Peer Reviewed Articles on 3-5 Metrics the Organization Could Measure Employee Performance

Bus Horiz. 2021 January-February; 64(1): 149–160.

Measuring performance during crises and across: The Performance Promoter Score

Herman Aguinis

^aSchool of Business concern, The George Washington Academy, 2201 Thou Street NW, Washington, DC 20052, UsA.

Jing Burgi-Tian

^bSchoolhouse of Concern & Center for Excellence in Public Leadership, The George Washington University, 2201 Yard Street NW, Washington, DC 20052, U.Due south.A.

Abstract

Many organizations are curtailing or even abandoning performance management considering of difficulties measuring performance and disruptions in performance-based pay due to the COVID-19 crisis. Contrary to this growing and troubling trend, nosotros argue that information technology is especially of import during the crisis to not simply go on but besides strengthen operation direction to communicate a house's strategic direction, collect valuable business data, provide critical feedback to individuals and workgroups, protect organizations from legal risks, and retain top talent. To do and so, we offer a solution to overcome the challenges associated with measuring performance during a crisis. Specifically, nosotros extend and expand upon the well-established Cyberspace Promoter Score measure in marketing and introduce the Performance Promoter Score (PPS) to measure functioning. We offer show-based recommendations for collecting PPS data for individuals, workgroups, and other collectives, computing a Net Functioning Promoter Score (NPPS); using multiple sources of performance information, and using PPS for authoritative and developmental purposes as well equally to provide more frequent operation check-ins. PPS is a convenient, practical, relevant, and useful performance measure during a crisis such as the COVID-nineteen pandemic, but it is also an innovation that will be useful long later the pandemic is over.

KEYWORDS: Operation direction, Employee performance, COVID-nineteen, Performance appraisal, Employee development, Leadership, Net Promoter Score

ane. Performance management during crises: Is it still relevant?

Performance direction is a critical talent management role in organizations of all types and sizes and all industries (Aguinis et al., 2011). Specifically, performance direction is "a continuous process of identifying, measuring, and developing the performance of individuals and workgroups and aligning performance with the strategic goals of the organization" (Aguinis, 2019b, p. 8). But, considering of the COVID-19 crisis, performance direction has been severely disrupted. Pushed into survival mode, many organizations are downgrading and even completely discontinuing their usual fashion of measuring performance. Marygrove Awning Co. in Livonia, Michigan discarded virtually of the components of their system because, as CEO Mike Falahee put it: "After all, how tin nosotros review someone who can't exercise their chore the style they're accustomed to doing it?" (O'Connell, 2020).

Before the pandemic, 85% of organizations linked performance to pay (Mercer, 2019). In contrast, during COVID-19, many organizations are intentionally separating functioning from pay decisions. Facebook appear that all of its 45,000 full-time employees will receive the same "exceeds expectations" in their first-quarter performance review in 2020 (Seetharaman, 2020). Other organizations stopped performance-based pay increases altogether. Based on data collected past WorldatWork (2020), as of April 3, 2020, 17% of organizations surveyed canceled salary increases in 2020, while another 19% were on concur and waiting to make that decision.

Given this state of affairs, organizations and leaders are request the following questions:

• Is performance management even so relevant and useful during a crisis?
• Because employees cannot practise their work the way they used to, functioning is more than hard to measure, and there is no performance-based pay increase, what is the point in continuing to manage performance?

These are dangerous questions because talent management is a key determinant of business firm performance, and performance direction does not just serve an authoritative function in support of personnel decisions such equally pay and promotions (Aguinis, 2019a). Specifically, performance management also serves boosted purposes, including communicating and reinforcing strategic priorities (i.e., strategic and advice purpose), supporting employee development (i.e., developmental purpose), planning and maintaining a high-quality workforce (i.eastward., organizational maintenance purpose), and collecting information to support talent management decision-making (i.due east., documentation purpose).

Information technology is therefore disquisitional for organizations to go on to measure performance. Organizations must exist able to measure out performance during a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Why? First, during a time of anarchy and alter, employees wait up to their leaders for guidance, and performance management serves as a key aqueduct to communicate the visitor's strategic direction. The hidden message of a silenced performance management arrangement is that the top management team–likewise as managers at other levels–does not know what to do or what they want employees to do, and whether or not employees are performing well does not matter.

