Performance appraisal policy and its impact on employee performance : a case study of Guaranty Trust Bank in Nigeria

The research investigation focused on performance appraisal policy and its impact on employee performance in Guaranty Trust Bank in Nigeria. The aim of the study was to ascertain the extent to which the performance appraisal policy at Guaranty Bank contributed to employee performance. Arising out of the performance appraisal reviews, an important finding revealed that the training which employees received resulted in improved job performance. The performance appraisal reviews also showed that when feedback reports were effectively used they consequently improved employee performance. The research design was quantitative in nature and a closed ended structured questionnaire was used to gather the primary data. The survey method was used for all the employees of Guaranty Trust Bank in Nigeria. The questionnaire was administered to all 150 target respondents using the personal method and a high response rate of 100% was obtained. The data gathered were analyzed using the Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SPSS) for the statistical tests. The initial analysis involved the use of descriptive statistical tools. The main findings revealed that employee participation in the performance appraisal was generally high and this increased job satisfaction and enhanced employee performance. The results also revealed that manager-subordinate interaction was very cordial and this boosted employee performance. Moreover, the majority of respondents preferred performance appraisal to be used regularly for career pathing in the organization. The study recommends a set of guidelines which could be used in improving the current performance appraisal policy and further boost employee performance. The study concludes with directions for future research.