Structure of Job Evaluation Process

Job evaluations are usually an annual event at most companies, providing employers and employees with the opportunity to consider the high and low points of the previous year's work life. Most companies come up with their own job evaluation process, but there are some features that tend to be consistent.

History

Performance evaluations first emerged in the 1940s, as the post-World War II job boom created a need for companies to find a way to make fair decisions about salary and promotion. Early job evaluations had little set structure and were mostly conversations between an employee and his immediate supervisor, focused mostly on wage issues.

Many companies now have more structured evaluations that take into consideration factors such as an employee's desired career trajectory and continuing education opportunities as well as wage and title.

Types

Job evaluations usually involve both quantitative and qualitative data.

Quantitative data, or measurable data, includes things like sales figures, deadlines and department turnover. Many times, employees have access to some or all of this information before their scheduled evaluation, and part of the evaluation involves analyzing the quantitative data.

Qualitative data cannot be measured in numbers and includes more subjective qualities, such as teamwork, communication skills or morale. A large portion of any job evaluation typically involves reviewing and interpreting this information.

Components

Different companies may approach the evaluation process in different orders, but most evaluations contain these components.

An information-gathering stage, which may come in the form of a self-evaluation, is often the first part of an evaluation process and may take place weeks or days before the evaluation itself. In this part of the evaluation, an employee or her supervisor collects information about the employee's work.

Job assessment is one of the first parts of a formal evaluation. During this process, an employee's work is compared to her job description, illustrating instances of employee success and places where there is room for employee improvement.

Finally, most evaluations include goal setting in which an employee and her supervisor set quantitative and qualitative goals for the coming year.

Considerations

In order for a job evaluation to be effective, both employee and supervisor should know what to expect from the evaluation process so they can prepare. For that reason, even though a formal evaluation may only occur annually, employees should get regular feedback about their work throughout the year so they know what to expect at review time.

Warning

Because of the possibility of lawsuits, it's important for employers to use the same criteria to evaluate all employees. For this reason, an evaluation form can be an important part of the evaluation process. It's also a good idea to have the employee and supervisor both sign the completed form.

References

• Employee Job Performance Evaluations