2nd, without performance information, managers cannot provide audio and meaningful feedback to employees to improve their performance in the future. Frequent and ongoing feedback not but provides continuity to employees' professional person development, just information technology too helps employees feel a sense of connection and psychological rubber (Aguinis et al., 2012a; Wilken, 2020). Peculiarly at the time of extensive remote working, "a lack of immediate access to a director increases the need for organizations to put [feedback] mechanics in identify to forcefulness them to happen versus organically" (Vozza, 2020), said Rhiannon Staples, chief marketing officeholder of Hibob, an Hr management platform.

3rd, missing performance information for a significant menstruation puts companies in a vulnerable legal position. At a time of crunch, many organizations are forced to permit some employees go and operation is ane of the major factors used to decide which employees will be laid off. Without documentation on performance information, decisions may be unfair, and companies might confront lawsuits when former employees question termination decisions (Starner, 2020).

Finally, functioning information are needed to accurately identify and successfully retain elevation performers who brand essentially more of import contributions than boilerplate employees (Aguinis & Bradley, 2015). This is critical for winning the talent state of war to survive during challenging times and thrive afterward the crisis is over (Aguinis et al., 2012b).

In brusk, due to the COVID-xix crisis, many organizations are seriously curtailing and fifty-fifty abandoning operation management. All the same, this decision does more impairment than proficient given functioning management's multiple purposes and benefits for individuals and organizations. The solution is not to discontinue the measurement of performance, but instead to arrange measurement to the new reality. In the words of Amy Webb, Co-Founder and CEO of The Time to come Today Constitute: "This is a time when data matters more than gut" (O'Keefe, 2020, p. 25). Abandoning functioning measurement results in loss of valuable information at a moment when information are badly needed.

2. Challenges of measuring operation during crises

The challenge of measuring performance is not new. But, the COVID-nineteen pandemic—equally with whatsoever other major crisis and disruption—is exacerbating the challenges.

Offset, equally organizations experience economic downturns, strategic directions are too changing, and it takes some fourth dimension for the performance measures to take hold of upwardly. As organizations readjust their priorities, employees' job duties and daily activities also shift significantly as original work projects are canceled or delayed, product lines are eliminated, and the usual way employees conduct work becomes unavailable. These changes return the typical approaches to evaluating employees' work irrelevant and measures of performance need to arrange to be informative and useful.

Second, practicality is of particular importance during a crisis. Employees at all levels are pulled in unlike directions and tasked with doing more with less. Time becomes i of the most valuable resource. Measuring performance with the usual appraisal forms takes a considerable amount of time, which adds a layer of burden to employees and managers on top of the many existing pressures. Thus, there is a need for performance measurement tools that are shorter, more than concise, and yet all the same comprehensive.

3rd, the meaningfulness of operation management comes into question during a crisis. For performance management to be meaningful, the standards used to evaluate chore functions should be important and relevant, and chore functions must be under the command of the employees. However, many things in the workplace are out of control and many performance evaluation standards may be no longer relevant, available, or possible to see during a crisis. Thus, performance measures must remain relevant though jobs and job functions may change on an ongoing basis.

Fourth, during normal times, there are 2 major approaches to measuring performance: results (i.e., the effect of employees' work activities) and behaviors (i.eastward., how employees do their work; Aguinis, 2019a). Both measurement approaches are hard to implement given today'southward special circumstances. For instance, employees in roles such equally sales or manufacturing are normally evaluated by the results that they produce; however, those results might be out of their control during a pandemic. Many of the goals established between employees and supervisors before the crisis are now out of achieve. Considering of this, the Shapiro Negotiations Institute in Baltimore has "stopped evaluating employees based on the acquirement they generate" (O'Connell, 2020). At the same fourth dimension, measuring performance based on specific employee behaviors requires a minimum level of kickoff-hand ascertainment and interaction between the supervisor and employee. At a time when at least 62% of the workforce is working remotely (Brenan, 2020), traditional management practices such as the "open up-door policy" and "direction past walking around" no longer exist (Schrage, 2020). Thus, operation measures demand to be flexible and adaptable.

In sum, here is the major challenge: How can we mensurate functioning? Importantly, how tin we exercise and then using a tool that meets the criteria of adept measures, including being simple, relevant, informative, adjustable, comprehensive, and clear (Aguinis, 2019a)? The performance measurement tool should be easy to understand and complete, concise, and useful across functional areas and hierarchical levels in the arrangement. Before the crisis, many performance measures included in appraisal forms did not meet these criteria because they were lengthy and time-consuming. During the pandemic, simplicity and adjustability get even more than disquisitional.

