INTRODUCTION

Vertical Horizon, one of the prominent educational institutes in Dhaka, was established in the January of 2009 with an initiative to take English medium high school education to a new level. The institute is being run mainly by four major partners, Syed M Fahim (Business Department), Tawsif Alam Khan (Accounting Department), Ashraful Huda (Science Department) and Sayem Rias (Mathematics Department). The four colors (Orange, Red, Lime and Blue) in the logo of Vertical Horizon, represents the four main departments. It s about making the institution s environment look more attractive, colorful and vibrant. The owners/teachers believe in a method of education which includes both social and instructive learning. For that purpose VH has three extracurricular clubs which includes football, basketball and debate. And currently these clubs are participating in various inter school tournaments. In the last October, 2010 VH organized their Basketball Championship Federation which brought a big hype in the market. It was such an enormous success and the federation was so impressed that they offered VH to organize the national league. Moreover recently Vertical Horizon has their hands full organizing the second session of the IAS (International Assessment of School) exam in Bangladesh. International Assessment for Schools - for neighboring subcontinent countries is an unparallel educational measurement and assessment service to help understand students and their current academic achievement levels in the context of the immense possibility for excellence that awaits them! The lifeline of academic excellence runs through the subjects English, Mathematics, Science and Computer Skills. IAS assesses the

participants to present them with a complete objective analysis of their achievements in these subjects to find out:

y y y

Do students think out of the box? Do they interpret facts to understand more? Do they analyze verbal and numerical data to arrive at logical conclusions and solutions?

Vertical Horizon is helping to conduct the IAS exam organized by McMillan and Poroma by providing invigilators for the exam. Recruiting new invigilators for each year IAS exam is solely done by VH itself.

Vertical Horizon also works on the invisible weak links in their teaching/learning strategies. Round the year Mock examinations before the board finals helps teachers to shape their global players (students). Vertical Horizon also opens the eyes of the parents to a kind of support they should give to their children to get to the dream destination!

OBJECTIVES
When asked, Syed M Fahim one of the co-founders of Vertical Horizon (VH) about what made you and your partners start this educational institution, he had a very sincere answer. He said, Once we thought of forming Vertical Horizon (VH) we thought over the concept that the legal ground of the VH should be very strong. Under that basis we can give certificate and transcripts to students when they graduate and recommendations when they go abroad. A student studying for O/A level exam has to go to both school and coaching centre. These coaching centers are often unregistered. Vertical Horizon is soon on the process of registering with the British Council. So that students can give exams through Vertical Horizon.

Why is VH different from school?

It is because Vertical Horizon is bringing the coaching culture under formal institute. The process of education that is followed by Vertical Horizon is all the subject matter is conveyed to the students for better learning. This is a unique strategy by which a coaching centre operates and makes sure of generating intelligent and distinctive students. This is the base line of Vertical Ho rizon. Vertical Horizon is actually offering a platform for the young generation for employment and part time jobs. Starting from the top hierarchy to the assistant level they belong to a young age group. It elevates the opportunity for the young generation to get into this profession.

epartment Head

Administrator

Teaching Assistants
Fig: Hierarchy of Vertical Horizon.

RECRUITMENTS
Recruitment is the process of finding and attracting capable applicants for employment. Job descriptions and specifications provide the needed information upon which the recruitment process rests. Normally, recruiters identify job openings through HRP or requests by managers. HR plans shows the recruiters both present openings and those expected in the future allowing the recruiters to be proactive. With openings identified, the recruiter then learns what each job requires by reviewing the job analysis information, particularly the job description and specifications. This information tells the recruiter the characteristics of both the jobs and the people who will fill them. Vertical Horizon conducts recruitments once in a year, and usually recruits mainly teaching assistants and administrators for providing support for the teachers. Currently there are five department administrators and fifty six teaching assistants working in Vertical Horizon. The departments head are the main teachers in each department. There are five major departments each has a department head working in Vertical Horizon currently.

Constraints & Challenges

The constraints and challenges faced by recruiters are

Organizational Policies

B Promote from within B Compensation B Employment Status B International Hiring x x x x x

Strategic and Human Resource Plans Affirmative Action Plans EEO legislation and affirmative action plans Recruiter Habits Environmental conditions

B Leading Economic Indicators B Predicted versus Actual Sales B Want-adds index x x x

Job requirements Costs Incentives

General Recruitment Process

1. Recruitment Philosophy a. b. c. 2. Internal vs. External Job vs. career orientation Long vs. short term perspective

Recruitment Planning a. b. c. Job Specification Estimate Number of Contacts needed Affirmative Action Goals

3.

