What are the top mistakes to avoid when assessing employee performance using SOPs?

Assessing employee performance in manufacturing? Here's some pointers: - Individual Differences: Tailor SOPs to individual strengths and weaknesses. - SOP Updates: Regularly revise SOPs to stay relevant in a dynamic industry. - Clear Communication: Ensure employees clearly understand SOP expectations. - Context Consideration: Factor in external influences on performance. - Employee Feedback: Value insights from those on the frontline. Remember, effective leadership is about influence, not just authority. #LeadershipExcellence #EmployeeDevelopment #ManufacturingManagement #PerformanceAssessment Your thoughts? Share how you navigate performance assessment in your team.

As a professional concern what I believe that when we assess the performance of our employees or direct reporties as per SOP so in that case the effective SOP should be updated as according to site capital KPIs/objective/goals. If the set goals will be set on yearly basis so the same reflection should be visible in the relavant SOP accordingly and all employees should be onboard on it. Furthmore, the individual kPIs/goals should be derive from the same SOP and it should be on SMART concept. Other prospective is how to achieve the set goals by employees is a "strong follow up" mechanism which should be executed by the departmental heads on quarterly basis and communicate the outcomes with employees in a clear way.

Make sure that the SOP covers all activities relevant to this. On production make sure that input is from a varied group of individuals from those actually doing the job to supervision and someone with H & S experience.

One thing we are sure, SOPs are to be assessed continuously. The target is always to excel and we usually face uncontrollable influences leading us to the beed of adjustment. Your target has to be achieved or exceed! Revisiting the SOPs will keep you focused on the delivery. A great team use the re-look of SOPs to understand in their best capacity what can be done better and where the course need to be adjusted. And the project leader is a key supporter on this process! Change and adjust, always seeking for a better result, is a way of demonstrating courage!

When SOP is the yardstick to evaluate the human performance the biggest mistake is circumscribed is “By the Books” which is no longer valid for human evaluation as it can kill the creativity by over focusing the regimentation

Actually I agree with point of updated sop, but I think it's more easy to give a daily basis task to employee and taking follow up and also check in day end what he did, this is more easy way to evaluate the performance of employee further more guide him to follow sop to complete the task, also work on his skills like tenchinical skill l, time management and communication skills we can say that 5S methodology is a suitable tool to achieve a goal.

The most important thing in the development of the implementation of SOPs is the real identification of the cause/effect on the benefits for society, the company and of course for the employees, which obliges us to set out their contents and structures in a clear, transparent way, without the parties assuming concepts that they do not understand and even less so if they do not share them. When an employee shares an objective and assumes responsibility for achieving it, understanding the scope of achieving it or not achieving it, we stop having an employee and we build a partner.

This a very common mistake in companies that do not provide training with a robust system. These are some of the main basic rules to avoid mistake 1 (and some others): 1. The employees should be retrained (within a couple of weeks) whenever SOP is modified. 2. The employee should not perform the job if he / she is not fully trained and certified on the specific position. 3. Make sure that the SOP is "highly specified". The detail is very important. No assumptions are allowed to avoid safety, defects or equipment damages. This means that SOPs are sometimes long, but there are no shortcuts to achieve operational excellence.

In my experience, the following is critical: - Ensuring that each step in a SOP has a picture/diagram wherever possible. This is extremely critical for understanding, especially in a country where there are multiple languages and it is impossible to accommodate all languages in a SOP - Once the training is done, allow the trainees some time to perform the tasks using the SOP, and then do an assessment on the task to determine if the training was effective and if all the steps in the SOP are being used to deliver the product/service envisaged by the SOP

An example I have seen SOP was prepared without taking input from the doer level. SOP not designed in a sequential manner. SOP must be prepared by taking inputs of doer level in such a way that is easy to understand, easy to execute and in sequential pattern, wherever required to use visual and vernacular language. Monitor the compliance through GEMBA walk routinely.

Training not taken seriously without understanding effects, make space in brain to accept incoming knowledge as hunger one. Learn more to earn more.

Considero que el darles las herramientas básicas a nuestra gente, como lo es la capacitación correcta, nos ayuda a tener un mejor desempeño en el entendimiento de las tareas que debemos realizar, esto a futuro nos genera un proceso estándar y que los resultados sean eficientes.

Excellent, providing training and practices for these SOPs , making sure that the employee fully understand these responsibilities and fully aware of it, is the key for them and the company as well to make sure they have confidence and trust.

The management team responsability is to make sure employees are trained properly , constantly with a wide perspective as posdible to understand the reason for the different stages like- customer requests, regulation, efficiency consideration etc. Moreover it us crucial to test and validate ad well as give the space to share openly coments and ideas for improvement.

