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This chapter explores leadership failure by way of performance appraisal. A series of experiences in two different organizations with two different managers is examined through the lens of four critical performance appraisal mistakes – lack of objectivism (assessment based upon own experiences, beliefs and expectations), freshness (relying on recent events with little consideration for past behavior), causal attribution (flawed interpretation of employee behavior) and first impression (assessment based upon something learned from early introduction to employee, often the first encounter) These mistakes represent a continuum of infractions for which ethical leadership is offered as an antidote. Ethical leadership strategies are provided to support employees, managers, teams, and organizations in counteracting, avoiding, surviving and eliminating these mistakes, respectively.

To develop and validate an instrument to measure the problems associated with performance appraisal.

The implementation was in two phases. Phase 1 involved the development and validation of an instrument to measure the problems with performance appraisal. Phase 2 involved the exploration and confirm the construct measurement. Data used in Phase 1 were collected from interviews with administrators and employees in the automotive parts manufacturing industry and five experts. In Phase 2, data were derived from questionnaires sent to 320 employees of automotive parts manufacturers in the Eastern Region of Thailand.

Problems concerning performance appraisals were classified into two components as problems with the appraisal process and problems with the appraising person. The concepts, theories and interview results that were used to develop the instrument and assess problems with performance appraisals were consistent with the empirical evidence.

The developed instrument may be used to measure problem levels of performance appraisals in organizations with high accuracy and reliability. Findings may be used as guidelines for management to effectively reduce problems with performance appraisals. The instrument may also be used for research measurement of organizational problems concerning performance appraisal.

Fairness, transparency and testability are aspects of effective management. Ignorance of problems in performance appraisals may have negative effects on a conducive working atmosphere and behaviors at the personal, group and organizational levels. Therefore, the findings of this study have social implications for the capability to examine fairness in employees' performance appraisals.

The instrument for measuring problems with performance appraisal was developed based on the combination of concepts, theories and interview and questionnaire data. This instrument facilitates human resource officers, managers and organizations in measuring the levels of problems with performance appraisals.

Purpose – The adoption of performance measurement and evaluation systems comprising nonfinancial measures has rendered the investigation of behavioral consequences of such measures an increasingly important research issue. The purpose of this study is to investigate the process by which the use of nonfinancial measures affects employees’ perceptions of procedural fairness. It proposes that the effects of nonfinancial measures on procedural fairness are indirect through the mediating variables of (1) job relevant information and (2) role clarity.

Methodology – Data collected from a survey of 276 managers in different functional areas are used to test the models. The data are analyzed using structural equation modeling (Partial Least Square).

Findings – Results from structural models indicate that the use of nonfinancial measures has a positive impact on job relevant information, role clarity, and procedural fairness. In addition, the findings suggest that the use of nonfinancial measures is indirectly related to procedural fairness through job relevant information and role clarity. Specifically, the results indicate that the use of nonfinancial measures affects job relevant information. Job relevant information then influences role clarity. Role clarity, in turn, is positively related to procedural fairness.

Value of paper – This study provides systematic empirical evidence on how the use of nonfinancial measures for performance measurement and evaluation can affect employee perceptions of procedural fairness. It helps organizations to understand how this process occurs and provides them with some assurance that the adoption of nonfinancial measures may be beneficial particularly through the higher information content of such measures and the consequential enhancement of employee role clarity and perception of fairness. By studying the effects of nonfinancial measures, in isolation, this study also helps to demonstrate to organizations that some of the beneficial effects on employee outcomes found by prior management accounting studies involving a combination of financial and nonfinancial measures may be achievable from the use of nonfinancial measures alone without the need of financial measures. This may assist organizations in designing simpler performance measurement systems.

This paper aims to highlight the common failures of performance appraisals and describe how training can help overcome these failures. Further, to propose some practical strategies on maximizing the effectiveness of appraisal systems.

The paper is based on, and is a synthesis of, a comprehensive literature review of over 300 articles published between 1980 and 2010.

The design, management and implementation of performance appraisals have been hampered for many years by several common strategic and operational mistakes. Training and learning has a big role to play in addressing these mistakes and improving appraisal outcomes for individuals and organizations.

Organizations invest a great deal of time and money every year into conducting employee performance appraisals. However, they are missing simple opportunities to get more value from the process and increase the integrity of their appraisal systems. Organizations can adopt the strategies presented here to improve practice.

This paper provides a summary of an exhaustive literature review covering 30 years. It succinctly highlights several major problems with appraisals and provides practitioners with realistic strategies they can introduce to their organizations.

The Nature of Business Policy Business policy — or general management — is concerned with the following six major functions:

Using the backdrop of an (apparently) extended visit to the West Indies, analogies with key concerns of internal audit are drawn. An unusual and refreshing way of exploring the main themes ‐ a discussion between Bill and Jack on tour in the islands ‐ forms the debate. Explores the concepts of control, necessary procedures, fraud and corruption, supporting systems, creativity and chaos, and building a corporate control facility.

Using the backdrop of an (apparently) extended visit to the West Indies, analogies with key concerns of internal audit are drawn. An unusual and refreshing way of exploring the main themes ‐ a discussion between Bill and Jack on tour in the islands ‐ forms the debate. Explores the concepts of control, necessary procedures, fraud and corruption, supporting systems, creativity and chaos, and building a corporate control facility.

As people work through their daily lives, they interact with a variety of organisations. Some of those interactions are successful, and others are dreadful. And managers of organisations tend to look at their own organisational successes and failures and hope that the successes outnumber the failures. Managers observe that most of the successes come from the highest performing employees, and the failures tend to emanate from the worst performers. So, they try to encourage the worst performers to ‘become better team players’ or ‘be more sensitive to the customer's needs’, and hope that they eventually ‘get it’. Some will, and most will not. And then one day, a manager interacts with an organisation that ‘goes the extra mile’ and provides a great service or product, and he/she fantasises about what it is that makes this organisation successful, while his/hers is marginal at best. The answer to this question is actually quite simple, but to fix the problems can be time consuming and painful. The single quality that highly successful organisations all have in common is that they have an organisational culture which values leadership. They have achieved what few organisations have achieved: they have become a ‘Leadership Organisation’ (an organisation that has leaders at all levels of the organisational chart). Once an organisation has achieved this level of leadership, overall organisational success is easily achievable. This paper is intended to give managers a basic framework on how they can turn their organisations into high‐performing successes. Managers' ability to achieve this success can be limited by the legal process, the company's employment practices and culture, and their own willingness to make radical changes to their organisation. Once a manager has achieved building a Leadership Organisation, however, the rewards of success are well worth the effort.

Since most literature on international performance appraisal is derived from Western MNCs, it is questionable whether the Western theories are equally powerful when applied to other national contexts. This study develops the Chinese international performance appraisal model by exploring performance appraisal policies and practices and the associated factors in Chinese MNCs. It reveals that Chinese MNCs adopt different approaches towards different groups, particularly different nationalities and managerial status. The Chinese international performance appraisals are a mix of home and local appraisal systems, and a mix of traditional Chinese personnel management and modern Western HRM concepts. Moreover, Chinese international performance appraisal policies and practices are affected by various host‐contextual and firm‐specific factors, and there is also an interplay between international performance and other international human resource management activities.