Performance appraisal and workplace culture: A qualitative study investigating differences in job roles and outcomes
Abstract
Research in the field of positive organisational scholarship highlights the benefits of a positive culture to both the organisation and the employees. Workplace culture also affects the likelihood that the performance evaluation process will generate positive outcomes. One of the more challenging areas of healthcare management is the difference in perspectives of clinical and nonclinical employees. Both types of employees bring vital skills important in generating positive patient outcomes, but they may value different things in the workplace. This complicates the evaluation process in providing feedback to employees to help improve performance. To investigate what employees value, this paper compares data from a healthcare organisation in the USA. Early evidence indicates that nonclinical respondents report a more positive perception of workplace culture than clinical employees. This difference in perceptions, however, does not appear to result in different intentions with respect to retention. Both groups show a strong indication to remain with the organisation and are equally committed to it. Performance appraisals are not perceived as accurately reflecting the efforts of both types of employees. In the sample organisation, employees are committed, but clinical employees do not perceive an environment where the performance review system leads to better performance.
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Author's Biography
Elizabeth Goad Oliver is the Lewis Whitaker Adams Professor of Accounting at Washington and Lee University and served as Associate Dean of the Williams School of Commerce, Economics, and Politics before becoming head of the Accounting Department. A licensed Certified Public Accountant, she holds an MS from the University of Virginia and a doctorate from Texas A&M University, both in accounting. She also holds an BA and MA in English from Mary Baldwin College and the University of Kansas, respectively. She also spent a year with Arthur Andersen’s Northern Virginia office as a Faculty Fellow. Currently, she researches in the area of positive psychology and performance evaluation. Previous publications have appeared in major business and accounting journals, and she serves on the editorial board of Business Horizons.
Karen S. Cravens is the Chapman Professor of Accounting and Director of the School of Accounting and Computer Information systems at the University of Tulsa. Her doctorate, in accounting, is from Texas A&M University. She holds an MBA from Texas Christian University and a BA from Vanderbilt University. She is also a licensed Certified Public Accountant and Certified Management Accountant. She has been the recipient of the Mayo Teaching Excellence Award and the Mayo Research Excellence Award from the Collins College of Business and The University of Tulsa Excellence in Teaching Award in 2015. She has over 30 publications focused on management accounting issues such as transfer pricing, brand valuation, intangibles, positive organisational scholarship and performance measurement. Prior to joining the faculty at the University of Tulsa, she was employed as a senior tax consultant with Deloitte Haskins and Sells (now Deloitte) and with Burlington Northern Resources (now part of ConocoPhillips).
Jeanine S. Stewart is an executive coach and management consultant based in the Eastern United States. She earned her PhD in sensory and systems neuroscience at the University of Virginia and went on to complete a fellowship in neurobehavioural development at the University of Virginia Medical School. As a tenured full professor, she taught and published in the areas of neuroscience, psychology and organisational behaviour. In keynotes and speaking engagements Stewart has presented at national and international conferences on topics related to neuroscience, higher education management, healthy interpersonal dynamics at work and institutional diversity. She is a frequent presenter to corporations in the Fortune 500 on topics related to worker performance, inclusion and engagement.
Citation
Oliver, Elizabeth Goad, Cravens, Karen S. and Stewart, Jeanine S. (2018, December 1). Performance appraisal and workplace culture: A qualitative study investigating differences in job roles and outcomes. In the Management in Healthcare: A Peer-Reviewed Journal, Volume 3, Issue 3. https://doi.org/10.69554/EWKN9864.
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