Adjacent, nosotros innovate a performance measurement tool that meets the effectiveness criteria. Moreover, this tool tin can be used to measure the performance of individual employees, including managers at all levels also as workgroups, units, and entire organizations.

3. Meeting performance measurement challenges: The Performance Promoter Score

The Internet Promoter Score (NPS) is a well-established mensurate used in marketing to assess customer loyalty toward a specific firm. The procedure begins with request i simple but powerful question on a scale from 1 (not at all likely) to ten (extremely likely): "How probable is it that you would recommend our company to a friend or colleague?" (Reichheld, 2003). Customers who provide a score of 9 or ten are considered "promoters," 7 or 8 are considered "passively satisfied," and 6 or below "detractors." Then, after the ratings are collected from customers, a firm's NPS is calculated by subtracting the percentage of those classified as promoters from the percentage of those classified as detractors. So, a unit of measurement'due south or house'south NPS can, therefore, range from -100% to 100%. In improver to the rating on the 10-point scale and calculating NPS, information technology is important to ask a follow-upward open-ended question: "Why did you lot provide the rating that you provided?" Moreover, as an additional extension, it is also useful to enquire a second open-ended question: "What would it take to raise our score but by one bespeak?" (Hyken, 2016).

Since the publication of Reichheld's (2003) influential Harvard Business concern Review article proposing NPS, multiple studies have established its reliability and validity, and information technology has apace gained popularity across industries (Colvin, 2020). Improvements in NPS were correlated with firm growth and profitability in U.S. firms beyond half dozen different industries (Reichheld, 2003). Similarly, in a study involving firms in the U.G., those with a positive NPS grew 4 times faster than those with a negative NPS (Marsden et al., 2005). Pollack and Alexandrov (2013) assessed NPS' nomological network and constitute that NPS leads to repurchase intention. More recently, Raassen and Haans (2017) showed that there is a positive relation betwixt NPS and customers' online Word of Mouth (eWOM) behaviors. Overall, despite some criticism virtually NPS' simplicity (Keiningham et al., 2007; Korneta, 2018), there is lilliputian disagreement nigh its connection to profitability (Van Doorn et al., 2013).

Based on the extensive empirical evidence in support of NPS, nosotros introduce the Performance Promoter Score (PPS). PPS can exist used to measure the performance of individual employees, including managers at all hierarchical levels (e.grand., commencement-line managers, functional managers, members of the top management squad) as well every bit workgroups, units, and unabridged organizations. Moreover, PPS can be used not just during COVID-19 and other crises but also after the pandemic is over.

Extrapolating and expanding upon NPS, measuring operation using PPS involves the following three questions:

1. How likely is it that you would recommend working with [name of private, workgroup, or unit] to a friend or a colleague?
ii. Why did you provide the rating that you provided?
three. What would it accept to heighten the score just by i point?

PPS addresses the challenges associated with measuring performance in several ways. Get-go, it provides flexibility. During a time of crisis, specific task duties become fluid in response to changes in the environment. Considering PPS does not get into the narrow technical details of the task or specific central functioning indicators (KPIs), it can be used in any circumstances and for any type of task. Second, it is convenient and practical. I of the challenges of measuring performance has always been the length of appraisal forms and the time-consuming nature of the data-gathering process. PPS is a simple measurement: It does not take raters more than 15 seconds to provide a score and no more than 5 minutes to respond to the ii open-ended questions. Likewise, the information can be collected using freely available tools such as KwikSurveys, SurveyMonkey, or SurveyPlanet. 3rd, PPS is standardized. Individuals from different functional units, departments, and geographic locations are evaluated on the same criteria, which makes cross-functional and cantankerous-level comparisons easier. 4th, it is comprehensive. Performance contains 2 major dimensions: task functioning and contextual performance (Aguinis, 2019a). Contextual functioning, also known as organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), describes discretionary behaviors that contribute to the organisation'due south overall effectiveness but are non usually explicitly recognized by the formal reward system (Organ, 2018). PPS measures contextual performance in addition to job operation. During a time of crisis, many organizations are calling for employees to contribute ideas to assist the system survive, and many employees are going out of their way to use their talent, skills, network, and innovations to practice so. These behaviors are not typically captured by their task descriptions or task-oriented performance indicators, but they are especially of import during a crisis.

