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Request for Proposal, Research Paper Example

Pages: 11

Words: 3099

The information presented in this proposal is for use only by Gulf Insurance Group (GIG) and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed in whole or part for any purpose other than to evaluate the proposal. Albaghli Consulting Group (ACG) fully understands that you seek a service provider with experience, qualifications, and commitment to responsiveness and communication. ACG assures you that it brings all of these attributes to this engagement, and is committed and capable of providing Gulf Insurance Group with the services necessary to address the needs as described in this RFP.

Respectively,

***

President

Albaghli Consulting Group (ACG)

Executive Summary

The following is the response of Albaghli Consulting Group to the request for proposal of Gulf Insurance Group requesting an effective performance appraisal system to better assist the company in evaluating their employees along with using a system that could be used for both administrative and developmental purposes. Considering the fact that Gulf Insurance Group asserted in their letter that they would like to use a simple yet effective and easy to implement performance appraisal. ACG proposes the use of aGraphic Rating Scale System. This method is known for its ease of use and simplicity. ACG will take the necessary steps to ensure that both the raters and ratees are engaged and well trained for the new performance appraisal system. In order to reach this goal, ACG will be training both parties on the new system. The main objective of the training is to increase the overall knowledge and awareness of the performance appraisal system, and how to effectively use it in a business environment in a way that will fit the organization’s ability to meet their desired goals.

Further, the competencies that will be used for rating will be based on a comprehensive job analysis that should be conducted by the Human Resources department. Delivery is expected to take place three times a year by our professionals to ensure that Gulf Insurance Group is following the required steps for the success of the appraisal system. ACG will provide full guidance through the processand promises to do their best to ensure that the new performance appraisal system is implemented correctly. Finally, ACG confirms that the proposed processes for the design, development, and implementation of the appraisal system for Gulf Insurance Group has been determined to be fair, accurate, and legally defensible. The rationale for the said procedures is a research-based approach.

Introduction

The feedback received from Gulf Insurance Group (GIG) indicates that the current performance appraisal they are using isn’t satisfactory, and also conflicts with their strategy in reaching excellence and the desire of expanding. Therefore, the target of this proposal is to assist GIG in understanding the performance management system, along with stating the system’s advantages and how it should be practiced. Several options were discussed in ACG to decide which performance appraisal should work best for GIG, and fit its goals. As a result, based on the need of simplicity and a low-cost performance appraisal, ACG has decided that the best fit would be the Graphic Rating Scale which research reveals that it’swidely known for its simplicity, low cost, and ease of use (Murphy & Cleveland, 1995).

The basic components of a Graphic Rating Scale consists on a 5 point rating scale; in this case they are from lowest to highest, unsatisfactory, poor, intermediate, very good and excellent(Murphy & Cleveland, 1995).

Job Analysis

A job analysis is a vital process that identifies a content of a certain job in terms of the involved activities and attributes needed to perform the work. Moreover, it assists in identifying the major job requirements. The main purpose of using the job analysis for the suggested performance appraisal system is to help gain a better understanding of what components make up a position within an organization.Competencies, behaviors and duties are measured in a performance appraisal and these need to be benchmarked based off of a job analysis. (Wayne & Herman, 2010).

The purpose of the Request for Proposal is to ensure the requirements of the request can be accomplished by the selected vendor and that the requirements will be accomplished within the specified parameters in regard to key milestones, cost and quality. The request for proposal is the initial step in transferring the requirements from one party to the other and established the level of expectations that will be needed throughout the project. This document establishes the proposal of the requirements to provide the goods or services and is inclusive of more than a request for information but a request for the acceptance, understanding and proposed ability to accomplish the requirements from the vendor.

The job analysis will be conducted through a series of steps that will ensure and cover all areas of the specific job and to fulfill all its legal requirements. This can then be used in a legal case if a lawsuit is brought into action based on a performance appraisal. The main steps of a job analysis include but are not limited to the following:

Identify and explain the purpose of the job analysis.
Choose a method for collecting data for the details in the job analysis. For example you can collect qualitative data to understand the KSA’s, behaviors, functionalities, work context, culture, work styles and work values of the job being performed. This will help in evaluating employees at their time of review.
Research the position through job postings, previous job descriptions and other job descriptions in the industry.
Gather the data through SME’s (subject matter experts) which can include interviewing the employees of the specific job outlining responsibilities and job duties, have employees fill out job analysis forms and answer any other specific questions relating to the position.
Have related employees review for final step and then submit for approval to HR Manager to be used.

Once these steps are completed a final job analysis can be created and used for performance appraisals and hiring purposes. Each of the competencies, behaviors and duties being measured in the performance appraisal can be measured and benchmarked off of the job analysis now that it is completed in its entirety.