Recruitment Strategy Development a. b. c. d. Where? Whom? How? RJPs?

4.

Recruitment Activities a. b. Internal Sources External Sources

5.

Recruitment Evaluation a. b. c. Number of jobs filled Time to fill Cost per job

Recruitment in Vertical Horizon

Recruitment Goals
In order to keep their standards in education service Vertical Horizon recruits teaching assistants (TAs), who plays an important role in assisting the teachers in their teaching methods and strategies. These TAs help in checking mock examination copies, invigilate the in-house exams of Vertical Horizon, and take special TA classes for students who needs added attention in the particular field. Thus Vertical Horizon s recruitment and selection process has to be one of the most detailed and finest. Their goal is: To find out the best performers that is available in the educational arena Like all other organizations, Vertical Horizon also has some few common goals such as:

 To fulfill its demand for employees by attracting favorable recruits in a cost-effective

manner.

 Attract a sufficient amount of number of recruits to maintain an optimal recruitment

ratio.

 Maintaining the brand image of Vertical Horizon.

Following these set of goals Vertical Horizon and the appointed recruiter carry out the recruitment procedure to pick out the best Teaching Assistants available in the private educational field.

Training of personnel
Training is a process of learning a sequence of programmed behavior. It is application of knowledge and gives people an awareness of the rules procedures to guide their behavior. It attempts to improve their performance on the current job or prepare them for an intended job. Development is a related process. It covers not only those activities which improve job performance but also those which bring growth of the personality; help individuals to the progress towards maturity and actualization of their potential capacities so that they become not only good employees but better men and women. In organizational terms, it is intended to equip person to earn promotion and hold greater responsibility. Vertical Horizon attaches utmost importance to the development of its employees through continuous training. Vertical Horizon believes in both on the job and off the job training. It established Training Wing for facilitating in house training program. Besides, teaching students, invigilating exams and checking and marking exam copies, Vertical Horizon arrange training to introduce new arena of teaching students. Vertical Horizon imparted training 56 teaching assistants form 8 different subjects during 2010. The training programs were organized by the individual department heads / partners. Besides, it arranges four Foundation Training Programs (FTP) in its Training Wing for fresh entrants in the institute.

Performance Appraisal
Performance appraisal may be defined as a structured formal interaction between a subordinate and supervisor that usually takes the form of a periodic analysis, in which the work performance of the subordinate is examined and discussed, with a view to identifying weaknesses and strengths as well as opportunities for improvement and skills development. What is Performance Appraisal? Performance Appraisal is a process by which an employee's contribution to the organization during a specified period of time is assessed. It is a process of evaluating the performance of employees sharing information with them and searching for ways to improve their performance. Performance Appraisal Philosophy

Modern appraisal philosophy emphasizes the importance of present performance and preparation to achieve the future goals of an organization. It also stresses employee participation in mutually setting goals with the supervisor and knowledge of results. The hallmarks of appraisal philosophy are:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Performance orientation Focus on goals or objectives Mutual goal setting between supervisor and employee Clarification of behavioral expectations Extensive feedback system

Functions of Performance Appraisal

As an employee development tool:

y y y y

Reinforcing and sustaining performance Improving performance Determining career progress goals Determining Training Needs

Figure no. 1

Performance Appraisal Process

As an administrative tool:

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Linking rewards with performance Evaluation of HRM policies and programs

Purpose of Performance Appraisal

The essence of appraisal process is that when appraisal is done correctly, an individual, a supervisor and the company are all benefitted at the same time. An individual s efforts contribute to a great extent to the strategic focus of the company and the company s success largely depends on how effectively the individual performs his duties and responsibilities. It also lets the employee know what and how well they are performing and what levels of efforts and task directions are needed in future for self development as well as for the organizational effectiveness. It also helps in validating recruitment procedures of the company. It is the policy to establish a link between individual s performance objectives in line with the company s objectives. An effective performance appraisal system facilitates the following:

1. Establishing communication between the individual employee and the supervisor to:
y

To measure progress and accomplishments, both qualitatively and quantitatively, according to expectations established at the beginning of the year and take corrective actions.

y y y

Provide performance feedback and share expectations. Determine action plan Establish new objectives for future in line with company s strategies.

