Performance Consulting vs. Performance Management

by Harold Stolovitch

Performance Management (PM) is a set of activities embedded in a process that is focused on meeting predetermined goals and objectives efficiently and effectively. PM can be applied at organizational, divisional, departmental, team or individual levels. In all cases, methods, tools, and systems are put in place to document goals and objectives, monitor progress toward their attainment and provide mechanisms to correct deviations that inhibit achievement of desired outcomes.

PM is a continuous process and while mostly applied in the workplace, may also be found in sports, social and political contexts and even in prison settings. A frequently cited definition of PM is:

“A strategic and integrated approach to increasing the effectiveness of organizations by improving the performance of the people who wok in them and by developing the capabilities of teams and individual contributors.” (Armstrong & Baron, 1998).

Most PM systems and/or practices are overt in the way they function. There are clearly defined activities that formalize steps in the process, often with specified timelines. They may include incentives and consequences for successful performance as well as sanctions for underperformance. They can also be partially or completely covert, i.e. hidden or embedded within the performance
setting. Goals and objectives may be informally expressed and monitoring may take place with little to no fanfare. Consequences may occur in ways that are part of the organizational routine.

An excellent and up-to-date resource on PM is:

Colkin, G. (2009). Performance Management – Integrating Strategy Execution, Methodologies, Risk and Analytics. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons.

It’s also fun to read.

Another resource, frequently cited is:

Armstrong, M. & Baron, G. (1998). Performance Management: The New Realities. London: Institute of Personnel Development. Unlike Performance Management, which is a set of activities embedded in a process, Human Performance Improvement (HPI) and Human Performance Technology (HPT) are qualitatively different. The PM process may be embedded within the professional practice of HPI/HPT, but remains a component or aspect of something much larger.

What follows are excerpts from a chapter I wrote and very recently updated:

Stolovitch, H. D. (2007). The development and evolution of human performance improvement. In Robert Reiser & John Dempsey (eds.), Trends And Issues In Instructional Design and Technology. Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

 Top | Next