The Appraisal Form

The Graphic Rating Scale will be used for conducting performance reviews for all employees throughout GIG and will also aid in the decision making process of promotions, monetary increases and bonuses. It is also intended to assist in both administration and developmental purposes. This will be measured by examining the improvement period from the last appraisal to the current appraisal. The system will be facilitated by each manager or supervisor with 1 or more employees.

The performance appraisal system that will be used will differ from its traditional formatting and will be slightly customized to meet GIG goals. The method will be comprised of relative competencies for each type of position, behaviors, and duties, comments for each section and an overall rating and additional comments section for overall performance. Areas of improvement will include both the unsatisfactory and poor sections; however, employees who score in the “intermediate” section are also advised to go under the same training that GIG tailors for their employees who needs improvements. Also, in addition each item that is being rated will also be briefly defined to ensure the rater completely understands the meaning of each section and any ambiguity is clarified. Lastly, the rating 5 point rating scale will also have a brief description to again ensure the rater fully understands what each rating means so they can make the best possible judgment for the employee being rated.

The performance reviews and its customized formatting is a necessity to bring the two parties into a collaborative and conforming environment. In order to accurately gauge the performance of the parties involved there must be conformity of metrics in which the measurements are made. Metrics will guide behavior and ensuring the appropriate behavior is followed throughout the project will ensure the appropriate actions are taken to ensure success. The critical success factors are assessed in each of the relative competencies. These success factors are directly aligned to the requirements of the project and will illustrate the health of the project and allow appropriate actions to take place.

Please Refer to the Appendix for the Samples of theAppraisal Form (p11-12).

Delivery

It is very important to point out that in order for the delivery to be successful; all parties should fully cooperate with each other and also maintain working effectively through the whole process to ensure reaching the desired outcomes. All parties must remember that the main goal for the delivery is to assist the organization in reaching new levels of accuracy, fairness, and also limiting bias (Things that the current performance appraisal used by GIG lacks). The delivery will also ensure that the employees being rated have a better understanding of the rater’s reasoning and position for his/her responses. With that said, the performance appraisal should be delivered by someone who knows, works with and fully understands all the job functions of the employee being reviewed. There needs to be more than one trained appraiser in the meeting to deliver agreed upon results to ensure fairness of the review. This should be direct managers, supervisors or senior employees above the ratee. This will make for an accurate performance appraisal. The delivery should be conducted three times a year, once every four months to establish goals, track progress and get feedback on performance.

The appropriate method to ensure an adequate level of appraisal takes place will include a rotating mentoring program that will act as a tool to ensure the appropriate people are guided and trained in their appraisal techniques as well as instill a “train the trainer” mentality in the organization. Coaching by senior appraisers will allow for growth opportunities as well as a distribution of effort to ensure compliance. The delivery of the appraisal process will focus on using the appraisal periods to focus on transitioning knowledge from one party to the next as well as accomplishing the appraisal. The knowledge transfer will allow for a more flexible and agile workforce to accomplish the tasks required.

Training

The performance appraisal training for Gulf Insurance Group (GIG) is intended to enhance and develop the understanding of the appraisal and evaluation process in the company. ACG will ensure that all the employees (raters, ratees, HR/Administrative, etc.) will undergo formal standardized training. The training will extend beyond the basics of just doing a performance appraisal, to provide advanced strategies used by experts to reach the best levels of accuracy in appraisal systems. The course will utilize a direct learning approach using a variety of structured activities and group exercises, course participants will be actively involved in developing their own competencies and later on understanding how to rate them.

Also, one of the main purposes of the training will be to minimize rater bias in order to increase the overall validity, fairness, and accuracy. The training will also focus on learning observation through quantitatively rating qualitative competencies, behaviors and job duties, effectively delivery feedback and understanding the appeals process so the employee can have the opportunity to give comments and request more feedback. Finally, it must be pointed out that the training sessions will be conducted by the Human Resources department to make sure the training programs are implemented and designed properly for use. ACG will take full responsibility in guiding the HR department through the process.

Training will only be effective if it is tailored to the specific individual that is taking the training. Each stakeholder could potentially hold a different role and include different responsibilities within the organization. The training is composed in a modular fashion and would be composed specifically based upon the trainee’s needs. These needs are derived from the roles and responsibilities held within the organization.

Legal Defensibility and Fairness

In order for a performance appraisal to succeed it is essential that the system is legally defensible and fair for all parties involved. When an employee’s status is changed according to the performance appraisal and the employee is not satisfied with the results, there is a chance that they may sue the organization. Therefore, it’s also fair for the employer to defend himself.