2. Identifying what needs to happen in future for continued growth and development of the employee so that he can contribute more to company s success.

3. Linking staff transition decisions such as confirmation promotion placement, staff development and career planning efforts with appraisal system.

4. Establishing a rational basis for rewarding performance.

The outcomes of performance appraisal system are:

 Each position and the tasks performed by the incumbents adequately

support the strategic business objects of the organization.

 The process is effective in maximizing employee performance.\

The measurements in the performance appraisal System are:

Job descriptions developed th rough timely and effective job analyses. Feedback is shared continuously among all stakeholders. Every employee is fully aware of his or her role in the organization. Measure outcomes identified and measured for each position. The process and the system viewed as credible fair valid and reliable

Effective performance appraisal systems contain two basic systems operating in conjunction: an evaluation system and a feedback system. The evaluation system is to identify the

performance gap (if any). This gap is the shortfall that occurs when performance does not meet the standard set by the organization as acceptable.

The main aim of the feedback system is to inform the employee about the quality of his or her performance. However, the information flow is not exclusively one way. The appraisers also receive feedback for, the employee about job problems, etc.). The purposes of performance appraisal may be more clearly underscored by looking at it from the different viewpoints of the main stakeholders: the employee and the organization.

Benefits of Performance Appraisal

From the viewpoint of senior executives, performance appraisal systems are generally regarded as a necessary part of organization s management system. This condition seems to exist because of the widely accepted, generally unquestioned benefits of performance appraisal system. The following benefits are typically mentioned when considering Performance Appraisal:

It provides employees with an opportunity to receive feedback regarding their performance.

It provides an opportunity for performance related discussions that include the following aims:

  

Setting work objectives Identifying training and development needs Discussing career progression opportunities

It standardizes performance appraisals and makes them objective by providing uniform processes and criteria.

It provides the company with a ground for legal protection against employee lawsuits for discrimination and wrongful termination.

Perhaps, a less little but more candid observation would be T FORMAL PERFORMANCE HE APPRAISAL SYSTEM that supports the organization s hierarchical authority system. It gives

the supervising manager control over the carrots and sticks in what is essentially a carrotand-stick management system. The list of benefit above, with the exception of the last one, represents an idealized view of performance appraisal systems, a view that is advocated by many but achieved by few. Can things be changed so that performance appraisal systems work the way it is deemed effective? Answering such a question requires taking a rational look at the form and function of performance appraisal systems, and the effects systems have on the very people they are intended to help.

Requirements for effective Performance Appraisal

To provide an effective evaluation, a Performance Appraisal System should meet the following criteria:

     

Relevance : Related to the job Sensitivity : Distinguish between good performance and poor performance Reliability: Consistent Result over time Unbiased: Free from biasness Acceptable: Acceptable to employees and managers Practicality: Easy to implement

Performance Management Systems

Performance Management is a whole work system that begins when a job is defined as needed and ends when an employee leaves the orga nization. Between these points the following must occur for a working performance management system (PMS):

 Developing clear job descriptions. Job descriptions are the first step in selecting the right

person for the job and setting that person up to succeed job descriptions should provide

a framework so that the applicants and new employees understand the expectations for the position, usually expressed as outcomes.

Figure no. 2 Performance Feedback Circle

 Selecting appropriate people with an appropriate selection process. Finding a good job

fit between the different skills and interests of a person to the different requirements of a job, is exceptionally important. Therefore an organization must use a selection process that maximizes input for potential coworkers and the person to whom the position will report.

 Establishing accomplishment-based performance standards, outcomes and measures

employees often fail to meet the organizations expectations because they do not have clear cut goals or knowledge of the path to achieve goals.

 Providing effective orientation education and training employees must have the

information necessary to perform. This includes job related, company related and position related information; an excellent understanding of product and process use and requirements: and complete knowledge about customer needs and requirements.

Providing ongoing coaching and feedback people need ongoing consistent feedback that addresses both their strengths and the weaker areas of their performance. Effective feedback focuses more intensely on healthy people built on their strengths. Hence it is important to create a work environment in which people feel comfortable asking for feedback.

