The theme for this year's conference is 'Strategies for Success'. Most employees come out of their performance appraisal with a warm glow rather than a negative attitude says a new survey by the Institute of Personnel Development. The survey also revealed that the vast majority of people responsible for conducting appraisals believe they are an effective way of improving employees' work performance.
Performance appraisals are now standard practice in about half of UK organisations.
The system is often used to identify training or development needs. Targets should stretch people says Angela Baron, an IPD advisor, but the targets must be achievable if they are not to be demotivating. The event will be based on the successful conference held in the US which in two years has become one of the most successful in the country. Those who responded were almost unanimous in their support for national standards which recognise an individual's skills, knowledge and experience. It is hoped that the details will be publicly announced in late Spring '96, with candidates probably commencing the process in the autumn.