Esta capacitación idealmente tiene que darse a nivel de la operación es decir, en donde se realiza el trabajo, ya que el empleado está familiarizado con el entorno y puede identificar fácilmente desviaciones contra lonque doce el SOP

Training is essential for the long term health of the operations. Each time there is employee turnover, there is a risk of knowledge loss. A robust training program is important to retain the know-how over the long term.

Documented training using approved training messaging can avoid misinterpretation. Rationales gain buy-in. Demonstrations and hands-on for more difficult tasks covers all types of learners and begins "muscle memory".

Regular training of employees on SOP is a must must practice to be adopted every month, preferably on a fixed working day of the starting of the month. This should also include interactive Q&A sessions to take employee's valuable inputs

The best trainers can be the workers who have patience and like to help others succeed. Supervisors and managers can support this type of training environment and understand learners will make mistakes.

Key performence Indicators - crucial for success. There is an old say: "Once you begin to measure something, even without changing anything brings improvenent". Very important to digitilise as much as possible the production floor to gain sata automatically and have realtime data. This the essence of advanced manufacturing - industry 4.0

As staff being observed, become nervous... mistakes are common. Let staff know you are observing the process; how it is done. Also assure them they will not be asked any questions until their part of the process is complete. Now that most of the fear of the unknown is removed; the observation is closer to how the actual routine process would be performed. Don't always observe the long-time or newly hired staff.

My learning is line leader should be smart enough no to allow his operator to think. Simple Go / No Go technique will remove most of the mistakes.

While accountability is important, it's crucial to have objective and measurable criteria when assessing team performance using SOPs. These criteria should be linked to the SOPs and focus on factors like quality, quantity, time, cost, or safety. This not only enables fair and accurate evaluations but also provides a basis for constructive feedback. However, it's equally vital to involve the team in the process, ensuring they understand the business, its purpose, and the 'why' behind their tasks. By setting objectives collaboratively and aligning them with both the SOPs and the team's mindset, you can create a more balanced approach to performance assessment. Rewarding based on these objectives can further motivate and engage your team.

The KPI for SOP has to be achievable. If set to the ability of the most skilled and motivated employee, the criteria may not be attainable for others no matter the degree of training and experience. The KPI criteria has to be attainable. Stretch goals are good for management but not so for those working directly with the process.

When evaluating based on metrics it is important to not elevate metrics of quantity and time above the other metrics. This includes mindfulness in how reinforce the metrics in the day to day interactions.

These factors, especially quality and safety, can be hard to quantify. Pay careful attention to how you measure these, otherwise people may end up gaming the metric rather than meeting the intent.

A comprehensive task analysis lead by a knowledgable facilitator provides the most correct measurable results. Again, the task analysis includes several expert workers to develop.

Too many managers consciously or subconsciously play favorites. You need to force yourself to evaluate your employees on openly objective data. Also write down notes for everyone you supervise and document accomplishments (or failings) as they happen and review this file for each review.

Every valuable manager should be checking correct execution of standard work everyday twice. Once every morning, once every afternoon. Randomly distributed over the organisation so avoiding being around only when mistakes have occured. Or people may start to think you are more interested in mistakes then in excellence. Simply ask the three smart questions at every visit: 1) what is your standard? 2) what is your improvement plan? 3) do you need any help?

Timely feedbacks are most important. This is somewhat periodic review of the operational SOPs. Since organisation's success depends on its employees, employees productivity largely depends on the SOPs in force. And that's why quarterly minor reviews and annual.major reviews must be done to get appropriate feedback which gives implementable structure

Um erro que observei é não fazer o feedback pontual. Na maioria das vezes o feedback é de forma geral, exemplo: Sua entrega é boa e eficiente. forma geral. Você entregou de forma eficiente a produção do turno dia 10. Com qualidade e protividade. Pontual traz o fato. Da mesma forma é o feedback negativo.

When something goes wrong, focus first on fixing the problem. Everyone makes mistakes - recognize that and move on. The worker who made the mistake usually feels bad and focusing on fixing the error helps build trust.

Each manager should have an open door policy for all of their direct reports, if not for the whole department. You should have a 1:1 with each employee at least quarterly, monthly is better. Always let your employees know how they stand.

A mistake is generally not the result of "user error" or "retraining required". It's because the process has a gap that allows non-conformance to happen. Get the feedback from staff (as there may be more than one person doing the same error) or get info about a gap to the staff, train to the correct intent, and identify the gaps to the SOP developers.

Feedback should be an integral part of our ongoing communication with the team, not just a scheduled event. Ideally, we want to prevent negative behaviors by maintaining open and constructive dialogue from the start. However, when issues do arise, it's essential to address them promptly and in a specific manner. As leaders, we should take responsibility for our part in any issues and meet with the individual to find common ground. This approach fosters trust and collaboration, allowing us to work together to improve performance and achieve our goals.

