TOPIC 7: EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
Part A-Understanding Level
1. What is the primary purpose of performance evaluation in organizations?
a) To terminate non-performing employees
b) To improve the functioning of teams or organizations
c) To standardize wages
d) To enhance product quality
2. Which of the following is a subjective measure of job performance?
a) Number of units produced
b) Dollar amount of sales
c) Supervisor ratings
d) Processing time for claims
3. What term describes the extent to which performance appraisals include
irrelevant elements?
a) Criterion contamination
b) Criterion deficiency
c) Criterion relevance
d) Criterion usefulness
4. Which appraisal method uses predetermined scales to rate job dimensions?
a) Paired comparisons
b) Graphic rating scales
c) Behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS)
d) Narratives
Application Level
5. If a manager consistently gives all employees high ratings regardless of actual
performance, what bias is this?
a) Recency effect
b) Halo effect
c) Leniency error
d) Attribution bias
6. An organization wants to measure teamwork and "team spirit" in its employees.
Which performance criterion should it use?
a) Objective criteria
b) Subjective criteria
c) Graphic rating scales
d) Forced distributions
7. A company uses 360-degree feedback for appraisals. Which cultural
consideration might create resistance in some non-Western countries?
a) Preference for objective measures
b) Focus on individual rather than group performance
c) Higher acceptance of supervisor-only appraisals
d) Resistance to cost-intensive methods
8. A salesperson has high sales figures but is pushy with customers, reducing repeat
business. What is the issue with using only objective performance criteria here?
a) Criterion contamination
b) Criterion deficiency
c) Recency bias
d) Attribution error
Higher Application Level
9. To evaluate the performance of a graphic artist, which method would be most
appropriate and why?
a) Objective performance criteria, as they provide quantifiable results
b) Subjective performance criteria, due to the creative nature of the job
c) Forced distribution, to rank against other artists
d) Paired comparisons, to evaluate specific tasks
10. A manager frequently rates an employee positively because of their outstanding
past performance, ignoring recent mistakes. This is an example of which error?
a) Recency effect
b) Attribution bias
c) Halo effect
d) Central tendency error
Part B- Questions
1. Scenario: A team leader notices that one of their team members excels in completing
tasks promptly but struggles with teamwork. The team leader decides to focus solely
on task completion during the appraisal.
Which appraisal issue is the team leader demonstrating?
a) Criterion relevance
b) Criterion deficiency
c) Criterion contamination
d) Leniency error
2. Scenario: A manager uses a forced distribution method to evaluate their team but
finds it demotivating for the high performers who were grouped as "average" due to
quota limitations.
What drawback does this illustrate?
a) Halo effect
b) Attribution bias
c) Limitation of comparative methods
d) Criterion contamination
3. Scenario: During a recent performance review, an employee argues that their low
ratings are unfair because the goals were unclear from the start.
What principle of performance appraisal may not have been adequately
addressed in this situation?
a) Criterion contamination
b) Criterion relevance
c) Criterion deficiency
d) Criterion usefulness
4. Scenario: A new manager rates an employee highly because they are a graduate of a
prestigious university, even though their recent performance has been average.
What type of error is this?
a) Attribution bias
b) Halo effect
c) Recency effect
d) Personal bias
5. Scenario: A customer service employee receives a performance evaluation based on
their call resolution time. However, the evaluator fails to consider their role in training
new team members, which impacts their metrics.
What is this an example of?
a) Criterion contamination
b) Criterion deficiency
c) Attribution bias
d) Recency effect
Higher Application-Level Questions
6. Scenario: A company is implementing a 360-degree feedback system for a
multicultural team. They discover resistance from senior team members to feedback
from junior staff.
Which factor should the company consider adjusting?
a) Objective criteria for performance
b) Individual focus of evaluations
c) Cultural norms and expectations
d) Comparative performance rankings
7. Scenario: A manager observes that an employee has consistently performed well over
the last three months and bases the evaluation solely on this period, ignoring previous
data.
What error might this decision demonstrate?
a) Recency effect
b) Leniency error
c) Criterion deficiency
d) Reverse halo effect
8. Scenario: A supervisor praises a software developer's coding skills during the
appraisal and assumes they excel in all tasks, such as documentation and team
collaboration.
Which performance appraisal error is the supervisor making?
a) Halo effect
b) Attribution bias
c) Severity error
d) Central tendency error
9. Scenario: A healthcare organization is reviewing its performance appraisal system for
nurses. It finds that supervisors' subjective ratings often vary widely due to personal
judgments.
What can the organization introduce to reduce this variability?
a) Behavioral observation scales
b) 360-degree feedback
c) Comparative methods
d) Narratives
10. Scenario: A sales manager’s performance is evaluated negatively due to low sales
numbers, but the real cause is the inexperienced team they supervise.
What type of appraisal bias does this highlight?
a) Attribution bias
b) Leniency error
c) Criterion contamination
d) Recency effect
PART C- Case Study: Performance Evaluation in a Tech Startup
Innovative Minds Inc. is a rapidly growing tech startup specializing in app development. The
company recently implemented a performance appraisal system to evaluate its employees. The
appraisal is conducted quarterly and includes both objective and subjective measures.
One of the senior developers, Mia, has consistently delivered high-quality work and met
deadlines. She also helps her teammates by offering valuable coding advice. However, her
supervisor, Alex, rated her below average during the last appraisal. The primary reason cited
was Mia’s failure to meet the company's new business development initiative, which was
introduced midway through the quarter. Alex emphasized that Mia had no sales or client
acquisitions to her credit, even though her role is not directly client-facing.
Meanwhile, another developer, Jake, who is in the same role as Mia, was rated highly because
he volunteered to pitch their product during a tech expo. Although Jake’s coding performance
was below average, his proactive participation in the expo earned him recognition.
After the evaluations, Mia expressed frustration and confusion, questioning why her
contributions to team development and project delivery were undervalued. She suggested the
need for clearer evaluation criteria.
Question
1. Identify and explain at least two issues with the performance appraisal system at
Innovative Minds Inc.
2. Suggest improvements to make the appraisal system fairer and more effective for