Analyzing Performance Management Challenges at Sprooker Inc. - Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of performance management challenges at Sprooker Inc., a sales process engineering company. It begins with an executive summary and an introduction to Sprooker Inc., highlighting its collaboration with News Corp Australia and its workforce of over two hundred employees. The report identifies two critical performance and reward management issues: combating inconsistent performance levels and establishing appropriate metrics, and developing a system that differentiates high and average performers while removing entitlement mentality. Recommendations are provided, including the need for cultural shifts, effective communication of rewards, linking rewards to business objectives, employee performance, the job performed, and the labor market. The report discusses the implications of strategic analysis, emphasizing the importance of understanding the company's vision, mission, and values. It explores how strategic analysis improves the validity, reliability, fairness, and cost-effectiveness of the existing system, and provides guidelines to support the implementation of an improved system. The report concludes with a summary of the key findings and recommendations, linking the analysis to the provided case study of Sprooker Inc. and the best practices in performance and reward management.

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Title: Performance Management Challenges
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Executive Summary
This report summarizes an introduction on Sprooker Incorporation with relevance to
performance management and reward system. The two issues will be most critical in improving
the current system have been identified. A brief overview of recommendations to resolve the
issues has been given. The Implications of the Strategic Analysis improves the validity,
reliability, fairness and cost effectiveness of the existing system has been provided and
Guidelines to support the implementation of the improved system has been explained. This is
followed by a conclusion.

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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Performance and Reward Management Issues................................................................................3
Recommendations............................................................................................................................4
Implications of Strategic Analysis............................................................................................................6
How it improves the Validity, Reliability, Fairness, and Cost-Effectiveness of the Existing System?.......8
Guidelines to support the implementation of Improved System............................................................9
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................12

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Introduction
Sprooker Incorporation was established in the year 2016. This is a sales process
engineering company that employs more than two hundred people. The company has
collaborated with News Corp Australia and offers the majority of web advertising and print sales
services in different newspapers across different regions. Understanding how does performance
is evaluated and the process must be fair from both the ends-employer and employee.
Performance evaluation helps in dealing with performance issues. The remuneration may show
declines from small to moderate and a basic understanding is required how the pay to
performance is evaluated. The employees have high-performance capabilities in profit making
companies.
Performance and Reward Management Issues
Implementation of objective and effective performance management helps the employers for
communicating the hopes and results to the employees. This helps in achieving high-
performance levels. Employers are required to refocus on performance management importance.
It is essential to look for most of the limited remuneration and increase performance ratings. This
can lead to effective and ineffective implementation (Ferner & Almond, 2012). Two
performance and reward management issues are as follows-
1. Combating with inconsistent performance levels and establishment of appropriate
metrics-The Company needs to get all the managers on board and this is a very critical
issue. Managers are required to be trained and the human resource department needs to
ensure performance management program is applied consistently. This is how employees

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will benefit and employee's disengagement and mistrust can be protected. The metrics
must be measurable and strategic business plan for the organization must be developed.
Through using the corporate plan and strategic plans-this can help in getting the right
focus of where the employees want to reach in their professional lives (Brauns, 2013).
There must be a balance between long term and short term metrics especially when the
discussion revolves around skill development. Employees must be engaged with different
performance levels and motivated to achieve and work with a common strategic goal.
2. Developing the adequate system which differentiates high and average performers
and removal of entitlement mentality-The distinction is created due to compensation
differences which originate from performance levels. This is also considered as one of the
important goals for the complete performance management process. When human
resource department creates distinctions within the performance levels, and different
ratings are considered as difficult. This can also be spontaneous which implies, having
many rating choices and this implies managers are unable to develop significant
differences among employees (Stirin, 2012).
Entitlement approach helps in minimization of effectiveness. There are a number
of companies which reinforce entitlement mentality through providing the annual
bonuses or increases which are untied to any organization performance. This is very
tough to change, but it is likely to change with time. Performance management needs to
have an impact on the pat and then only human actions will be effective. The effective
use of limited budgets is also important (Caza, McCarter & Northcraft, 2015).

