In the recent ACAS guide, ‘The People Factor’, it became clear that one of the key issues to address in order to achieve good employee relations is the issue of communication and trust. Understanding what motivates your employees to come to work, what will encourage them to achieve even more and allowing them to be their own person will engender mutual respect and lead to a culture of openness and loyalty.
ACAS suggest that performance reviews and good performance management can be an excellent way to develop the lines of communication between management and employees. Referring back to the four main drivers of employee engagement which were previously defined in the Macleod report it is clear to see how employee relations can be developed through excellent performance management.
- Leadership which transmits vision and values employee contributions: in performance reviews managers should be focussing on reinforcing the links between the individual and the overarching organisational goals.
- Line managers who empower their staff: there is nothing more motivating than some positive feedback during a performance review, but managers should also keep an eye to areas where further support or training are needed.
- Employees who can voice their concerns: employees are unlikely to speak up about their worries in a performance review if it’s the first time they have seen their manager in a month. Good performance management should be based on regular communication and not just at review time.
- Behaviour leading to trust and integrity: good, regular interaction between managers and employees has been proven to lead to mutual respect and loyalty.
Of course, good employee engagement is not just about the relationship between the manager and their team, but also between the individual co-workers and other people in the workplace. 360 degree feedback can be an excellent tool for tying all these relationships together and allowing employees the freedom to express themselves. Download our guide to 360 and 1 to 1 Appraisal by going to Resources when you log in to www.tracksurveys.co.uk.