Page 115 - DMGT517_PERFORMANCE_MANAGEMENT_SYSTEM

Performance Management System

Notes However, experience shows that there are a number of factors which causes the failure of an
organisational performance system. Some of the major reasons are given as below:
1. Organizational Fears: Department and agencies may be apprehensive about implementing
performance management systems due to fears on how the results will be interpreted,
what it may indicate about the department’s performance, and/or a lack of clarity of how
it will affect the department and its employees.

2. HR Professional Fear: Similar to organizational fears, HR professionals may have similar
fears about how the performance data will be used, analyzed or interpreted by the
management and concerned persons. Additionally, HR professionals may be reluctant
to support investments in performance management systems if there may not be a clear
return on the investment.

3. Lack of Performance Oriented Culture: Performance management can be overwhelming
endeavor for some organizations and can be viewed complex, time-consuming, and simply
requiring a tremendous effort given resource constraints. Organizational culture may work
against the drive to support implementation.
4. Regular Review and Use: If data is not being used for decision-making, it loses its value
to the organization and leads to eventual questioning of why the information is being
collected or reported. Organisations need to develop policies on how performance results
will be used for operational and fi scal decision-making.
5. Looking to Software as the Solution: Too often organizations rely on software as a
precondition for performance
6. Lack of Flexibility of the System: In an effort to create a very well-defi ned system,
organizations end up having a complicated performance management system. Many a

times, there is a lack of scope for carrying out modification, change, and/or alteration of the
existing performance management system in order to respond to the changes necessitated
by external environment. This results in the continuation of the same old format model and
it becomes a simmering blockade to new or improved performance management system.
Hence, top management along with line managers and HR professionals must foresee the
linkage of the system to organizational objectives.
7. Lack of Proper Management Tools and Techniques: Organizations must continuously
improve their performance to get success in this changing and competitive environment
However, to do so requires adopting proper management tools and techniques such as
performance management system.

8. Perforamnce Planning: Performance planning plays an important role in the success of
a performance management system. Lack of proper performance planning creates a lot
of problems in performance implementation. A proper performance planning clearly

identifies the tasks and work performance at each level of the organisation.
9. Communication Gap: Communication gap is the key reason for the failure of a performance
management system. For the success of a performance management system there should be
proper communication between the top management and the employees at lower level.
10. Individual vs Team: Managing team performance is important but this does not mean that
the individual needs of members of the team should be neglected. As Vicky Wright and
Liz Brading (1992) have pointed out “leaving teal dynamics to manage performance by
such things as team pressure can be dangerous and unfair. Managing team performance is
important but it is not a substitute for managing individual performance.”
11. Top Management Commitment: Many organisations, particularly the Indian organisations
are having less focus and commitment towards their human resources. The organisational
success is based on the organisational performance and the organisational performance

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