Without your consistency, these become ineffective. People need to know if they’re winning or losing and appreciate an honest discussion about the objectives. Ideally, if you’ve put in the work and have earned respect, this should be an honest open 2 way communication. Let everyone know it’s ok to express an opinion.

"Providing feedback" is often code for criticism, but kudos are at least as important. Note down and revisit your immediate feedback later in periodic (e.g. monthly) reviews to reinforce it.

Staff meetings should be an open communication tool. Have Quality attend and maybe present. The staff manager will know if... and who... should be recognized. Changes to improve a process should be recognized and they improve the bottom line.

It's crucial to follow up on feedback and actions, as it demonstrates our commitment to improvement and collaboration. When we neglect this step, we miss the opportunity to track progress, build trust, and ensure meaningful change. Effective leadership involves acknowledging our role in the process and working together with team members to find the right path forward. It's not just about expecting corrective actions from the team; it's about actively participating in the solution.

I would say "Never allow same mistakes to be repeated". Mistakes repeated is " Poor understanding". On a lighter note "do one new mistake everyday".

Assigning tasks or delegating to members of the team without follow up is like shooting at a target with your eyes closed. It is on you as a manager to follow up and ensure your people are trained, have the tools they need, clearly understand the assignments and they they are making progress toward the end goal. Without follow up and accountability along the way, chaos ensues.

These do have a tendency to illustrate Entropy. Anything you don’t maintain even relationships as well as Capital Equipment will fall apart if you don’t maintain it. You may need to delegate it and get a higher level reporting, but still invest in maintaining this the same as you would equipment.

One more Mistake regarding the SOP is wrong answer Key. Without reviewing properly, wrong answer keys are given in the SOP questionaries. without addressing the wrong keys, trainees are forced to enter incorrect key for the purpose of 'passing' the SOP without addressing the impact. lets say an activity x has to be performed by using method A, whereas incorrect key says activity x has to be performed by using method B. What is the trainee supposed to follow method A or Method B.

In my experience, usually and especially with multicultural companies with multiple branches globally, teamwork is not usually assessed. This is one of the most important pieces to the puzzle of global success! I would rank each employee on his ability to cooperate and work as a global team.

Assigning the proper team and building a perfect relationship between them, sharing the advices on time, helping each others achieve the goals and objectives.

I hv selected this section as I believe the question is fundamentally incorrect. If we look back at colonial times, they established an education system focused on rote learning, & we continue to carry same culture in our workplaces. In reality, we don't carry SOPs in our pockets when performing tasks. SOPs are not meant to be used for assessment. Instead, we should focus on knowledge. Simply learning from SOPs does not always make someone an expert. True expertise comes from introducing innovation, simplification, and continuous improvement. reading between the lines and thinking beyond the SOP is required. When evaluating someone we should consider what improvements they can bring to elevate the procedure at world-class level.

Do not assessing the SOP and the performance of using SOP out of an experienced employee's respective. Becasue the SOP are mostly for unexperienced employee. We should consider the whole process , perfomance and purpose in a fresh-eye respective.

Resources Companies that are following SOPs and have more than 1 branch tend to forget that the resource and skills available vary, and often valuations are done strictly in accordance with the sop, and this has a negative impact on employees that goes the extra mile because they wanted a task complete or had to have it complete, and otherwise there is room for segregated duties.

In my experience SOP ‘s are an input tool the efficacy of which should be measured against the outputs, is there deviation? - can the information be simplified and conveyed better using more visualization and less text, especially where the language may not be the users first language? - do not be misled to constantly update good and simple SOP’s because in all organizations are individuals who will chose to deviate from instructions for reasons that you have to interrogate

I always impress upon my direct reports that hitting your goals while a project / program fails hurts the company and their source of revenue. It is import to not only accomplish everything on your plate but look around and see who needs help. When the project / team / program succeeds, then everyone succeeds including the company's bottom line. If I ever found someone smugly announcing they had all of their KPI on time, while they watched the team fail, that would be the foot one booted out of the company. You also need to allow your reports to tell you when they need help or are falling behind as early as possible and identify how to get them back on track. Find what they need even if that means you roll up your sleeves.

I definitely agree with and find value in these contributions. It takes quite a bit if extra effort to make this work effectively. The work is worth the superior result.

It happens too often that employees are being measured against goals they are not in control of. To be meaningful and fair to all concerned, objectives and goals set for an employee must be reachable for said employee without interference of other people’s goals, responsibilities, and authorities. As an example, maximizing Service and Aftermarket revenue and EBITDA often times is being undermined by new business Sales being generous with freebies and Aftermarket pricing in order to sell the next project. This is frustrating and potentially damaging for the Aftermarket Team working hard to reach their objectives, only to see them dwindle away due to others’ actions.