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If you’re going to be investing money in appraisal software, you need to make sure you’re getting the right product! There are lots of great systems out there now, but there are also clunky ones and others that offer terrible value for money.
Being a business that created our own appraisal software, we reckon we’re quite wise to what our audience are looking for. We also spoke to our clients about what they had been looking for before choosing Actus™ as their performance management solution:
- Simple & intuitive to use – understandably, people expect their work tools and software to be as flexible and easy to use as the tools they use socially and at home. Choose purpose built appraisal software over modules that can just be added on to tech driven HR databases if you want to maximise user experience and uptake, and show staff you are taking their performance management seriously.
- A system that can grow with you – most of our clients were moving from paper to online software for the first time, and in many cases the usage of their paper based performance or talent management system was not high. Going from low completion of paper based processes to an all singing, all dancing online appraisal software in one annual cycle is not realistic. Choose a provider whose software can evolve with you as your culture matures (and who, like Actus™, will switch on additional features and functionality at no extra cost!)
- An open and flexible system – many appraisal systems are prescriptive and expect appraisals to be completed within a specific window of time. They lock down objectives at the start of the year with no room for review or comment. This approach is quite outdated and really only just supports the ‘tickbox’ mentality. Choose a system that is flexible enough to allow managers and staff to comment on objectives or update their development plan when it is relevant, as opposed to once a year in a prescribed timeframe. That way you can encourage local ownership of both system usage and of course talent management itself.
You’ll notice that these themes were less about the key features the software could offer and more about the ethos, design, or way of working. In fact, a number of HR respondents told us that the ability for the software to grow with the company was key – as too much at the start could overwhelm staff and scare them off.
For more information on appraisals, download our FREE white paper on appraisals below.
If you would like to understand more about Actus™, our purpose built Talent and Performance Management Software, get in touch by using the button below, just drop us a line at [email protected], or visit our website www.actus.co.uk. Not only does our system align with the 3 themes above, it is also supported by OD experts as opposed to techies and we would be delighted to chat with you.
Actus™ performance appraisal software is specifically designed to embed year round performance in your organisation. Award winning, highly configurable and securely hosted in the UK cloud. For more information, please visit actus.co.uk
