The performance appraisal specially becomes a huge challenge in case of matrix organizations where the responsibilities, managers and expectations keep on changing. Though the basic fundamentals of appraisal techniques like Straight Ranking, Critical Incident, MBO, 360 degree and Interview etc. all hold good, what becomes a challenge is the implementation. Once the appraisal technique is applied the process of fitting the appraisee in normal curve or straight ranking or any other performance measure is where the large amounts of subjectivity is introduced which largely depends upon the relationship between the appraisee and appraiser.

In a matrix organization there are two schools of thoughts on managing the appraisee-appraiser relationship

1-      Direct Relationship- This is where an Appraisee – Appraiser direct interact with each other for the work. Essentially the appraisee generally assigned to the project being led by the appraiser. The primary benefit in this model is that the direct oversight and experience of the work is considered in the performance evaluation. This model also directly links the performance appraisal and thus the rewards & recognition directly with the current line of work making the matrix stronger. On the other hand the model of direct relationship has some serious pitfalls; since in the case of matrix organizations where the direct relationship is transient there are often cases where the appraiser changes leading to change in work style, expectations and relationship. Also this change in appraiser brings in the subjectivity or self interests from the point of view of contribution to the current work instead of work done in the past.

2-      Indirect Relationship – This is where an Appraisee- Appraiser are not supposed to directly work with each other. The appraiser is an independent evaluator who has not worked with either of the people he is evaluating and relies on the feedback mechanism from the direct managers of the matrix regarding the appraisee. The primary benefit of this kind of method is that all the people being evaluated are placed on an equal footing thus penalizing or ignoring due to subjectivity and transition is rare in this kind of scenario. This ensures that all the evaluation is fair and projects a accurate picture of organizational performance. Also since the evaluator remains same over the period of time, this allows a uniform set of expectation and development direction. The major drawback of this model lies in the fact that there needs to be an excellent feedback mechanism and the structure is easily prone to pitfalls of power matrix in organization.

Though both of the techniques are relevant and come in with their own set of advantages, I particularly feel that the right solution lies in a system which is a mix of two. As the subjects of evaluation move up the hierarchy pyramid of the organization shifts to weaker matrix the evaluation style should be a direct relationship on the other hand when subject lie in the stronger matrix of the pyramid the evaluation method should be indirect relationship.

My reasons why I support this kind of structure are

• Consistency in the type of expectations and feedback can be used the performance evaluation to be mapped to the organizational objectives
• At the lower side of the pyramid the motivation is generated from the fact that employee has a voice in the system apart from his direct report
• Establish a personal connect in the lower side of the pyramid where the transitional nature of work lowers the emotional connect with the organization
• Since the personal dynamics of work place is not involved, the appraisal system at the ground level is seen fairer. On the other hand where the roles are not transitory in nature and personal rapport becomes a factor of performance the evaluation keeps a track of it.
• This kind of a structure is easier and faster to realign, while accommodating tactical and strategic changes in the organization direction and performance
• Closer and direct involvement with the current work at a higher level creating a stronger performance culture which gets driven down but doesn’t gets negated due to transitional nature of work.

So what do you think is the best method for a practical implementation of performance evaluation and appraisal in matrix organization?

I have always believed that sports are a perfect ground for displaying the leadership and a lot can be learned from the leaders and their actions in the field. The winning speech by MSD had some very valuable lessons for leadership. After listening to his speech my respect for him as a leader grew multi folds, given such an emotional moment and short time frame he effectively communicated his vision and journey. You can listen to his speech embedded below after which I present my five key lessons of leadership from the great captain.

1- Deliver- I think that is the most important aspect of a great leader. Before any leader can become great he needs to deliver the goals which were decided for him or by him. The results in present world are the most important parameter for a leader.

2- In Contingency Lead from Front- The way he decided to come at number four when two wickets of Sachin Tendulkar and Virendra Sehwag had fallen shows a very positive trait. The situation was a contingency situation and his decision to come higher in the order and lead things from the front is what gives a lot of confidence to the team mates who might already be under pressure or under fire due to the situations and constraints beyond their control.

3- Exposure for Juniors- As he said in his speech that Dhoni himself was coming down the order to ensure the new or younger players can play up the order relatively free of pressure while he would field the crunch and the pressure. Despite affecting his personal performance his priority was providing exposure to juniors.

4- Take Calculated Risks-He took the risks of choosing players like Sreesanth in the final who hadn’t played a single match in the tournament. The decision was a risky one and he was well aware of it as he stated in his speech but he still took the risk and accounted for if it might have gone wrong.

5- Communicate- As he spoke that the decision like him moving up the line up was not only discussed with his mentor but also the senior members of the team. The communication within the team makes for a very important trait and also plays a crucial part in the uniting the team which is true quality of the leader.

So these were my five leadership lessons from the Captain of the Indian Cricket Team, do you find any other lessons from him?

