A critical evaluation of the performance management system used at Larfage Cement Zimbabwe (January 2009 to December 2010)

Abstract

The study was an evaluation of the performance management system at Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe, to find whether the employees and management participate willingly and accept the performance management system as a tool which can benefit them and the organization for the period January 2009 to December 2010. The purpose of the research was to conduct a critical analysis of the performance management system at Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe focusing on the understanding of the system by employees and managers, the attitude of employees and managers towards the system and the benefits of the system.

The main findings were that staff had negative attitude towards the performance management system, staff does not trust the system most believe that the system is there to serve the interest of management and to punish employees, management is the only group that positive about the system. Most employees believe that the system is not transparent and is unfair and biased. The researcher’s proposition that employees willing participate and accept the system if they believe that the system is fair and transparent was supported by the findings. Open and close ended questionnaires were administered to ascertain the opinions of the managers and employees. Random sampling methods were used in selecting the respondents for the study. The average response rate was 70%.

The researcher has recommended what needs to be put in place to help the system work for the benefit of both the organization and the employees. Due to the complexity of the system, the researcher then recommended that training be conducted to educate employees about the performance management system, a budget be set aside for performance related rewards and introduction of a new rating system. Further research may be done to assess the nature of the relationship between rewards and performance at Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe and also research may be done on relationship between performance and promotion at Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe.