effect state: ‘this job or task will have been well done if... (the
following things happen)’. Junior or more routine jobs are likely
to have a higher proportion of standing objectives to which
performance standards are attached than senior and more flex-
ible or output-orientated jobs.
The following are some examples of performance standards
which spell out the end results required in quantitative terms:
■ Prepare and distribute management accounts to managers
within three working days of the end of the accounting
period.
■ Deal with 90 per cent of customer complaints within 24
hours – the remainder to be acknowledged the same day and
answered within five working days.
■ Hear job evaluation appeals within five working days.
It may not always be possible to quantify performance stand-
ards, in the examples given above. The end results required may
have to be defined in qualitative terms.
It is often assumed that qualitative performance standards are
difficult to define. But all managers make judgements about the
standards of performance they expect and obtain from their staff,
and most people have some idea of whether or not they are
doing a good job. The problem is that these views are often
subjective and are seldom articulated. Even if, as often happens,
the final definition of a performance standard is somewhat bland
and unspecific, the discipline of working through the require-
ments in itself will lead to greater mutual understanding of
performance expectations.
A performance standard definition should take the form of a
statement that performance will be up to standard if a desirable,
specified and observable result happens.
The following are some examples of qualitative performance
standards:
■ Performance will be up to standard if line managers receive
guidance on the interpretation and implementation of inven-
tory policies which is acted upon and makes a significant
contribution to the achievement of inventory targets.
■ Performance will be up to standard when callers are dealt
with courteously at all times, even when they are being diffi-
cult.
How to Set Objectives 251