When it comes to persuading busy staff and managers to buy into a system, need to present something speedy and straightforward
People Management, 13 Jul 2006
James Brockett reports from the CIPD HR Software Show in London
The key to getting your workforce to use a performance management tool is buying software that is quick and simple to use.
Peter Gilbert, head of HRIS at investment bank UBS, and Caroline Goudie, global head of HR operational excellence at Reuters, agreed that when it came to persuading busy staff and managers to buy into a system, they needed to present something that was speedy and straightforward.
Goudie used a third-party supplier for Reuters' package, which had to serve 15,000 staff in 91 countries. She said: "In an ideal world no one would even mention the tool, they would just talk about performance management. That's not where we are today, but we are getting there."
UBS developed its own software in-house, but Gilbert said one prototype he had seen had so many controls it looked like a games console, whereas the eventual model was successful because it required "as few clicks as possible".
"It has embedded the process in people's imagination because when they go to the self-service section on the web, the tool is there. It empowers both employees and line managers," he said.
While UBS's large number of Swiss employees were disciplined in following performance management procedures, UK staff required a little more persuading, he added.
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