4. Using Operation Promoter Score for maximum individual and organizational do good

In this section, nosotros talk over how to utilise and maximize the benefits of PPS. Specifically, we describe how to collect PPS data for individuals, workgroups, and other collectives, how to compute a Net Performance Promoter Score (NPPS), how to use multiple sources of performance information, how to employ PPS for both authoritative and developmental purposes, and how to use PPS to provide more than frequent performance check-ins. Table 1 includes a summary of our evidence-based recommendations.

Table 1

Recommendations for using and maximizing benefits of the Performer Promoter Score (PPS) to measure operation of employees, workgroups, and other collectives

Recommendations	Implementation guidelines
ane. Collecting PPS for individuals, workgroups, and other collectives	• Measure performance using the following 3 questions: ane. How probable is it that you would recommend working with [name of individual, workgroup, or unit] to a friend or a colleague? 2. Why did you provide the rating that you provided? 3. What would information technology have to enhance the score just by one point? • Compute PPS summary statistics (eastward.m., mean, median) for specific individuals, workgroups, and units for making performance comparisons and establishing benchmarks • Encounter Figure ane's Console A for details and Table 2 for an case

ii. Computing a Net Performance Promoter Score (NPPS)	• Subtract the percentage of detractors (6 and below) from the percentage of promoters (9s and 10s). • See Figure 1's Panel B for details and Table 2 for an example

3. Using multiple sources of performance information (aka 360-degree systems)	• Collect performance information from multiple sources (i.e., employees themselves, supervisors, peers, directly reports, partners, vendors, and customers) • Use multiple strategies to create a list of raters who are sufficiently familiar with the employee or unit of measurement being assessed: ○ Employees existence rated can invite raters considering they are familiar with the people with whom they interact closely ○ Managers can as well contribute to the list of raters thus minimizing employees' personal bias ○ The human resources function can use proper noun rosters of workgroups, committees, and meeting attendees to invite people to evaluations for each other • Use self-evaluations to heighten credence and assemble information for performance improvements, but do not collect just self-ratings to make administrative decisions

4. Using PPS for administrative purposes	• Link reward, recognition, and promotion to PPS • Advantage employees promptly • Use monetary equally well as nonmonetary rewards

5. Using PPS for developmental purposes	• Give employees fourth dimension to process and blot the feedback and incorporate a debrief during performance conversations • Use answers to the ii open-concluded questions to (a) identify areas of strengths and improvements, (b) establish new developmental goals, and (c) place boosted resources (e.1000., preparation, improved IT back up) that may be needed to improve performance • When answers to the two open-concluded questions are two voluminous to clarify manually, utilize text-assay tools available in the public domain

6. Using PPS to provide more frequent functioning cheque-ins	• Provide frequent feedback to arrange work hours, task responsibilities, and priorities, and create a sense of connection and belongingness

4.1. Collecting PPS for individuals, workgroups, and other collectives

Every bit shown in Console A of Figure i , the outset question can include the proper name of a specific employee if the goal is to mensurate individual functioning. Similarly, in terms of the individual level of analysis, the start question can include the name of a particular manager. Alternatively, the first question can refer to the performance of a particular workgroup or functional unit of measurement such as homo resources, marketing, or an organization's acme management team. For example: "How likely is information technology that you would recommend working with the homo resources department to a friend or a colleague?"

Performance Promoter Score (PPS) and calculation of the Cyberspace Performance Promoter Score (NPPS)

Subsequently the data are collected using the get-go question, and assuming a sufficient number of responses, it is possible to compute PPS summary statistics (e.g., mean, median) for specific individuals, workgroups, and units. These summary statistics are useful for making functioning comparisons and establishing benchmarks.

4.2. Computing a Net Performance Promoter Score (NPPS)

Like to the computation of the Net Promoter Score, it is possible to use PPS scores to calculate a Net Performance Promoter Score (NPPS). As shown in Figure ane's Panel B, NPPS is calculated past subtracting the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters. So, an individual, workgroup, or unit's NPPS ranges from -100% to 100%. Moreover, as is done with NPS, information technology is possible to calculate the NPPS for a particular functional unit, department, or an entire firm.

