ACAS guidance: Performance management

ACAS has published new advice (available here) providing ‘top tips’ for employers on how to fairly treat their staff. The new advice comes after research reveals that only 1 in 4 organisations adapt performance management processes to consider staff with disabilities and conditions such as dyslexia and autism.

The research also highlights that 1 in 10 employees felt that their employer’s performance management system was:

• demotivating staff; and
• not used for planning and monitoring training and development.

The advice includes tips such as:

• avoiding surprises – managers should discuss and address problems along the way as they present themselves, without leaving concerns until the end of the year performance meeting;
• avoiding favouritism – managers should use objective criteria to gauge performance where possible to reduce the risk of managers being seen to favour certain employees over others; and
• avoiding discrimination – employers should consider the diversity of their workforce and make sure their arrangements are fair to all, as well as in line with the Equality Act 2010.