Summary and Reflection on DeNisi, A. & Smith, C. E.

(2014)

This research paper contributes to academic literature by investigating the connection between individual-level
performance and firm-level performance through an extensively review of relevant academic literature and constructing an
integrated model that emphasizes the close alignment between performance management initiatives and organizational
strategy. The knowledge gap identified is the research question of whether or not changes in individual performance
appraisal will lead to a boost in the overall performance at the organizational level.

Literature Review regarding Performance Appraisal at the Individual Level

Folger, Konovsky, & Cropanzano, Performance appraisal is useless when employees perceive the evaluation
1992; Greenberg, 2011 process as unfair and biased

Brett & Atwater, 2001 Ratees tend to associate more favorable ratings with improved accuracy

Aguinis, 2009, 2013; Aguinis &

Pierce, 2008; DeNisi & Pritchard, Invented models to advocate a shift in performance appraisal from a
2006; Levy & Williams, 2004; Murphy judging/criticizing mode to a motivating/couching mode
& DeNisi, 2008; Pulakos, 2009

Aguinis, 2009, 2013; Levy & Corporate strategy should also be taken into consideration when conducting
Williams, 2004 individual performance appraisal

Literature Review regarding Performance Appraisal at the Team Level

Team-level performance appraisal require assessment of results at both the
Wildman et al., 2011
team and individual level

Latane, Williams, & Harkins, 1979; Evaluating individual performance at the team level is difficult because social
Price, Harrison, & Gavin, 2006 loafing

Naquin & Tynan, 2003 Team-level performance appraisal is subject to rating errors

Brumback, 2003; McIntyre & Salas, Due to the complexity at the team-level, balancing the appraisal between team
1995 performance and individual performance is difficult

There is much more drama and dynamics at the team-level than at the
Chang, Bordia, & Duck, 2003;
individual-level. This may also cause biases and complications during the
Gersick, 1988; Wheelan, 1994
evaluation process

Literature Review regarding Culture and Performance at the Firm Level

Fried (2012) The alignment of performance appraisal practices with national culture
decreases absenteeism and turnover

The most interesting points/research findings:

1. Before I read this article, I subconsciously assume that individual performance improvement would always lead to a
boost in firm performance. But now, I realize that changes at individual level may not make any difference unless
these adjustments are aligned with the organizational strategy and fit into the external environment such as the
national culture.

2. One of the suggestions for future research outlined is “to examine any adverse outcomes of a successful PMS”. I find
this future direction of research is particularly consistent with my areas of research interest. Occupational fraud is a
pervasive problem facing all countries, and conceiving and proposing effective fraud detection and prevention models
is an urgent need for both public and private organizations. Therefore, studying the root causes and the catastrophic
impact of toxic performance management systems on corporate collapses would help me (as a researcher in forensic
accounting) develop deeper understanding of how the tone at the top (organizational strategy and culture) plus the
external environment (national culture; global financial crisis) will lead to occupational fraud driven by problematic
performance management systems.

Question: Would this integrated model have practical value when it comes to managing small businesses and
companies operating in countries whose national culture (subconsciously) encourages fraud and corruption?

In some emerging economies where formal institutions at both national and organizational levels are weak, when it comes
to performance evaluation and appraisal, decisions are usually made subjectively out of personal ties and connections,
not in accordance with organizational culture and strategy. HR managers who adopt a scientific approach to make
objective and rational decisions (aligning performance evaluation and management decisions with the internal and
external environments) are considered as deviants and are required to be re-socialized to adopt the mindset that
maintaining personal ties and connections are far more important than aligning with corporate strategies and maximizing
firm performance.

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 Summary and Reflection on Murphy, K. R.(2020)

This research paper aims at demonstrating why the traditional judging-oriented performance appraisals always fail and
why the newly proposed coaching-oriented system of performance management is strongly recommended. Essentially,
the judging-oriented approach causes more problems (anxiety and stress) than benefits (improved motivation and
performance), whereas the coaching/supporting oriented approach would identify and remove barriers employees face so
as to improve their motivation and commitment through inspiration, guidance, and assistance.