Firstly we need to understand the constituents of what kind of careers are available in ERP Industry. The ERP space provides 3 basic streams of careers Technical, Functional and Administrative. Now the three seem to be mutually exclusive but they are not. Generally the expectation of the employer and the clients are the person would be an expert in one of the fields while an exposure to the rest of the two.

So when you are aspiring for a Functional ERP role one should never let go his hands of the technical side of ERP. However, coming back to what a person, with no background in ERP, can do to make a career in ERP. The basic concept of ERP is being a transactional system which automate the transactional processes in an organization.

There are various business processes that need to be studied like Order to Invoice, Procure to Pay, Forecast to Produce, Accounting & Taxation all these processes vary from industry to industry, country to country, company to company and and even sometimes a unit to unit in the same company. So what you need to do is understand the basic concepts behind these processes, the laws or guidelines governing them.
For example if you are setting up the processes for any unit in Uttaranchal India as of now for selling your produce in India your excise tax would be waived off because of the tax holiday, while anywhere else where this tax holiday is not declared the same tax would apply.

So one needs to understand and research the information on what are the business processes and the key differentiators between different entities. This knowledge would come from the basic textbooks on particular subjects like Accounts, Supply Chain Management etc. Also an information or research on the particular process are of interests, there are lot of journals and papers one can read, some of which I read on SCM are Supply Chain Brain & Supply Chain Digest and papers published by Gartner, AMR Research etc.

Also we can pick up the documentation of either SAP or Oracle or any other ERP which we have an inclination for and read the specific documentation based on the area of interests. The fact is that it is very difficult, almost impossible to understand the user guides and documentation without ever having looked at the actual software screens. But I would still advice the aspirants to go over the documentation as this would help them understand the capabilities of the ERP systems. The truth is the ERP systems have become so vast and encompassing that knowing how to do everything is an impossible task, what works in the industry better is the consultants knowing what is possible to achieve and what is not. There is always time to delve in how to achieve what is possible while you are actually implementing a solution.

Apart from all this there are training institutes some of which are really good, but personally I have never been a part of anyone of them. From my experience in the industry the certifications from the ERP Vendors themselves i.e. Oracle University Certifications, SAP Certifications hold a good value while seeking employment but then they come at an expensive price tag for an individual. I personally do not trust the small shop training institutes. Also I have came across some people having a demo version of the ERP software installed on personal machines which can be used for learning purposes and hands on by individuals themselves, but then again I am not sure on the legality of the same.

And at the end one of the most important things to kick start a career in ERP, it is good to start with one of the consulting/services firms instead of end users of ERP, this provides you a cross industry experience with multiple set of processes which is very important for solution designs in future. Also Prefer the ones which have a larger practice in ERP which would help you work with people who are already good at ERP and learn from them at work and a training program in place.

Always make sure that you have read the exit policy of your company. If it is not available publicly with other policies, contact the HR to obtain a copy. Refer to colleagues who have already left, beg borrow, steal but make sure you know the fine prints of the policy.




Always ask for the designation in job hierarchy and payment hierarchy from the lowest to the top level. Designations and their associated roles and responsibility vary with organization. So the designation which sounds so fancy to you might not even as satisfying as your current role in reality.




Insist for a printed offer letter with complete offer details and associated policies instead of plain emails stating the compensation break-up, designation and joining date.




Always inquire about the probation period and the relevant norms about the probation period categorically with HR.




If you need to relocate, the relocation expense and the policy should be confirmed before acceptance of the offer letter.




Never react to an offer immediately, always take some time to think and then react. If you like or dislike an offer conveying the sentiments on the face or on the call is a bad idea. Always ask for a day to respond so the decision is rational instead of impulsive.




Start the knowledge transfer procedure and if required creation of knowledge transfer documents to ensure this does not becomes a bottleneck for the release.




Always go through the PF, Gratuity and SA related procedures in your previous organization before leaving and identify the same in the new organization post joining. Ensure requisites for the tax declarations while filing returns are all available or scheduled in order.




Make sure you carry the copy of salary slips, offer letters, PF statements, promotion, compensation and bonus letters with the relieving letters while leaving your current organization.




Always create a backup of important mails (personal/professional) which do not compromise your confidentiality agreement with your current employer either in print or in soft copies.

This is just an indicative list based on my personal experience; feel free to add more tips in the comment section.

1- Take small break just to get out of the failure setting and then come back.

2- Critically examine how one was at fault what he could have done to avoid it and how would he treat a similar situation in future.

3- Talk to people who have more experience of life and/or work than you have.

4- Read biographies of successful people, no one has become great without earning it through failures.

5- Play a lot of video games, they condition the mind set where you fail and just restart the game to cross the levels/stages.

All these things I have seen them work in past when it came to failures. I read a line about obstacles and failures sometime back which sticks “The thing I like about the stones in my way is that once I cross them they become my milestones.