To rate or not to rate, that is the question!  

Are performance ratings still beneficial to companies? In this episode of The HR Uprising Podcast, Lucinda shares the pros and cons of using performance ratings. There are many things to consider first—the profile of your team, the work environment, and the work culture matter in deciding how you rate a team’s performance. You can’t just base it on another company’s scoresheet. 

According to Lucinda, performance ratings are necessary if you want to achieve meritocracy. These aren’t just numbers; we should aim that these will have a positive consequence. Therefore, we must also level up on how we converse about the ratings to our team. Lucinda’s got some great advice for you on how you can harness the benefits of having performance ratings, so tune in to learn more. 

KEY TAKEAWAYS 
What is the purpose of the appraisal where you will use the ratings? Is it about increasing talent engagement, talent retention and encouraging good quality conversation? Or is it about increasing productivity, performance, and distributing rewards? Or all of these? 

The Pros of Performance Ratings 
It differentiates between high and low performers. 
It allows distributing of rewards. 
It’s a quantitative sign of performance. 
It motivates an individual to improve. 

The Cons of Performance Ratings 
Some managers don’t have the courage to have conversations with their team about their performance. 
There can still be bias. 
One manager’s view about performance might differ from another manager’s. 
‘The performance becomes the focus rather than the discussion.’ 

Some advice from Lucinda Carney when dealing with performance ratings: 
Define the terminologies. 
Use a 4-point scale system instead of 5-point scale system so people know where they stand in terms of their performance. People have the tendency to stick to the center/middle (3 out of 5) and that makes performance even harder to assess. 
Use calibration in how everyone rates performances. 
Use a more positive language. 

BEST MOMENTS 
“High performers prefer organisations they perceive to be meritocracies.” 
“Goals and feedback are attributed to drive performance.”  
“If there isn’t a purpose of rating, then why are we doing it?” 
“If you want to rate performance against behaviours, you will get better information if you get explicit about what looks good in terms of behaviour.”  
“Even if you eliminate ratings, judgment will always take place.” 

VALUABLE RESOURCES 
To Rate or Not To Rate White Paper - https://actus.co.uk/free-performance-management-resources/whitepapers/to-rate-or-not-to-rate-performance-ratings/  
Join the HR Uprising Linked In Group here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/ 
https://hruprising.com  

ABOUT THE HOST 

Lucinda Carney is a Business Psychologist with 15 years in Senior Corporate L&D roles and a further 10 as CEO of Actus Software where she worked closely with HR colleagues helping them to solve the same challenges across a huge range of industries. It was this breadth of experience that inspired Lucinda to set up the HR Uprising community to facilitate greater collaboration across HR professionals in different sectors, helping them to ‘rise up’ together. 

“If you look up, you rise up” 

CONTACT METHOD 
Join the LinkedIn community - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/  
Email: Lucinda@advancechange.co.uk  
Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucindacarney/  
Twitter: @lucindacarney 
Instagram: @hruprising 
Facebook: @hruprising 

 

 

 