The Problems with Traditional Judging-oriented Performance Appraisals

"Many indices of performance and contribution to the

Aguinis & Bradley, 2015; organization appear to follow a power law distribution
The problems of non-normal
Aguinis, Ji, & Joo, 2018; rather than anormal distribution"; apart from the star
distribution of job performance
Aguinis & O'Boyle, 2014 performers, the performance of the rest of average
employees is almost identical

Performance evaluation always depends on subjective

Murphy et al., 2018; Murphy &
Cleveland, 1995; Murphy
(2008) and DeNisi and Murphy
(2017)
DeNisi & Smith, 2014; Moss,
Valenzi, & Taggart, 2003
Murphy et al. (2018)
The problems of unreliable and
invalid measures of performance
The problems of resistance to
performance feedback
The problems of unfair and
inaccurate feedback
judgments; the types of performance measures most
widely used in performance appraisal and performance
management are at best weak indicators of individual
job performance
“There is little evidence that this feedback leads to
improvements in performance”; “Many employees
actively avoid performance feedback; adding more
feedback may do little more than increase their stress”
“the tendency for people to view ratings they receive
from others as unfairly low has been
identified as one of the principal structural sources of
failure in performance appraisal systems

The most interesting points/research findings:

1. I’m impressed to learn so many problems regarding the traditional performance evaluation approach, and I’m
convinced that the traditional approach is no longer a suitable way to help employees improve their performance and
align their personal career objectives with the strategic goals of the organization.

2. The qualitative nature of this research paper has brought me some insights regarding the compilation of my own
research paper for this course. I’m planning to write a qualitative paper that extensively reviews the existing
academic literature on the topic regarding different types of occupational fraud (corruption, misappropriation of
assets, and fraudulent financial statements) motivated by problematic performance evaluation, compensation and
rewards systems, so as to propose some practical recommendations to improve evaluation and compensation
systems to decrease the motivation to commit occupational fraud.

Question: Would the proposed coaching-oriented system of performance management have problems and
limitations? Is this type of coaching-oriented system practical and realistic in the real world, in all cultural and
industrial context?

The proposed coaching-oriented system of performance management assumes that people are intrinsically motivated.
Demotivated employees are due to structural barriers, the lack of adequate amount of essential job knowledge and skills,
and restricted opportunity to job training and professional development. Therefore, according to the coaching oriented
approach, once the barriers are removed and required knowledge and skills are acquired, all employees would become
very motivated and committed. However, this is not always true. Some employees may come to work completely out of
necessity, and they do not have career goals and development plans. All they care about is short-term pleasure, and work
is the way for them to earn adequate income in order to sustain their short-term oriented pleasure-seeking lifestyle.

The proposed coaching-oriented system assumes that every supervisor and manager can become good coaches and
mentors if the right training is implemented. However, people with certain personality traits can never become competent
coaches. Essentially, the words such as inspiration, guidance, and assistance are completely outside their dictionary.
Therefore, considering not everyone can become an effective coach/leader, I believe the proposed system makes perfect
academic sense, but has very limited practical value in the real world.

The proposed coaching-oriented system ignores the influence of office politics on the successful implementation of such
system. In some industries where competition is extremely intense and job security is low, and when only the strongest
can survive in such an obnoxiously competitive working environment, coaching subordinates could mean cultivating future
competitors. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that managers (especially for those lack of sense of security and self-
confidence) may intentionally demotivate subordinates in order to eliminate future competitors. Therefore, this proposed
coaching system may be unrealistic and naïve, when it comes to the real practice influenced by politics, corruption and
bureaucraticy.

Disclaimer: I have no intention to insult the authors’ theories on performance evaluation systems, as well as their
proposed evaluation models and systems. My above assertions are just critical reflections of my personal experience and
to the best of my knowledge.

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