As a manger I must provide my team with guidance and I must make sure that they have the necessary tools for them to fulfil their work duty as well as meeting the organisations objectives. It’s my responsibility to identify when there is an issue at hand and to find the best viable solution, whether it is through meetings, training, sharing experience, seeking assistance outside the organisation etc. For any organisation to be successful, it’s the manager’s responsibility to be able to identify when performance issues arise and why they do.
Performance issues will typically fall under one of three basic areas: Behavioural Issues – these can relate to underperformance of the employee linked to personal problems, time management etc. Skill Issues – relating to lack of skills, resulting in unsatisfactory work quality and/or quantity, due to lack of training etc. Knowledge issues – employees aren’t aware of what is expected of them taking for granted that what they produce is of good standard.
There are signs that would indicate to a manager that there are performance issues within the team, things such as stress, deadlines or objectives not being met, complaints, continuous absence etc.A.C. 1.3 ” Identify the limits of responsibility for dealing with individual and team performanceAs a manager I am responsible with overseeing that my staff work towards meeting the team and organisational objectives as the wellbeing of all my employees. There are occasions when a need to refer the employee to a professional body as the issue is beyond my level of expertise or authority. When the performance issue at hand is related to a skills issue, I will ensure that the staff is offered the necessary training/support so they are able to be competent at their job. All training and future courses would be recommended and approved by me and fall under my full responsibility.If the issue is due to behaviour, such as poor time management it would need to be addressed in the form of one to one meetings with myself and the employee and the problem discussed to get the root of the cause. If after discussion the problem is persistent and doesn’t get resolved e.g. arriving late, the matter would then need to be referred to HR for disciplinary action as that would not fall under my responsibility.Bonuses are given by measuring recovery of debt, it’s my responsibility to identify achievements made by staff and recognise their hard work in their yearly appraisal, although when it comes to the amount awarded this would be out of my responsibility and would be determined by higher management, this can have a negative effect on performance if amount awarded is lower than expected. Task 2: A.C. 1.2 – Describe how to evaluate individual and team performance and behaviours An effective way to measure and evaluate both individual and team performance and behaviours and to optimise performance and productivity is through a performance management system. In my line of work we measure performance using several KPIs; these include recovery of debt rate, payment of receivable rate and client complaints.Recovery of debt rate: Staff is tasked with an equal number of debtors they are responsible for chasing payments from before 30 days, allocated on a two month rotation basis, I am able through a report to check each employee’s recovery rate and view how they are performing. Payment receivable rate: as with recovery, same principles apply but payment of invoices within 30 days.Client complaint rate: complaints go through an automated system which allows the clients to state the nature of the complaint and against which employee it, this information is only accessible by me and received daily.All above reports are reviewed by me at the end of the month; I measure each individual performance and review their targets, compare statistics against any complaints received and establish if there is a trend. I will then monitor the individual by observing and making notes. If required through 121 meetings discuss any undesirable variances with them highlighting the facts why they have been summoned and mentioning it is not a personal vendetta, we will try and find ways to improve the desired results.Team performance is measured on a quarterly basis in order to ensure the staff has rotated clients/suppliers once. It allows me to view the team’s collective performance when abiding to 30 day credit and payment terms and also to establish any difficult paying clients or if the variance is linked to individual performance. During these meetings we set different targets and allocate different job roles for the following quarter in order to give all the staff necessary experience to cover all aspects of accounting. Weekly meetings occur to discuss any issues that the team may be facing at any level and any feedback the team wants to state regarding other colleagues or clients. A.C. 2.1 – Identify the range of approaches availableWhen evaluating the performance issue at hand I prefer to use the ASK model, this allows me to identify the root of the cause and then find the best approach. It is my responsibility as a manager to determine whether what is causing said issue is attitude, skill or knowledge orientated. If the issue is a one off which is solved on its own then this would most probably not be a cause for concern and no further action is required and more to do with behaviour. When the issue becomes a trend and can be determined it is for a period of time, then this is more likely to be skill or knowledge orientated, although a behavioural issue can also be continuous and would need to be tackled as with the other two.E.g. debt recovery should be less than 30 days and by means of a report it can used to evaluate employees who are not meeting said deadline. When debts aren’t recovered on time I need to determine why, sometimes it can be the client who falters. But if the cause is determined to be lack of knowledge an appropriate solution is to offer the person to shadow another member, coaching or mentoring depending on the case. This way they can share their experiences and skills to help this employee. If the cause is due to lack of skill such us producing databases in excel, the individual will be offered training whether it be in-house, a course or distance learning all of which would help the individual gains skills which otherwise they would lack. Task 3:A.C. 2.2 – Describe the different methods available in providing help and support in order to improve performance of an individual One of the most important things required to ensure improvement in performance of an individual is for the employee to feel happy and motivated. Occasionally employees will start to underperform due to lack of skills or knowledge. The organisation through their annual appraisal which once a year and reviewed every six months, gives both the staff and the manager the opportunity to highlight the areas they feel they lack these skills or raise any concern. The individual completes questionnaire on their performance evaluation of where they feel they are. Then I meet with the individual on 121 basis and discuss the best approach possible and how this will benefit them in terms of their work. Once the training has been agreed, we set up an action plan stating when this will occur. In addition the organisation operates a bonus system which is linked to the previous year’s appraisal, as the manger I am responsible for allocating part of the bonus linked to their performance based on this. This is a good incentive to getting the staff motivated and improving performance as they will be rewarded.A.C. 2.3 – Explain how to conduct a performance counselling session for an individual Once the performance of an individual has been determined as being unsatisfactory it is my responsibility to conduct a performance counselling session.1. Inform employee why they are being called to attend said meeting, this is done via email, with a brief explanation on the matter including date, time and location.2. Meet with the assistant manager and makes notes of this person’s overall performance including their positive points. 3. Meet with employee in the board room as there are no phones and fewer distributions will occur. Highlight all the positive things about their performance and then explain what area they’re performing poorly. I will listen to their side of the story and determine if there is a valid reason, then establish the best course of action and what training would be best. 4. Create the plan, agree the training required, explain importance of completing it and state consequences of not, agree a time frame for completion as well as a date to review it, provide the employee with a copy of the plan.5. Meet after performance period has elapsed and go through performance plan agreed, determine if it has been successfully completed, if so congratulate. If not either set another or take further action such as disciplinary. A.C. 2.4 – Explain the importance of maintaining confidentialityMaintaining confidentiality is of paramount importance and must be adhered to in line with the GDPR May 18 which states that personal information cannot be disclosed without prior consent being sought. This ensures that confidentiality between employee and employer aren’t discussed with anyone other than those involved, hence protecting employees from having their personal/work life discussed behind their back. This allows for trust to be built as confidentially is a fundamental pillar of this, if the employee knows that they can speak to their manger about anything it is more likely for the matter to be resolved sooner. If confidentiality is broken it will give cause for an unpleasant working environment to occur as this will lead to there being no trust between workers. Once this happens it would be very difficult to restore and would require forgiveness and forgetness which would take time to be built again. Confidentially is also about keeping all documents safe, I make sure happens by keeping all physical documents under lock and key with restricted access as well as keeping all virtual personal documents password protected and restricted.