Casey Coombs’ The Daily Beast Article on Performance Management at Amazon, Reviewed

In a recent article for The Daily Beast, “How Amazon Stacks the Deck Against Workers Fighting to Keep Their Jobs,” Casey Coombs looks at employee performance management within Amazon. Amazon is viewed by many as the most successful company in the world, so examining their performance management process yields valuable insight.
Amazon’s Experimental Program: Pivot
Amazon uniquely prioritizes continuous improvement of employee performance, and this has drawn criticism from members of the HR community. Performance Scoring’s Performance Management System mirrors many of the methods that Amazon uses to drive continuous improvement, while remaining inside the boundaries of that criticism. Amazon’s experimental management program, Pivot, “was created to provide a ‘fair and transparent process for employees who need support in their job,’ while providing them choices about the next steps in their career,” describes Coombs. This description does not fit the traditional mold. Some organizations may feel that they don’t have the resources Amazon does for such a robust program, but the employee performance data of Performance Scoring empowers organizations to prioritize employee development without needing any additional resources. For Amazon to engage and develop their employees they need a “program based on ‘feedback and learning,’” Coombs explains. Performance Scoring focuses on employee engagement and development through continuous feedback and learning. Not only does Performance Scoring capture continuous feedback, but it does so for the custom Factors that drive success within each company role. It used to be only forward-thinking companies, like Amazon, that prioritized performance management, but Performance Scoring opens the door for any company looking to invest in employee development.
Employee Performance Improvement
Even though the company has reached the pinnacle of success, individual employee development remains a company focal point of Amazon’s senior leaders. Coombs acknowledges this by saying that “Amazon has always had a high bar for performance.” Simply put, performance management is at the core of Amazon’s company culture, which has translated to immense success. When businesses focus on effective performance management, they experience greater successes almost immediately. In fact, we have released case studies of Performance Scoring’s Performance Management System leading to monthly bottom line increases in excess of $10,000 within just 60 days of implementation for companies with less than 200 employees. Within Amazon’s performance management process the company drives development with individual performance improvement plans (PIP). “Before having their case escalated to a PIP, some employees are placed on less formalized performance review tracks,” Coombs points out. The bottom line is that Amazon realizes that if they engage and develop individual employees with an effective process everyone wins. This is what Performance Scoring’s System instantly brings to organizations. Every company cannot spend the resources that Amazon has in developing their performance management process, and that is where Performance Scoring comes in. Our system brings a continuous focus on developing individual employee performance, which translates to greater successes across an organization. Find out how easy it is to get started today!