To rate or not to rate, that is the question!&nbsp;&nbsp;
Are performance ratings still beneficial to companies? In this episode of The HR Uprising Podcast, Lucinda shares the pros and cons of using performance ratings. There are many things to consider first&mdash;the profile of your team, the work environment, and the work culture matter in deciding how you rate a team&rsquo;s performance. You can&rsquo;t just base it on another company&rsquo;s scoresheet.&nbsp;
According to Lucinda, performance ratings are necessary if you want to achieve meritocracy. These aren&rsquo;t just numbers;&nbsp;we should aim that these will&nbsp;have&nbsp;a&nbsp;positive consequence. Therefore, we must also level up on how we converse&nbsp;about the ratings&nbsp;to our team. Lucinda&rsquo;s got some great advice for you on how you can harness the&nbsp;benefits&nbsp;of&nbsp;having&nbsp;performance ratings, so tune in to learn more.&nbsp;
KEY TAKEAWAYS&nbsp;
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">What is the purpose of the appraisal where you will use the ratings? Is&nbsp;it&nbsp;about increasing talent engagement, talent retention and encouraging good quality conversation?&nbsp;Or&nbsp;is it about&nbsp;increasing productivity, performance, and distributing rewards? Or all of these?&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
The Pros of Performance Ratings&nbsp;
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">It&nbsp;differentiates between&nbsp;high and low performers.&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">It&nbsp;allows distributing of rewards.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">It&rsquo;s a quantitative&nbsp;sign&nbsp;of performance.&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">It&nbsp;motivates an individual to improve.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
The Cons of Performance Ratings&nbsp;
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="7" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Some managers don&rsquo;t have the courage to have conversations with their team about their performance.&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="7" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1">There&nbsp;can still be bias.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="7" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">One manager&rsquo;s view about performance might&nbsp;differ&nbsp;from another manager&rsquo;s.&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="7" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">&lsquo;The performance becomes the focus rather than the&nbsp;discussion.&rsquo;&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
Some advice from Lucinda Carney&nbsp;when dealing with performance ratings:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="8" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Define the terminologies.&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="8" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1">Use a 4-point&nbsp;scale&nbsp;system instead of 5-point scale&nbsp;system so people&nbsp;know where they stand in terms of their performance.&nbsp;People have the tendency to stick to the center/middle (3 out of 5) and that makes performance&nbsp;even&nbsp;harder to assess.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="8" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Use calibration&nbsp;in how everyone rates performances.&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="8" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">Use a more positive language.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
BEST MOMENTS&nbsp;
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">&ldquo;High performers prefer organisations&nbsp;they perceive to be meritocracies.&rdquo;&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1">&ldquo;Goals and feedback&nbsp;are attributed&nbsp;to drive performance.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">&ldquo;If there isn&rsquo;t a purpose of rating, then why are we doing it?&rdquo;&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">&ldquo;If you want to rate performance&nbsp;against behaviours, you will get better information if you get explicit about what looks good in terms of behaviour.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">&ldquo;Even&nbsp;if&nbsp;you eliminate ratings, judgment will always take place.&rdquo;&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
VALUABLE RESOURCES&nbsp;
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="4" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1">To Rate or Not To Rate White Paper -&nbsp;<a href="https://actus.co.uk/free-performance-management-resources/whitepapers/to-rate-or-not-to-rate-performance-ratings/">https://actus.co.uk/free-performance-management-resources/whitepapers/to-rate-or-not-to-rate-performance-ratings/</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="4" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Join the HR Uprising Linked In Group here:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/">https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="4" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1"><a href="https://hruprising.com/">https://hruprising.com</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
ABOUT THE HOST&nbsp;
Lucinda Carney&nbsp;is a Business Psychologist with 15 years in Senior Corporate L&amp;D roles and a further 10 as CEO of Actus Software where she worked&nbsp;closely with HR colleagues helping them to solve the same challenges across a huge range of industries. It was this breadth of experience that inspired Lucinda to set up the HR Uprising community to facilitate greater collaboration across HR professionals in different sectors, helping them to &lsquo;rise&nbsp;up&rsquo;&nbsp;together.&nbsp;
&ldquo;If you look up, you rise&nbsp;up&rdquo;&nbsp;
CONTACT METHOD&nbsp;
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Join the LinkedIn community -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/">https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">Email:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:Lucinda@advancechange.co.uk">Lucinda@advancechange.co.uk</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Linked In:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucindacarney/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucindacarney/</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1">Twitter: @lucindacarney&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Instagram: @hruprising&nbsp;</li>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">Facebook: @hruprising&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Welcome to the HR Uprising Podcast.