Legality and fairness need to be ensured throughout the process. In order to ensure this level of security it is required that the parties understand the level and description of fairness that is expected. To ensure fairness and legal defensibility a performance appraisal system should include the following:

The appraisal should be standardized for all employees within a job group (Wayne & Herman, 2010).
Performance appraisal must be job related.
Employees must be given a written copy of their job standards in advance of appraisals.
Managers who conduct the appraisal must be allowed to observe the behavior they are rating (Murphy & Cleveland, 1995).
Supervisors must be trained to use the appraisal form correctly.
An appeal procedure could be established to enable employees to express their opinions about the performance appraisal system.
The graphic rating scale components such as competencies, behaviors and duties are based off of the job analysis.
All the raters are trained on completing a performance appraisal to minimize bias keeping it objective and instructions are given on each appraisal form.
At the end of the review all employees will be debriefed on their results and given an opportunity to develop their areas of improvement through goal-setting.
The employee will be reviewed by both a senior associate and manager to ensure consistency in ratings.
The performance appraisal process will be conducted three times a year with proper and thorough documentation for record keeping.

All of the aforementioned areas must be adhered to. To be fully compliant, each section will be addressed and auditable. This means that upon inspection or question by the organization the documented adherence will be produced. Once all the previous areas have been addressed, it will be easier and clearer for employers to make decisions based on promotion, raises, bonuses and separation of employment safely and legally based off of the performance appraisal (Werner & Bolino,1997).

An appeal process could also take place to allow employees to give comments and feedback regarding their review. The process is as follows:

Employee requests appeals form and appraisal documentation form HR to be filled out by appealer.
Turn in form and other related documents to HR for review.
HR and appealer will sit down and meet to discuss the details and reasoning for appeal.
If the appeal passes through HR, the rater associated with the appealer will be notified of the appeal and be given the opportunity to discuss the ratings with HR and the appealer.
If appeal passes each level then action will be taken in regards to both the appealer and rater to come to a resolution and approved by all parties involved.
All documents will be kept in each employee’s record for documentation purposes.

Finally, ACG will train the raters on several methods to avoid adverse impact; this will be through ensuring the system is legally defensible, and also making the raters aware of any discriminatory and prejudice issues. The final goal is to ensure that the process is fair towards all working groups in the company and each individual is treated and rated fairly.

Reference Page

Wayne F. Cascio& Herman A. (2010).Applied Psychology in Human resource management.One Lake Street NJ: Prentice Hall

Murphy, K. R., & Cleveland, J. N. (1995). Understanding performance appraisal: Social, Organizational, and goal-based perspectives. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Werner, J. M., &Bolino, M. C. (1997). Explaining US Courts of Appeals decisions involving Performance appraisal: Accuracy, Fairness and Validation. Personnel Psychology, 50, pp. 1-24.

Signature Page

In signing below you accept the suggested proposal in this document as part of the agreement between Gulf Insurance Group (GIG) and Albaghli Consulting Group (ACG) in implementing and doing the necessary training for a new performance appraisal system.

______________________________________________________

ACME Advanced Widget Company

Date__________________________________________________

Albaghli Consulting Group

Date

Appendix

Sample 1 of Appraisal Form

Name of Ratee: _______________Name of Rater: ___________________

Instructions:

Please read all the instructions carefully before filling out this appraisal form. Each section should cover a specific dimension of each individual’s position. Be sure to read the section header, description of the item being appraised and understand the meanings of each dimension and rating scale before you begin. This will ensure you as a rater fully understand what’s required before beginning the process in order to achieve the desired results of appraisal accuracy.

Department/ Position – HR Employees

Section I: Competency

A competency is the ability to do something successfully or efficiently. It is also a group of defined behaviors that provides a guideline for achieving the job duties at the highest performing level. Further, it can also identify areas of development and help with improving upon them.

Competency – Communication is the process of exchanging information, both verbal and non-verbal, within an organization.

Rating: Please choose a rating that best evaluates the employee’s competency.

Each rating is defined below to understand each scale.

Unsatisfactory – Employee does not meet minimum standards required of position.

Poor – Employee meets minimum standards but does not perform.

Intermediate – Employee meets minimum standards and performs to meeting day in and day out requirements of position.

Very Good – Employee meets standards, performs well and is consistent in work performance.

Excellent – Employee meets minimum standards, performs at a superior level, goes beyond daily call of duties for position and consistently shows initiative in work performance.

1) Unsatisfactory

2) Poor

3) Intermediate

4) Very Good

5) Excellent

Sample 2 of Appraisal Form

Name of Ratee: _____________________Name of Rater: ______________________