Tabular array two shows ratings provided by the 19 direct reports of a managing director at a services organization. Her hateful PPS score is 8.79 and the median is 9.00. This is useful data in terms of comparing this manager to others in her functional unit also every bit in other units of the organization. Moreover, given that 84.21% of her direct reports are promoters (i.east., direct reports who gave her performance ratings of 9 and ten) and ten.53% are detractors (i.e., direct reports who gave her performance ratings betwixt one and half-dozen), this manager's NPPS is +73.68%. We tin can use this data to compare this managing director with other managers in the organization in the same way that NPS is used to compare firms within industries. For example, based on global benchmark data from 150,000 organizations, the average NPPS score is +32% and the summit 25% performing organization have an NPS of +72% or higher (Gitlin, 2020). So, if these benchmarks likewise apply to individual performance, nosotros tin can speculate that this manager'south performance puts her amid the peak 25% all-time-performing managers.

Table 2

Illustrative Performer Promoter Score (PPS) information nerveless from direct reports of managing director at a services organisation

iv.3. Using multiple sources of performance data (aka 360-caste systems)

In most organizations, employee performance appraisals are completed but by managers, and close to 70% of companies likewise ask for employees' self-evaluation (Mercer, 2019). However, multisource functioning management systems are non used that frequently. For case, Vozza (2020) reported that only 17% of employees are as well evaluated past their teammates.

Some other positive feature of PPS is that it can exist used to implement a multisource feedback organisation (Aguinis, 2019a). Multisource systems are referred to using other labels such as 360-degree systems, multi-rater, full circle, or 450 feedback considering the bones principle is the same: We gather functioning data from multiple sources. Considering PPS is brusque, people can provide ratings for multiple co-workers and units without as well much brunt. In addition to the employees themselves and their immediate supervisors, PPS information tin can also be collected from peers, straight reports, partners, vendors, and customers.

In that location are many ways to create the list of performance raters, and each has its advantages equally well as potential disadvantages. First, employees being rated could invite raters themselves because they are familiar with the people with whom they collaborate closely. Even so, this procedure could bias the scores if raters just include people who would provide high scores (eastward.chiliad., close friends). 2d, the managers could also contribute to the listing of raters to invite, thus minimizing employees' personal bias. However, managers might not be familiar with the frequency and depth of interactions between employees and the raters. Third, the homo resources function can employ name rosters of workgroups, committees, and meeting attendees to invite people to provide evaluations of each other. Overall, the recommendation is to utilise a combination of unlike strategies to create a comprehensive list of raters who are sufficiently familiar with the employee or unit of measurement existence assessed.

Every bit mentioned before, information technology is possible and also beneficial to gather PPS information from employees themselves—and it is specially useful to collect answers to the second open-ended question: "What would it have to raise the score just by 1 point?" Hither is why. First, employee involvement enhances their acceptance of the results and minimizes defensiveness when results are not positive (Aguinis, 2019b). 2d, employees are in a proficient position to provide information on what would be needed for them to ameliorate their performance: Is preparation needed? Resources? Supervisory support? Or, perhaps the workgroup is negatively afflicted by a toxic culture or incompetent leadership that prevents employees from performing better. It is non recommended to collect self-ratings on PPS and then only utilise this data to make administrative decisions because they are more than lenient and biased than ratings provided by other sources (Hoffman et al., 2010).

Finally, inquiry on 360-caste feedback systems has documented the many advantages that would result from collecting PPS data from multiple sources (Morgeson et al., 2005). Employees get aware of others' expectations virtually their performance—including supervisors and too peers, direct reports, and customers. If some employees take a distorted view of their operation, this is likely to change considering it is non easy to concur such a belief of one'south performance in the presence of overwhelming evidence that these perceptions may not be correct. Another advantage of multiple information sources is that it supports supervisors expressing what some feel are "undiscussables" when providing negative feedback. A multisource organisation facilitates communication and feedback because it is less probable that employees will become defensive regarding the accuracy of negative operation feedback when it originates from multiple sources.

four.iv. Using PPS for administrative purposes

One of the central purposes of performance management is administrative, which means using performance information to make decisions about salary adjustments, promotions, terminations, recognitions, and merit increases, among others. Advantage and recognition is a powerful tool for enhancing employee motivation (Gerhart & Fang, 2015) and organizations that link pay to performance enjoy higher levels of return on avails (Brownish et al., 2003). As old Avon CEO Hicks Waldron put it: "People do what you pay them to do, not what y'all ask them to do" (Cascio & Cappelli, 2009). Appropriately, to maximize the positive consequence of using PPS on motivation and linking functioning to reward and recognition, information technology is important to advantage employees promptly and use budgetary as well every bit nonmonetary rewards (Aguinis, et al., 2013a, b).

