IBM Human Resources did it right this time. From the basic premise of a need to change, to using agile methods for design and feedback of the process, to rolling it all out to workers.
They really are walking the talk when it comes to how to provide feedback in a fast-moving and hyper-social environment.
While the outside debate goes on on about the value of performance management systems, IBM has done something about it and nobody did this with such grace as we did. IBM has spent time listening to employees and incorporating their feedback into the design elements of the newly developed system.
Now, we have no more forced distribution, with multiple touch-points during the year and a human-scale time horizon around goal-setting and goal attainment.
All around, this is by far the best approach to performance management that I've seen, and I've seen many...