Write a paper which addresses a work project of your choosing by using the tools discussed in Competency 3. You must choose at least one tool to organize the work for the tasks to be accomplished. Include the assignments and timelines associated with getting the work accomplished. Demonstrate planning through both narratives and charts, diagrams, and figures, etc.Your charts and diagrams should be appendices and exhibits to your paper to which you reference in your paper and explain. Do not put these in your text except if they are small--such as consuming 1/4 of the page. The paper should be between 5-7 pages using APA format and using at least 5 scholarly references excluding the text.

Competency 3

Objective: Often we hold unconscious assumptions that keep us from questioning the way things are done. This assessment exercise examines your and others’ assumptions concerning performance evaluations.

Directions: Check off the statement in each of the following pairs of statements that best reflects your assumptions about performance evaluation.

Performance evaluation is:

_____ 1a. a formal process that is done annually

_____ 1b. an informal process that is done continuously

_____ 2a. a process that is planned for employees

_____ 2b. a process that is planned with employees

_____ 3a. a required organizational procedure

_____ 3b. a process done regardless of requirements

_____ 4a. a time to evaluate employee performance

_____ 4b. a time for employees to evaluate the manager

_____ 5a. a time to clarify standards

_____ 5b. a time to clarify the employee’s career needs

_____ 6a. a time to confront poor performance

_____ 6b. a time to express appreciation

_____ 7a. an opportunity to clarify issues and provide direction and control

_____ 7b. an opportunity to increase enthusiasm and commitment

_____ 8a. only as good as the organization’s forms

_____ 8b. only as good as the manager’s coaching skills

Discussion Questions: Answer the following questions as a class or in groups:

1. As you review your eight answers, do you see any patterns in your assumptions or in the assumptions you did not choose?

2. As you review the statements, think about how the use of performance evaluation benefits the organization, the manager, and the employee. In what ways does each benefit? Are the benefits shared equally?

3. How would you design a performance evaluation process where the benefits are more equally shared?

4. What characteristics of your performance evaluation process would make it more attractive to employees? Would those characteristics increase or reduce the usefulness of the performance evaluation process for the organization?

Reflection: All performance evaluation systems are not created equal, and even the same system may be evaluated differently by different people and at different times. For example, for decades General Electric’s perfor- mance evaluation system and leadership training practices have been praised for developing top-flight tal- ent. At the same time, GE has been criticized for its requirement that managers must fire those employees who rank in the bottom 10 percent. In a cover story in Bloomberg Businessweek, Diane Brady (2010) notes that some people have begun to question whether GE’s approach is too rigid. For example, although in the past many other companies have looked to GE when recruiting for top positions, executive recruiter Peter Crist notes that today, companies are looking at other organizations that are seen as “decentralized, sophisticated, and young” (quoted in Brady, 2010, p. 29). Similarly, the idea of firing people just because their performance is at the bottom of the curve may not really make sense if your talent pool is exceptionally strong. As Google’s director of talent management, Judy Gilbert, notes, “When you’re killing yourself to hire the right people, it doesn’t make sense to cull”