Effectiveness of performance appraisal in the college of law and management studies, University of KwaZulu-Natal.

Abstract

The effectiveness of performance appraisal system is the prime concern for public and private sector. Higher education institutions are faced with challenges of insufficient grant allocation, increased costs, more customer expectations in terms of quality and increased competition regarding student enrollment, college expertise and research accomplishments. Performance management system is the key for universities to gain competitive advantage, hence, this study was on the effectiveness of performance appraisal within the academics. The focus of this study was to examine the perceptions of academic staff on the effectiveness of performance appraisal in the College of Law and Management (CLMS) at University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville Campus. A quantitative research approach was espoused, which consisted of the questionnaire in order to get primary data for investigating different aspects of the performance appraisal system. The questionnaire was distributed to the random sample of 103 respondents, from which 63 were returned, 61% response rate thereby contributing to the generalizability of the findings. The research findings indicated that the academic staff members within the College of Law and Management were satisfied with the performance management system implemented by the management of the University. However, the empirical results indicated that training and career development of employees were not clearly identified. Improvement is therefore required in respect of identifying career and development of employees, regular training for both the evaluator and the academics, a reduction of performance appraisal inconsistencies, transparency in the implementation of the system and continuous communication between management and academics on performance. Academics to form part of strategic sessions and budget workshops. Future research could be conducted for other three colleges in the university. Future research should consider a comparative study of academics of other universities for the effectiveness of performance appraisal system at their institutions.