 Conducting quarterly performance development discussions. If supervisors are giving

employees frequent feedback and coaching, performance reviews can change from negative, evaluative, one sided presentations to positive, planning meetings. Thus if they are held quarterly, employees always know how they are performing and their next goals and challenges

 Designing effective compensation and recognition systems that reward people for their

contributions. An effective compensation system plays a vital role on employee motivation .Money has become a metaphor for value and it is often not so much about the money as it is about the message any reward or recognition sends to an individual about their value.

 Providing promotional/ career development opportunities for staff. The supervisor plays

a key role in helping staff develop their potential. Growth goals, changing and challenging job assignments and responsibilities, and cross training contribute to the development of a more effective staff member.

 Assisting with exit interviews to understand why valued employees leave the

organization. When a valued person leaves the company, it is necessary to understand why the person is leaving.

This feedback will help the company improve its work environment for people. An improved work environment for people results in the retention of valued staff.

Methods used in Performance Appraisal/ PMS

Performance Appraisals take many forms, such as written essays, which is the simplest method or written narratives assessing an employee's strengths, weaknesses, past performance, potential and providing recommendations for improvement. Types of performance appraisal methods include absolute standards (such as critical incidents, BARS, MBO), and comparative standards (such as ranking, paired comparisons, forced distribution).

2.8.1

Absolute Standards

Individual or group performance is not compared with other individual or group performance in absolute standard methods. Rather the performance(s) is compared with some preset achievable target set by the organization.

Essay Appraisal
The rater writes narrative describing an employee's strengths, weaknesses, past performance, potential and suggestion for improvement.

Critical Incident Appraisal

The supervisors' attention is focused on specific or critical behaviors that separate effective from ineffective performance.

Checklist
The evaluator uses a list of behavioral descriptions, checks of those behaviors that apply to the employee. Once the checklist is complete, it is usually evaluated by the personnel department and not the manager doing the checklist. Therefore, the rater does not actually evaluate the employee's performance, s/he merely records it.

Graphic Rating Scale

This method lists a set of performance factors such as job knowledge, work quality, cooperation that the supervisor uses to rate employee performance using an incremental scale.

Forced Choice
The rater makes choice between two or more statements, all of which may be favorable and unfavorable. The appraiser identifies statements that are most descriptive of the individual being evaluated.

BARS
Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales (BARS). BARS combine elements from critical incident and graphic rating scale approaches. The supervisor rates employees according to items on a numerical scale.

MBO
MBO evaluates how well an employee has accomplished objectives determined to be critical in job performance. This method aligns objectives with quantitative performance measures such as scales, profits, zero-defect units produced.

Relative standards
Comparative Standards or Multi-person comparison compares one employee's performance with that of one or more others.

Group order ranking

In group order ranking, the supervisor places employees into a particular classification such as top one-fifth and second one-fifth. If a supervisor has 10 employees, only two could be in the top fifth and two must be assigned to the bottom fifth.

Individual ranking
In individual ranking the supervisor lists the employees from highest to lowest. The difference between the top two employees is assumed equivalent to the difference between bottom two employees.

Paired comparison
In paired comparison the supervisor compares each employee with every other employee in the group and rates each as either superior or weaker of the pair. After all comparisons are made, each employee is assigned a summary or ranking based on the number of superior scores received.

There is no one best performance appraisal system that suits all organizations. Very often, organizations use a convenient mixture or two or more systems. A view from single dimension may not be enough to assess the actual potential of the employees. Typic ally, performance appraisal has been limited to a feedback process between employees and

supervisors. However with the increase focus on team work, employee development and customer service, the emphasis has shifted to employee feedback from the full circle of sources. This multiple-input approach to performance feedback is sometimes called 360degree assessment to connote that full circle. Best use of 360 degree is for employee development purpose, not for compensation or promotion purpose. All these appraisal systems build on the assumption that employees need feedback about their performance. Feedback helps them to know what to do and how ell they are doing. Assuming that performance is satisfactory, feedback enhances an employee's self-image and feeling of competence. Generally, feedback leads to both improved performance and improved attitude if handled properly by manager. But there is no appraisal system that does not give feedback to the employer. They only get a notion of their performance through promotion/demotion, pay raise/ fine, other incentives etc. some governments and bureaucratic organizations use ACRs (Annual Confidential Reports) to measure the performance of the employees.

