Consultant Interview: Mahadi Osman
In 2017, the Performance Magazine editorial team interviewed Mahadi Osman, Accounting and Business Planning Specialist, currently working for Arabian Trading Est L.L.C., United Arab Emirates. His thoughts and views on Performance Management are detailed below.
The need for building a loyal, supportive and happy team means that issues like the behavioral implications of a performance management system or the need for motivating and building a strategic mindset are of paramount importance.
Trends
- Which were the 2016 key trends in Performance Management, from your point of view?
I believe that the utilization of technological advancements has shaded over all performance management stages, starting from designing goals, through performance data collections/analysis and ending with performance reporting.
- What are your thoughts on the integration of Performance Management at the organizational, departmental and employee level?
At the organizational and departmental levels, there is a lot to be done regarding goal congruency, that is why integration needs to be evident. However, when we cascade down to the employee level, I believe that more attention should be paid to the human aspect.
The need for building a loyal, supportive and happy team means that issues like the behavioral implications of a performance management system or the need for motivating and building a strategic mindset are of paramount importance.
- Which will be the major changes in managing performance, in the future?
I think that Big Data and data analytics will enable performance reporters to reach deeper levels, and I also believe that we will see more detailed performance reports.
Research
- What aspects of Performance Management should be explored more through research?
In my opinion, the relationship between leadership styles and performance management should be a subject of more research.
- Which organizations would you recommend to be looked at, due to their particular approach to managing performance, and their subsequent results?
I have no specific name, but any organization that invests in a performance management system, gives leadership commitment and continually improves the system outputs, could be regarded as an excellent example.
- Which of the existing trends, topics or particular aspects within Performance Management have lost their relevance and/or importance, from your point of view?
I think that the periodical or cyclical view of performance is slowly going to lose the spotlight. The business environment has become more dynamic and more vigilant, and the need for an accurate and on-time piece of information would be more imperative.
Practice
- Which are the main challenges of Performance Management in practice, today?
The need to align KPIs with the appropriate performance objectives is still a challenging task and I think that it will continue being so.
- What should be improved in the use of Performance Management tools and processes?
With the increasing shift in business models from a brick base to the click base, there is an inevitable need to improve all performance measurement techniques.
- What would you consider as a best practice in Performance Management?
Regardless of the way in which we do that, I think that one of the best practices so far is the change in performance management from a restriction or a punishment tool, to an improvement and a growth re-invention tool.
As this practice became more concerned with unlocking the potential of an organization, it led to more collaboration between different functions evidenced by roles like Chief Information/Technology Officer(CIO/CTO), Strategic Finance Business Partner, etc.
Education
- Which aspects of Performance Management should be emphasized during educational programs?
I urge people to place more emphasis on the field that is concerned with the behavioral aspects of performance and the meaningfulness of KPIs.
- What are the limits that prevent practitioners from achieving higher levels of proficiency in Performance Management?
I think that the lack of technological acumen and the superficiality with which data from different sources is integrated represent the two main obstacles here.
Personal Performance
- What is your opinion on the emerging trend of measuring performance outside working hours?
I agree to measuring performance outside working hours for the sole purpose of career or leadership development and coaching rather than accountability or compensation.
- What personal performance measurement tools do you use?
I mainly use Excel spreadsheets as a personal performance measurement tool, and so far it is enough to do the work.
Specialization Specific Question
- Consultant Point of View: What are the processes and tools you look at, in order to differentiate a successful performance management system, from a superficial one?
I believe that the quality of system outputs, namely reports with less errors and less rectifications, the effective use of external data sources and the costs of running the system, are the main features of any successful performance management system.
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