Editing Performance appraisal (section)

==Frequency of PAs==

Performance appraisals (PAs) are conducted at least annually,<ref name="Selden2">{{cite journal |last1=Selden |first1=Sally |last2=Sowa |first2=Jessica E. |title=Performance Management and Appraisal in Human Service Organizations: Management and Staff Perspectives |journal=Public Personnel Management |date=September 2011 |volume=40 |issue=3 |pages=251–264 |doi=10.1177/009102601104000305 }}</ref> and annual employee performance reviews appear to be the standard in most American organizations.<ref name="Cederblom"/>  However, "it has been acknowledged that appraisals conducted more frequently (more than once a year) may have positive implications for both the organization and employee."<ref name="Schraeder"/> It is suggested that regular performance feedback provided to employees may quell any unexpected or surprising feedback to year-end discussions.<ref name="Sudarsan"/> In a recent research study concerning the timeliness of PAs, "one of the respondents even suggested that the performance review should be done formally and more frequently, perhaps once a month, and recorded twice a year."<ref name="Sudarsan"/>

Other researchers propose that the purpose of PAs and the frequency of their feedback are contingent upon the nature of the job and characteristics of the employee.<ref name="Cummings">{{cite journal |last1=Cummings |first1=L. L. |last2=Schwab |first2=Donald P. |title=Designing Appraisal Systems for Information Yield |journal=California Management Review |date=July 1978 |volume=20 |issue=4 |pages=18–25 |doi=10.2307/41164777 |jstor=41164777 }}</ref> For example, employees of routine jobs where performance maintenance is the goal would benefit sufficiently from annual PA feedback. On the other hand, employees of more discretionary and non-routine jobs, where goal-setting is appropriate and there is room for development, would benefit from more frequent PA feedback. Informal performance appraisals may be done more often, to prevent the element of surprise from the formal appraisal.<ref name="Cederblom"/><ref name="Cummings"/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Katz |first1=Ralph |title=Motivating technical professionals today |journal=IEEE Engineering Management Review |date=2013 |volume=41 |issue=1 |pages=28–38 |doi=10.1109/EMR.2013.6489837 }}</ref>