Performance appraisals are one of the most important and often one of the most mishandled aspects of management. Typically, we think of performance appraisals as involving a boss evaluating a subordinate.

However, performance appraisals increasingly involve subordinates appraising bosses through a feedback process known as 360 feedback, 1 customers appraising providers, and peers evaluating coworkers Whether appraisals are done by subordinates, peers, customers, or superiors, the process itself is vital to the lifeblood of the organization.

Performance appraisals — A system that provides a means of systematically evaluating employees across various performance dimensions to ensure that organizations are getting what they pay for. process itself — vital to the lifeblood of the organization. system — fair and tied to performance. Behaviorally anchored rating scale — A system that requires considerable work prior to evaluation but, if the work is carefully done, can lead to highly accurate ratings with high inter-rater reliability.