on a very regular basis. The onus lies on the appraiser to ensure that the PMS process is adhered to in its true spirit. For this performance cycle, the appraiser needs to be at least at Assistant Manager and above grades. a. For certain functions like Plants, Finance which have a dual reporting structure viz. administrative and functional, feedback would need to be taken from both the managers / appraisers. b. For individual cases where an appraisee has worked on 2 or more projects within an assessment period of 1 year, i. the reporting manager with whom he has worked for majority of time would be the appraiser

ii. in case about equal time has been spent at both projects, feedback would be taken from both reporting managers.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines iii. In case the immediate manager has left the organisation, the reviewer needs to do the appraisal

3. Reviewer is usually the appraisers immediate superior. The role of the reviewer is to evaluate & review the overall performance management process of their divisions / departments / Sites. Typically the reviewers would be HOD / Functional Head / Site in charge. HR will assist you in defining the appraiser and the reviewer for each position and will map this information and send it to you. In case of any clarifications please contact HR. 4. Moderation Committee would review performance ratings of all the employees across Gammon and ensure that the entire process is consistent across the organization. The moderation committee will be at two levels in order to ensure that adequate attention is given to all levels in the organisation. a. The company would form multiple moderation subcommittees to address different levels in the organisation. This will ensure that a close scrutiny of positions at similar grades and across different functions is carried out. b. A second level of moderation committee would look at organisation wide moderation. The composition of the moderation committee will be defined and communicated subsequently.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

GUIDELINES FOR FILLING THE PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL FORM

Following are the various sections of the form and each one of them is critical for deriving the final assessment score of an individual. Part A Assessment on Key Result Areas (KRAs) This section should be filled by both the appraiser and the appraisee Aim is to assess the appraisee on the annual goals / targets The appraisee needs to refer to the rating scale matrix and rate his / her own performance during the year. Space is provided if the appraisee wishes to add additional comments to substantiate the rating. The appraiser needs to have a discussion with the appraisee and provide specific feedback on his / her performance also with reference to the self appraisal. The appraiser would need to explain to the appraisee which are the areas where he / she has a different view. Based on the rating scale the appraiser would be required to rate the individual on the KRAs and provide comments substantiating this.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

The final rating on Key Result Areas (KRAs) must be based on Appraisers ratings and must be arrived referring to the scale above. This rating is not to be shared with the appraisee. All figures need to be rounded to the nearest whole number.

Part B Assessment of Competencies This section should be filled by both the appraisee and appraiser Competencies are the behavioural characteristics that distinguish a star performer from an average performer. Each competency relevant to the position has been defined in the form of multiple behaviour indicators. Please note that these are not an exhaustive list of behavioural indicators, but only indicative in nature in order to help understand the competency well. Firstly, the Appraisee needs to assess oneself on each of the competencies by referring to the behavioural indicators mentioned against each competency in the form. Once the self Assessment is done, appraiser evaluates the competencies of the individual, that relate to his position and current role. The appraiser needs to have a discussion with the appraisee taking into account his / her self appraisal and provide specific feedback on the competencies areas of strength and improvement.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines Based on the rating scale the appraiser would be required to rate the individual on the competencies and provide comments substantiating this. At the end of the section, the appraiser needs to mention an overall rating for the competency section in the given box. It is calculated as the final average score i.e. (Sum of individual scores /No. of competencies). The final rating on competencies is based on appraiser ratings only. All figures need to be rounded to the nearest whole number.

Only for the forms at Level A, specific weightages have been assigned to each of the competencies and hence the cumulative competency score would be calculated as the weighted average.

Example :
Let us take an example of Mr. Vivek Sharma, designated as a Project Engineer. He has an Overall Performance Score of 4 on KRAs. This is based on Appraisers rating .Now, he needs to be assessed on various competencies listed in this section (refer to Table B on Page 6) .First the appraisee refers to the table above and fills a Self rating against each of the competency. Then the appraiser refers to Viveks self assessment scores. However, he feels differently about Vivek with respect to 2 competencies, Result Orientation and Team Work. He then discusses critical instances to reason this out with Vivek during the appraisal discussion and then fills his own ratings on the Manager rating columns. - 11 -

Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines Assuming that individual competency scores Self & managers, are as follows:
COMPETENCY Technical Knowledge Result Orientation Problem Solving & Innovation Customer Orientation Initiative & Self Direction Personal Effectiveness & Work Management Communication & Interpersonal Skills Team Work

SELF 4 4 2 3 2 3 3 4

MANAGER 4 3 2 3 2 3 3 3

The appraiser has given these individual scores not only by referring to the behavioural indicators on the form and from other critical instances during the year. Q -How would we calculate Mr. Viveks cumulative competency score? A- The Managers rating is used for calculating the same. Cumulative Competency score = Individual Competency Scores/ total no of competencies = (4+3+2+3+2+3+4+3)/8 = 23/8 =2.875 ,Rounded off figure must be recorded i.e. 3 Note: Had Mr Vivek been at. Level A, the calculations would be done as weighted average. Part C Overall Rating This section needs to be filled by the appraiser and would be reviewd by the reviewer. In this section, the Overall rating needs to be calculated as the weighted average of Overall Performance Score on Key Result Areas and Cumulative Competency Score. Do refer to the overall rating matrix in the form. For Level D employees, Competencies would be given a 100% weigtage and overall score would simply be calculated as the average of individual scores on each of the competencies. For Level C employees , Performance will be given a weightage of 30% in the overall rating and competencies 50%.It is calculated as ( 30/100* - 12 -

Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines Performance Score) + (70/100*Cumulative Competency Score) as in the Matrix below

For employees in Levels A & B, Performance will be given a weightage of 50% in the overall rating and competencies 50%. It is calculated as (50/100* Performance Score) + (50/100*Cumulative Competency Score). as in the matrix below:

Descriptions of the overall score are given in the matrix on Page 6 , ie Table C

Example: Let us take the same example of Project Engineer, Mr. Vivek Sharma cited in Part B. Q. How would we calculate his Overall Assessment Score? A. As he is in Level C, we would enter the Overall Performance Score i.e. 4 on Key Result Areas Cumulative Competency Score i.e. 3. Refer to the overall rating matrix above. Hence, his Overall Assessment Score would be 4.

