Why Do Japanese Managers Get Better Productivity From Their Staff Than American Managers?
Every year or every six months there is an ordeal during which managers and staff members meet for a Performance Appraisal. Too often both the staff members and managers are frustrated by the procedure. In a study conducted by Honeywell Corporation, they found that only 4% of supervisors, 2% of managers and 1% of executives said that performance appraisals had a positive impact on their careers. When managers at all levels improve their coaching leadership skills, there is a dramatic increase in performance and productivity. It has to be remembered that appraisal systems are only tools. They are not a substitute for the day-to-day skills of establishing performance expectations, coaching, recognising results, and giving frequent feedback. Unless performance systems are complemented by these sorts of skills, they will degenerate into a meaningless process. W. Edwards Deming contended that performance appraisal is the number one American management problem. He said it took the average em
