Admit it, we all hate annual performance appraisals, and with good reason.

• Over 85% of companies say that their current performance management processes are only "moderately effective."

• Only 50% of employees believe that their managers provide them with honest feedback that actually improves their job performance.

• Managers spend, on average, 400 hours per year on the process! The return-on-investment for that time is very low. Most participate in the process "because the Human Resources department requires it."

So why do we continue, year after year, with this outdated, tedious, and questionable process? Probably because we have not had any better alternative... until now!

Roger Ferguson, a human resources and operations professional with more than thirty years of experience in Fortune 500 companies, has created Big Five Performance Management, a commonsense alternative. Big Five creates better accountability than traditional annual performance appraisal, requires less time, and is actually embraced by managers and their employees. Big Five is born from the sales culture where it is said that good salespeople are “born on Monday and die on Friday.” That means that good salespeople are 100 percent accountable for positive, documented, successful efforts on a weekly basis, creating a culture of ongoing accountability and demonstrated performance. Human Resources can learn a lot from sales; Big Five tells us how.

This innovative process, tested in multiple corporate environments for the past fifteen years, is presented here for the first time in a conversational, easy-to-read style, and is not just limited to human resources professionals or upper-level management. It is for the rank-and-file employee who may not know how to prioritize their work; calculate the value they bring to their organization; or communicate that value to their management. It is for frontline supervisors and managers who struggle to effectively align the efforts of their team members; are not always comfortable with confrontation when coaching employees; and dread the thought of having to prepare one more round of annual performance appraisals. It is for companies and organizations looking to build a more effective, accountable, and inspired workplace by improving processes and eliminating waste. Finally, performance assessment that works!

"Big Five is the coolest thing to hit Human Resources since Covey and his Seven Habits!"
            -Doug Thorpe, Solomon-Edwards

"The best 100 pages you will ever read on the subject of performance appraisal! Big Five is an absolute game-changer."
            - Rick Gillis- Author, Consultant, Speaker

"I installed Big Five in our business and was amazed at how quickly my teams embraced it. Most of us have never questioned HR on the value or validity of the traditional process. We should have! Big Five provides us with more and better data; data that actually helps me run my business more effectively. “
            -Cathy Penland, General Manager, Houston home builder