4.5. Using PPS for developmental purposes

While monetary and nonmonetary rewards are powerful motivational tools, rewards alone do non amend employees' job-related cognition, skills, and abilities (KSAs; Aguinis, Joo, et al., 2013). Accordingly, PPS should as well serve a developmental purpose (Aguinis, 2019a). As Colvin (2020) and Temkin (2016) pointed out, a key and valuable part of NPS is understanding the feedback backside the rating. Therefore, giving the employees enough time to procedure and absorb the feedback solicited from the two open up-ended questions and incorporating a debrief of the qualitative feedback during the operation conversation between employees and managers are critically important. The feedback can be used to help employees identify areas of strengths and improvements and to establish new developmental goals to address suggestions in response to the two open-ended questions (Aguinis et al., 2012a). As well, this feedback can exist used to place additional resources (due east.grand., training, improved IT back up) that may be needed to improve performance.

When PPS is used for units or an entire organization, the qualitative data collected with the ii open up-ended questions may be too voluminous to analyze manually. In those situations, it is useful to implement text analysis with tools bachelor in the public domain (Banks et al., 2018). Specifically, such analyses tin assist identify additional skills needed past individual employees as well as organizational culture and leadership issues that may need to be addressed to amend operation in the future (Kremer et al., 2019).

4.half-dozen. Using PPS to provide more frequent performance cheque-ins

One of the key purposes of performance direction is to provide timely and constructive feedback (DeNisi & Kluger, 2000). Given the simplicity of PPS, it is not time-consuming to conduct check-ins more than often compared to the apply of longer and more complicated functioning measures. During a crisis, it is especially important to remain flexible and adaptable, and more frequent performance conversations can help employees adjust work hours, job responsibilities, and priorities. In addition, at a time when about people are working from dwelling house and do not encounter their colleagues very ofttimes, more frequent functioning conversations assist employees to stay continued and create a sense of belonging.

5. Anticipating and minimizing problems with PPS

Although we have described PPS'southward multiple benefits, we readily admit that, in the end, it is merely a measurement tool. Accordingly, like all measures, information technology could exist misused. For example, some may effort to obtain positive results past gaming the organisation. Given Goodhart'due south police force, best described by anthropologist Marilyn Strathern that "when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good mensurate" (Byrne, 2017), in this section we describe how to anticipate and minimize potential problems with PPS. To a large extent, these are like challenges faced when using the NPS (Colvin, 2020). Overall, most of the challenges tin be addressed by creating checks and balances. For example, performance raters should not be chosen exclusively by the employee or unit being assessed. Table 3 includes a summary of our testify-based recommendations.

Table 3

Recommendations for anticipating and minimizing problems with using the Performer Promoter Score (PPS) to measure performance of employees, workgroups, and other collectives

Potential problem	Recommendations for addressing the trouble
1. Begging: Putting psychological pressure so that raters provide a high score	• Warning employees and units that they should not preempt PPS scores past contacting potential data sources (eastward.g., "the company reserves the correct to ask raters whether employees accept mentioned PPS to them and, if they have, those scores would be automatically eliminated")

2. Nudging: Offer special incentives hoping to get higher ratings	• Ensure rater anonymity and confidentiality

3. Exchanging: Employees teaming up together to game the system (e.thousand., agreeing to give a score of 9 or ten to each other)	• Examine the quality of answers to the ii open-ended questions to differentiate betwixt people who are genuinely rating others as higher performers and people who are just giving out high ratings as favors

4. Skewing the sample: Including merely raters with whom employees have a positive relationship in the hopes of receiving a loftier rating	• Use multiple methods to create the rater list: • Raters are chosen by employees, managers, and by using rosters of various workgroups, committees, and coming together attendees • Raters are chosen based on an analysis of email communication and identifying individuals with frequent and close work relationships • When evaluating the performance of workgroups, employ both internal and external raters

5.one. Begging

Begging involves putting psychological pressure and then that raters provide a high score. For example, employees may tell coworkers and professional person friends that if they do not receive a PPS score higher than a certain number, they volition not be eligible for a bonus or promotion or they tin can even be fired. Begging bias can exist minimized by warning employees and units that they should non preempt PPS scores by contacting potential data sources. Employees can exist told that the company reserves the right to inquire raters whether employees accept mentioned PPS to them and, if they have, those scores would exist automatically eliminated. A like approach is effective in the personnel selection domain in which chore applicants are warned that if whatsoever of the cocky-reported data is found to be untrue (e.g., misreporting educational or professional credentials), the individual will automatically be excluded from the job bidder pool (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018).

