Measuring and managing performance

In this video from a session on ‘Measuring and Managing Performance’, held at the Baroda Management Association, and published on TheOtherView.in, K Ramkumar talks about how enterprises are born when financial capital meets human capital. Performance is this confluence of human capital and financial capital and it multiplies both.

He says, asking how good the performance is, is an appraisal question. Asking how can performance be improved, is a management question.

Appraisals are at the end of the day, is a judgement call. As long as the zone of subjectivity is narrow, and the zone of objectivity is gleaned out with the facts which can be mustered, go ahead and make the call. But have the humility to accept that all your judgements about human ability may not always be right.

When you accept this and try and correct it, you treat human capital with respect; otherwise, you treat them mechanically and you will fail to create motivation. Ability combined with motivation results in performance, for motivation brings commitment.

You do not manage by appraising people; you manage by showing respect by trusting their ability to perform in difficult times.