Expert Interview – José Francisco Rezende, Associate Professor, Unigranrio University, Brazil

Written by Adelina Chelniciuc on May 9, 2014. Posted in Academics, Around the world, Interviews, Organisational performance

For the report Performance Management in 2013, The KPI Institute conducted 20 semi-structured interviews with practitioners, academics and consultants from 18 countries, who offered a detailed image of Performance Management as a discipline in the analyzed year.

An important editorial rule followed in the development of the content is that a discipline can only evolve through the combined efforts of practitioners, academics and consultants. José Francisco Rezende, Associate Professor at Unigranrio University, Brazil that The KPI Institute interviewed.

1. What does the term Performance Management mean to you?

Performance Management is an approach both systemic and comprehensive, covering choices and ways to value an organization or an individual in what concerns its activities and objectives, both finalistic with support.

2. What drives interest in Performance Management?

Desires, expectations and needs of stakeholders.

3. What are your thoughts on the relationship between Performance Management at organizational, departmental and individual level?

The three levels need to be aligned for no lack of coherence between ends and means, there must be a language that brings about performance levels, areas and people, combining quantitative aspects of objectives towards qualitative aspects dealing with visions in which there may be some ambiguity.

4. What are 2013 key trends in Performance Management from your point of view?

• Growing links with studies and practices in the area of corporate governance;
• Interest in capturing value from organizational knowledge;
• Causal links with variable compensation programs;
• Integration with competence based management; Individual scorecards.

5. What aspects of Performance Management should be explored more through research?

Organizational culture, behavior of players at every level of the organization; Semantics of metrics and indicators; mimetic isomorphism and the adoption of performance models.

6. Which companies would you recommend to be looked at due to their particular approach to Performance Management and subsequent results?

Banco Itaú, Gerdau, Banco do Brasil, AMBEV.

7. Which are main challenges of Performance Management in practice today?

Adapting concepts to local realities of each organization; full computerization of procedures; training evaluators; time to formalize and feedback.

8. What do you think should be improved in the use of Performance Management tools and processes?

• Creation of international standards, followed by local application of broad standards;
• Creation of models of certification programs for performance evaluation and performance evaluators;
• Creation of performance models very focused on individual small teams.

9. What would you consider best practice in Performance Management?

Balanced Scorecard, one that balances short and long term visions, internal and external qualitative and quantitative indicators, lag and lead indicators, in addition to being customizable to each company and strategy.

10. Which aspects of Performance Management should be emphasized during educational programs?

Each company should have its own strategy and its own basket of indicators; Intensive care with dysfunctional controls that leads to results contrary to those expected; Creating a sense and a common language around the indicators adopted; Giving and receiving feedback; Linkage between economic results and profit sharing.

11. Which are the limits in order to achieve higher levels of proficiency in Performance Management among practitioners?

• Knowledge: business economics, management control, business strategy, organizational behavior;
• Experience: business rules of the industry in which the company operates;
• Attitudes: coaching.

12. If you are to name in few words the main aspects governing Performance Management today, what would they be?

Value, Balance and Justice.

13. We are developing a database of Performance Management subjects and degrees. Which are the subjects/degrees you have come across and at which university? (i.e. subjects or degrees such as the Masters in Managing Organizational Performance)

My MSC thesis (Toulon – FR) and DSc dissertation (UFRJ – BR) were about strategic alignment, balanced scorecard and intellectual capital modeling practices.

For more interviews with professionals from all around the world, access Performance Management in 2013

Tags: Performance in Brazil, Performance Management in 2013, The KPI Institute