Note: The matrix is provided in each of the appraisal forms for reference.

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines Part D Individual Development Plan This section should filled by the appraiser post discussion with the appraisee. The appraisee could have some specific trainings or developmental plan for oneself, which should be taken as inputs for this section. This section captures the employees Strengths, Improvements and Training Needs. While capturing the same the appraiser needs to consider the knowledge, skills and personal qualities. It is important to capture the training needs as Technical /Managerial or Behavioural as the developmental plans for Individual and Groups would be woven around the same.

Part E Career Development Potential This section should be filled by the appraiser and the reviewer It captures whether the employee is ready to move to higher positions within the organization. It must also capture the individuals interest or potential to move into lateral roles within the organization ie. Another department, location, function without necessarily any change in position or grade It is important for appraiser and reviewer to justify their recommendation and also mention the timeframe for the movement, and details of role and grade. The last part of this section and the form aims to capture any other comments about the appraisee by Appraiser and the Review

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

PERFORMANCE REVIEW DISCUSSION

Performance review is a two way communication process between the appraiser and the appraisee which enables a discussion on factors that enables / hinders performance of the appraisee. It is important to have some Pre-session planning before the action Performance discussion. While the onus of driving the discussion remains with the appraiser, appraisee too must actively get involved. PLANNING PRE- SESSION Deliberate on the following: Guidelines for the Appraisee My performance for the year My achievements for the period Pre-session of your targets and achievements on a regular basis. This Maintain a diary Planning: would help in tracking introspect on the points listed below. These equip the Appraisee needs to your own progress, reasons for non-achievement of targets etc.to have aon memory may lead tothe appraiser. facts and make the appraisee Relying fruitful discussion with diversion from discussion more judgmental. Introspect on your areas of concern Try charting out an Action Plan to address the gaps Analyze the root cause of the problem Try charting out an action plan to address the gaps and share the same with the appraiser with all requisite data / information Take the initiative and fix up a suitable time and venue for the meeting - 15 Approach the meeting with an open mind.

Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines During the review discussion

Receiving Feedback: Note down the points being discussed. In case of disagreements feel free to ask for clarifications. Ensure that the discussion is objective and fact based. Do not presume intentions of the appraiser. The feedback being given for development and improvement should be seen positively. After all, all of us are keen to learn and grow. Getting defensive or not listening to the feedback may actually hamper your selfdevelopment in the long run. If the feedback given is general, you can ask what the appraiser actually expects from the appraisee. You could ask for examples of actions expected.

Individual Development Plan The appraisee should take good initiative in making his/her development plan a success. Doing a self SWOT would be a good way to identify development plan. Guidelines for the Appraiser

Pre-session Planning:
Appraiser needs to introspect on the points listed below. These equip the appraiser to have a fruitful discussion with the appraisee. PRE- SESSION PLANNING Deliberate on the following: Appraisees self appraisal Appraisees performance for the year Appraisees achievements for the period? (+) Areas of concern (-) Collect and keep at hand Proof / Evidence / Support for the same

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines Review Session THE ACTUAL SESSION Always start the session by offering work-related positive feedback to the appraisee Discuss each performance element in detail be it Achievements & Competencies. Each discussion point should be well articulated and demonstrated. The appraiser should ensure that the appraisee understands the appraisers viewpoint. The appraiser must provide data/ facts to illustrate his/her feedback In case of any disagreement, it is important that the appraiser understands the appraisees viewpoint. Conduct the feedback session without interruption. E.g. avoid taking telephone calls, walking out of the room etc. Always conclude the feedback session on a positive note discussing about the future course of action for the appraisee

Documenting Feedback This is an important part of the process. The appraiser must jot down thoughts clearly and carefully being as factual as possible. Individual Development Plan The appraiser should take an initiative in developmental planning for the appraisee. You could take the following approach a) Identification of the Appraisees strengths & weaknesses b) Exploring the Appraisees career aspiration (s) and options available in the organization c) Preparation of a development plan for the appraisee

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Gammon Performance Appraisal Guidelines Pitfalls / Biases in Performance Rating Some of the pitfalls in performance rating are mentioned below: Halo Effect The halo effect happens when the appraiser is impressed by one key achievement of the appraisee and sees all other results in the same light. All other factors get a high rating because of a single high rating. Familiarity The appraiser tends to rate appraisee high, as his style of functioning, approach to work is similar to that of the appraiser. Horn Effect A single failure / non-achievement of target may be generalized to all other KRAs. The appraiser may tend to rate low on all other factors as well due to single low rating. Attitude vis a vis Performance Positive attitude may not always lead to high performance. Performance is a function of effort, motivation level and competency level. Be sure to rate the achievement of KRAs and not rate based on attitude. It is important to encourage a positive attitude and this is captured in the competencies or the appraiser can make a specific comment for the same separately. Attribution Both performance and non-performance can be attributed to external factors. While it is important to consider the external factors, it is also important to look at the individual effort / initiative taken and segregate them from the external factors. Recency Effect The appraiser is more influenced by the events in the recent period rather than the entire appraisal period. To avoid this, the appraiser needs to maintain records on the key achievements/ areas of development throughout the year.

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