This engaging podcast explores HR ‘hot’ topics and challenges through conversations with relevant experts and real-life HR; O.D. or L&D professionals. HR Uprising is about creating an inclusive forum that enables us to share and learn from experts and everyday professionals. Hosted by Actus CEO Lucinda Carney a Business Psychologist; Chartered Psychologist; Experienced HR Change Agent; Entrepreneur; Speaker and Coach. There are two types of show format the ‘In focus’ episodes where Lucinda delves into a specialist topic in some depth and the ‘Conversations with’ series where we interview experts and people like you. Our hope is that our shows are both informative and fun.
The HR Uprising Podcast is all about learning through collaboration; taking evidence-based action and helping colleagues to have the confidence and skills to rise-up through their organisations by delivering real, lasting business value. You can access more information on each Podcast including resources or links mentioned in the show at our website www.hruprising.com. If you are a forward-thinking HR; L&D or O.D. professional who has a success story or challenge that others can learn from and you would like to be featured in future podcasts you can get in touch through one of the routes below.

Connect with us here:                                                                                                                                      Join the LinkedIn community: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucindacarney/
Instagram: @hruprising Facebook: @hruprising  X (Twitter): @hruprising YouTube: @ActusSoftware   

Lucinda is the founder and CEO of Actus Software, which offers a fully integrated HR solution designed to simplify performance management. Our comprehensive Performance, Learning, and Talent Suite enhances employee development and engagement. For more information, please visit our website at www.actus.co.uk and request a free demo from one of our HR experts. Our products include: Performance Management, Learning Management (LMS), Talent Management, 360 Feedback and Survey, Onboarding, HRIS and HR Compliance. 

Connect with Actus here:LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/2400060/admin/dashboard/
Instagram: @actussoftware Facebook: @actussoftware YouTube: @ActusSoftware X (Twitter): @ActusSoftware
Lucinda also offers bespoke, high quality HR training through Actus’ learning solutions. Topics include: Dealing with Underperformance, Managing for High Performance, Change Superhero Training and Bite Size Training. For more information see the Training section on the Actus website.

Welcome to the HR Uprising Podcast.
This engaging podcast explores HR ‘hot’ topics and challenges through conversations with relevant experts and real-life HR; O.D. or L&amp;D professionals. HR Uprising is about creating an inclusive forum that enables us to share and learn from experts and everyday professionals. Hosted by Actus CEO Lucinda Carney a Business Psychologist; Chartered Psychologist; Experienced HR Change Agent; Entrepreneur; Speaker and Coach. There are two types of show format the ‘In focus’ episodes where Lucinda delves into a specialist topic in some depth and the ‘Conversations with’ series where we interview experts and people like you. Our hope is that our shows are both informative and fun. The HR Uprising Podcast is all about learning through collaboration; taking evidence-based action and helping colleagues to have the confidence and skills to rise-up through their organisations by delivering real, lasting business value. You can access more information on each Podcast including resources or links mentioned in the show at our website <a href="http://www.hruprising.com">www.hruprising.com</a>. If you are a forward-thinking HR; L&amp;D or O.D. professional who has a success story or challenge that others can learn from and you would like to be featured in future podcasts you can get in touch through one of the routes below.
Connect with us here:                                                                                                                                      Join the LinkedIn community: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/">https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13714397/</a> LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucindacarney/ Instagram: @hruprising Facebook: @hruprising  X (Twitter): @hruprising YouTube: @ActusSoftware   
Lucinda is the founder and CEO of Actus Software, which offers a fully integrated HR solution designed to simplify performance management. Our comprehensive Performance, Learning, and Talent Suite enhances employee development and engagement. For more information, please visit our website at www.actus.co.uk and request a free demo from one of our HR experts. Our products include: Performance Management, Learning Management (LMS), Talent Management, 360 Feedback and Survey, Onboarding, HRIS and HR Compliance. 
Connect with Actus here:                                                                                                                                  LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/2400060/admin/dashboard/ Instagram: @actussoftware Facebook: @actussoftware YouTube: @ActusSoftware X (Twitter): @ActusSoftware Lucinda also offers bespoke, high quality HR training through Actus’ learning solutions. Topics include: Dealing with Underperformance, Managing for High Performance, Change Superhero Training and Bite Size Training. For more information see the Training section on the Actus website.

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