1. how you, as a manager, can conduct individual performance reviews openly and fairly?

2.Don Reston sat at his desk pondering what he should do. Yesterday he had completed the semi-annual evaluation form on June Andrews, his secretary, and had slept on his comments overnight. As he re-read the evaluation today, he was convinced that he had been fair and honest in his appraisal of her work, but he was worried about how she would take his comments during the thirty-minute review session scheduled later in the day.

He had rated June as follows:

Knowledge of job - good

Neatness in work - good

Ability - good

Dependability - excellent

Accuracy - excellent

Speed and productivity - fair

Ability to get along with others - good

Enthusiasm for work - good

Overall attitude towards job - good

As he recalled, June had protested vigorously during his last appraisal interview because she had not been rated excellent on her knowledge of the job, on her ability to do the work and on her attitude towards her work. She had insisted that she knew the job inside out, possessed all the necessary skills to do it, and that she liked her work and looked forward to it each day. She implied that low ratings like those he had given her could certainly cause her to change her mind.

During the six months since that interview, Don could not see that she had changed very much. To his mind, she was a solid, loyal, good employee but not an exceptional or excellent one. He did not want to lose her and yet he felt he had to be honest with her in his appraisal. She was not speedy, but then his work did not require speed as much as reliability and accuracy. He knew what her reaction to his rating would be and he did not look forward to arguing with her about it. He felt he was fair and honest and did not want to change the ratings just to make her feel good.

a.How should Don conduct his interview with June?

b.What points should be stressed and why?

c.Should he change his ratings if she threatens to leave? Why or why not?

d.Using the pro-forma provided, a performance interview sheet for the interview with June (assume that you are Don).

Performance interview sheet

The beginning ;-

Put at ease :-

Review interview purpose :-

Outline the interview :-

The body

Review performance against targets :-

Give credit and praise where appropriate :-

Tackle any problem areas :-

The body (continued)

Give positive guidance :-

Agree on targets for next review period :-

Final summary

Make a positive summary of the interview :-

Follow up :-

3.Describe, the possible solutions that could arise as a result of discussions with a colleague about their performance problems?

4.You have noticed that Andrew's efficiency at work has deteriorated. He is regularly making errors in his data reports, missing out large chunks of information necessary for the accuracy of the reports. Andrew has also forgotten, on several occasions, to take out personal information in the data. As a result, some personal information has been included in the data reports that have been submitted to senior management and the board of directors.

You have previously addressed the issue with Andrew, his excuse was that he was suffering from tiredness and hadn't been feeling well. At this discussion, you advised Andrew that he could take some leave if he felt he needed it to ensure that he recovers from any illness and gets some decent sleep. Despite these discussions the errors in Andrew's reporting have continued and you requested a formal meeting with him to resolve the issue. Upon investigating the reasons for Andrew's lack of attention to detail and reluctance to correct the issues, are identified. Andrew had experienced a marriage breakdown one month ago resulting in him having to find housing. As a result of Andrew's marriage breakdown, you are concerned that he may be suffering from depression and anxiety which is causing his lack of attention and lack of motivation.

Describe how you would endeavour to resolve this issue and what solutions could you suggest? Provide at least four suggestions.

5.Sue works as a receptionist for a large hotel. Her position requires her to answer the telephone and handle face to face enquiries about accommodation.

Until recently you considered Sue to be very capable. You received good feedback from other staff and customers about her customer service skills. However, you have recently received a number of complaints about her from one of your colleagues and from several customers. The complaints relate to her terse and harsh interpersonal skills and her lack of responsiveness when dealing with problems.

a.In addressing the complaint, what performance areas would you investigate?

b.How would you approach Sue regarding these complaints?

c.If you need to gather information from other sources, how will you address the issue of confidentiality?

d.How do you think the difficulties could be resolved? Provide at least three suggestions.