Advanced Review Methods

Advanced review methods are usually introduced to fix rating inconsistency, and the two most common carry very different risks.

Calibration. Managers discuss proposed ratings together before they are final. It genuinely reduces the difference between a harsh manager and a generous one. The risk is that the most confident advocate wins, so it needs a chair and a rule that claims are supported by examples.

Forced distribution. Requiring a set proportion in each rating band. It removes rating inflation and it also requires somebody to be rated poorly regardless of actual performance. In a small strong team that is both unfair and difficult to defend.

Calibration is worth doing in most organisations, and it is cheap. Forced distribution rarely earns what it costs in trust.

The Fair Work Commission considers whether a process was fair. This is general information rather than legal advice, and obligations vary by state and territory.

See Sentrient’s performance management system and performance improvement plans.