How does one ensure that job evaluation evaluates the job not the man?

Answer 1

A job evaluation must assess skills, not the personality of the individual. To be sure an evaluation properly evaluates skills, the supervisor / manager must be able to clearly define:

• What specific skills will be evaluated.
• Specific goals related to those skills.
• Specific objectives to meet those goals.

As well, job evaluations can address common issues of employment, such as:

• promptness
• tardiness
• absenteeism
• improper call-offs
• overuse of "sick" time
• appearance
• dress code and infractions
• friendliness / helpfulness

To be fair, every employee must have a clear understanding of his/her job responsibilities AND policies governing employment. Then the evaluation process uses those standards to determine whether the employee is meeting, falling below, or exceeding the expectations for responsibilities AND policies. Sometimes, employees have mixed job evals. For example, a worker receives high praise for her attitude, helpfulness, and politeness toward customers-- yet, she is persistently tardy. Or, an employee is punctual for every work day-- but he is rude and condescending to customers, his peers, or his bosses.

The best job evaluations don't just mark how a person is performing the job, but gives feedback on how to improve areas of weakness. An eval can be a teaching tool, as well as be a tool for future disciplinary measures. New goals should be set as a part of the evaluation process, so both the employee and "the boss" have a clear understanding of expectations. A boss should also specify how long an employee has to improve, and schedule the length of time before the next evaluation (3 mos, 6 mos).