The appraisal interview reappraised

The appraisal interview is one of the most ubiquitous features of life in organisations. It is also one of the most ridiculed. Evidence mounts each year that most such interviews are poorly managed, fail to improve organisational performance, demoralise employees, and subject the managers who administer them to intolerable levels of stress. No wonder that one researcher, unkindly but accurately, has described them as ‘the annual fiasco’ (Pickett, 2003, p. 237). It is typical of the data that a conference of human-resources professionals found over 90% of those present declaring that, if given the chance, they would modify, revise, or even eliminate the performance appraisal system currently used in their organisations (HR Focus, 2000). Thus, appraisal interviews are governed by some seemingly impregnable assumptions that research nevertheless suggests may be invalid – such as that organisations are rational entities, administrative systems are highly reliable, and most people can be trained to be unbiased and candid in their assessments of others (McCauley, 1997). Some have even argued that traditional appraisals are so inherently dysfunctional that they need to be abolished (e.g. Coens & Jenkins, 2000). Their continuing popularity represents another instance of hope triumphing over experience.