5.2. Nudging

Nudging happens when employees offer special incentives hoping to become higher ratings. For example, when direct reports are the raters, they might believe that they have to give their supervisors a high score for them to likewise receive a high score in return. Similarly, vendors, partners, or clients might also exist offered boosted incentives or preferential treatment if they charge per unit operation in a certain mode. The nudging bias tin can be minimized by ensuring rater anonymity and confidentiality. The effectiveness of this solution has been documented in the operation appraisal literature (Aguinis, 2019b).

five.3. Exchanging

Another potential trouble is that employees could squad up together to game the organization. For example, a small-scale group of people could come together and concord to give a score of nine or ten to each other. To address this potential problem, the quality of responses to the 2 open-ended questions is particularly useful for differentiating betwixt people who are genuinely rating others equally higher performers and people who are just giving out high ratings every bit favors. The effectiveness of this solution is documented in the measurement validity literature, which refers to this process equally "triangulation" (Scandura & Williams, 2000).

5.4. Skewing the sample

It will not be surprising that some employees might only invite people with whom they have a positive human relationship in the hopes of receiving a loftier rating. As a result, the PPS score will not be authentic due to a skewed sample. The manner to address the sampling event is to use multiple methods to create the rater list. In addition to asking the employee, managers could also invite raters. Moreover, companies could use other sources of information to invite raters for employees, such as the rosters of various workgroups, committees, and meeting attendees. Deglon (2016) recommended analyzing electronic mail communication frequencies to identify individuals with frequent and close work relationships who tin can also be added to the listing.

When evaluating the performance of a workgroup, both internal and external raters should be used. First, asking the workgroup to evaluate itself discourages social loafing on the workgroup (Aguinis, et al., 2013a, b; Erez et al., 2002). Second, using external members, such every bit workgroup members' functional managers who are familiar with their work or other people who have starting time-hand feel with the focal workgroup members (Aguinis, et al., 2013a, b; Meyer, 1994) also helps minimize biases.

six. Summary

Organizations are struggling to survive during the COVID-19 crisis and many are joining a troubling trend of severely curtailing or even discontinuing functioning management. Notwithstanding, doing so does more harm than good considering abandoning performance measurement results in loss of valuable data at a moment when data are specially needed to make critical decisions to be able to survive the crunch and thrive when the crisis is over. Rather than abandoning operation direction because functioning is understandably difficult to measure, a ameliorate solution is to adapt functioning measurement to the new organizational and societal realities. What is needed is a measure out of functioning that is unproblematic, relevant, informative, adaptable, comprehensive, and clear. Extending from the Cyberspace Promoter Score (NPS) literature, we met this need by introducing the Performance Promoter Score (PPS) as a way to solve the challenges involved in measuring performance during a crisis. PPS can exist collected for individuals (including managers at all organizational levels), workgroups, and other collectives such equally functional units and departments (see Effigy ane'south Panel A). As well, PPS tin exist used to calculate Net Performance Promoter Score (NPPS), which allows for easy comparisons amongst individuals and collectives (come across Figure ane'due south Panel B). We offered show-based recommendations for using and maximizing benefits of PPS for individuals, workgroups, and other collectives; calculating an NPPS; using multiple sources of performance information; and using PPS for administrative and developmental purposes as well as for providing more frequent operation check-ins (see Table 1). Also, we offered recommendations on how to anticipate and minimize potential problems when using PPS including begging, nudging, exchanging, and sample skewing (see Table 3). There is no question that the COVID-19 crunch volition have a long-lasting negative bear on. On a more than positive notation, the crisis is likewise leading to important innovations and PPS is 1 of them. PPS is a applied, relevant, and useful measure out not just during the COVID-19 pandemic, only an innovation that will also be useful long subsequently the crisis is over.

Footnotes

Appendix A. Supplementary information

The following is the Supplementary data to this commodity:

Multimedia component one:

ane

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Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7505577/