Performance Appraisal in

Vertical Horizon
Vertical Horizon has an integrated and structured guideline for employee performance appraisal. The teaching assistants, the administrators and the department heads all actively participate in the appraisal process in Vertical Horizon. The process emphasizes on accountability and transparency of the responsibilities and jobs assigned to the teaching assistants. It clearly defines the roles and objectives of the teaching assistants-they know what the organization expects from them, what exactly their tasks are, etc. All this allows the appraisal process to be transparent and enhances its acceptability among the teaching assistants along with fostering teaching assistants motivation and their dedication towards the organization.

Overview of the Performance Appraisal Policy in Vertical Horizon

The Performance Appraisal in Vertical Horizon is carried out on a yearly basis, mainly following the five point rating scale. The policies assert all the key areas of responsibilities and tasks along with the course of action to be followed while evaluating employee performance. The procedure revolves mainly around some basic steps. At the initial stages the administrators and teaching assistants mutually discuss and set targets to be achieved in the following period. The appraiser (department heads) reviews competence and achievements while evaluating the performance of teaching assistants after which the teaching assistants has a chance to review these and has the right to disagree if need arises. Finally there is a detailed discussion on the progress made so far, feedback is given to the teaching assistants, general discussions are carried on about common problems and their solutions and the teaching assistants are directed towards goals to be achieved in the next period.

The performance appraisal process in Vertical Horizon

Vertical Horizon follows the five point rating scale, which is simple and easy to comprehend, for most teaching assistants. In the appraisal process, initially the teaching assistants are made aware of when the appraisal is to take place and prior discussions are held with their administrators (whom they directly report to). The teaching assistants performances would

then be assessed against the agreed upon targets and objectives. This method is followed as it helps to keep the teaching assistants motivated towards their goals and identify and match their personal goals with the organizations goals and objectives. The next step involves the teaching assistants filling up their credentials and job responsibilities and general remarks about their job achievements and goals, in the appraisal form. The appraiser then allocates marks to the employee based on assessment against the specified targets at the beginning of the period and on various aspects of job performance, and job behavior. These aspects often include-integrity, honesty, dedication, ability to work in a team, responsibilities towards job and duties, communication skills, reliability, discipline, leadership qualities, drive, enthusiasm, etc. Usually marks or point are associated with each of these traits and the appraiser assesses these traits in the individual and according to the sum resulting from these, the employee receives a ranking. The process is a simple rating scale, which comprises five scales ranging from outstanding to poor which expresses the highest level of performance to the lowest level, as shown in the following page : Point Performance Performance Level

Clearly outstanding performance

meets all targets and greatly exceeds some

Good

meets all targets and exceeds some

3 2

Satisfactory below satisfactory

meets all set targets on time little shortfall in few targets, but met others

poor

could not meet any target

The five point rating scale in performance appraisal system

The appraisal form is then reviewed by the administrators and the teaching assistants may be nominated for a promotion at this stage if thought capable enough. The teaching assistants then reviews the appraisal and gets to sign on the appraisal form and has an opportunity to agree or disagree to the appraisal by the superiors, in which case the matter would be resolved by the Department Heads. After the completion of these steps, the appraisers then provide feedback to the individual on their performance and progress. The appraisers offer positive reinforcement, while emphasizing what has been done well and making only constructive criticism about what might be improved. Views are exchanged on how teaching assistants can improve their performance, the support they need from their managers to achieve these and their aspirations for their future career. A general consensus is then reached by all the parties involved about the course of action to be taken to improve performance standards even further, and resolve other minor issues.

The Performance appraisal for senior personnel In the Vertical Horizon, the senior personnel are also evaluated in more or less in the same
manner as the teaching assistants. Usually the administrators are the highest ranking official in a department to whom a department head, responsible for carrying out the audits. The five point rating scale is also used in this case where an employee is rated on fi e v categories.

Problems with the process used

Although the five point rating scale used is simple and quick, this process has some significant disadvantages: The process does not reduce the occurrence of central tendency errors because it might be complicated for the appraiser to accurately rationalize a rating below or above the standard level of performance. Sometimes factual basis is absent in this process and the factors and degrees are sometimes imprecisely defined which could lead to unreasonable results. For instance, in case of 'customer orientation', 'communicating', and 'team orientation', there should be specific definitions.