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Recommendations
Implementation of the performance management procedures needs a cultural shift. This is a
time-consuming process, but it does not imply that it is impossible. Successful performance
management can work with great zeal of dedication through managers, and HR. The close study
of companies and analysis of employee reward system, the only thing which is consistent is
rewards and it will continue to be on the core through talent management activities. This has
successfully managed the Employee reward program and it is the biggest challenge for every
company (Hamukwaya & Yazdanifard, 2014).
1. Rewards need to be understood by the employees and managers-The employees lack
awareness regarding the process which goes behind delivery, plan, and design of reward
programs. It is essential to communicate effectively to people engagement of line
managers must be sought in the process. HR must be able to articulate and maximize the
rewards to internal employees (Rowland & Hall, 2014).
2. Rewards must be linked to organizations business-When designing and planning the
employee reward program; the human resource department does not need to work in
isolation and must be comfortable and streamlining with organization goals and business
strategies. This also results in scarcity of alignment existing between employer's
objectives and employee needs.
3. Rewards must be linked with employee performance-The perceptions which exist
around efforts and intent of employees, other than compared with actual results and
outcome will be delivered which can drive performance degrees and rewards are in
association with it. Development of clear hopes and creating a visible line, the attainable
goals as well as the establishment of the credible reward measurement system on which

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the companies must focus on. Prominent industry can reveal more than ninety percent of
trustworthy organizations are known for consistent display of common attributes which
are linked to performance-based rewards (Heninger, Smith & Wood, 2019).
4. Rewards must be linked with the job performed-The nonattendance of an adequate job
evaluation system has completely faced to differentiate between real jobs and loose
against the crafted positions or designations. The drawback of untimely job plotting
exercise with similar kind of market jobs and therefore price linked with such jobs, when
employees are hired and annual salary reviews.
5. Rewards must be linked with labor market-The companies which are unable to trace
the competition are considered at a disadvantage.
Implications of Strategic Analysis
Strategic Analysis is concerned with the procedure of directing the research over a company
and its neighboring environment for formulating the strategy. The strategic analysis can differ
from the business or academic perspective. But, there are several common factors-
1. Identification and evaluation of data must be relevant to the organization strategy.
2. Defining the external and internal environments which are needed to be analyzed.
3. Use of various analytic methodologies like SWOT analysis, Porter five forces model and
value chain analysis (Pradhan, 2013).
The strategy is a plan of strategic actions which is initiated through managers for the
achievement of an organization's overall subsidiary and other goals. This helps in the
determination of the company's success. In a strategy, the company needs to question itself-what
is the acting domain and what is the winning strategy. This provides high levels of overview and
implementation of business strategy and its complex process which can lead to business success.

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In order to develop the corporate strategy, the organization need to have the well-defined
understanding of what does it embodies. Strategists need to search for following (Lehmann &
Muravyev, 2010) -
Vision- what the company will achieve in future course of time.
Mission-In what business the company is focused and how it rallies individuals.
Values-what are the fundamental credence of the company and how it is reflected in ethics and
commitments?
When the managers and employees of a company have an understanding of
organizational mission, values, and vision, the strategists will be in the position of implementing
the strategic analysis. The key reason of strategic analysis is analyzing the external and internal
environment of an organization. This also involves an assessment of the present strategies and
evaluates strategic alternatives (M & C, 2012).
There are a few points which needs to be considered-
1. Performing the environmental analysis of present strategies-Starting from the origin,
the companies need to fulfill the environmental study of current strategies. Internal
environment issues such as employee morale and operational inefficiencies. External
environment issues include economic shits and consumer taste changes.
2. Determination of the effectiveness of present strategies-The key purpose behind the
strategic analysis is the determination of the present strategy which prevails in a business
environment. Strategists need to ensure whether the strategy is succeeding or failing. Will
be it able to meet with stated objectives? This is important from the viewpoint of
managers (Feldmann, 2012).

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How it improves the Validity, Reliability, Fairness, and Cost-Effectiveness of the
Existing System?
1. To execute the environmental analysis and formulate plans-Starting from the
origin, the organization needs to complete conservational analysis of its current
strategies. The researchers need to undergo the planning stage where the
organizations need to consider strategic alternatives. Managers need to keep
operations leaner and cost must be low. Possible strategic alternatives include
changes in supply chain and capital structure management. This also involves any
other alternatives which are important to the business process (Williams & Allard,
2017).
2. Implementing and recommending the viable strategy-When the strategies have
been assessed along with proposed alternatives, the recommendations play a greater
role. After the assessment of possible strategic alternatives, the most quantitatively
and viable profitable strategy must be implemented. After the recommendations have
been produced, the entire process needs to be repeated and strategies can be
implemented at each stage. This must be assessed and revised (Kupets, 2011).
3. External Strategic Analysis-The organization must complete its internal analysis.
The company must have prior knowledge about external factors which could be one
of the reasons behind the hindrances in growth. It is essential to know how the
markets behave and customers react to given products and services. Measurement of
customer satisfaction is one of the external analyses. PESTLE Analysis is a
commonly used technique. The process must be likely adopted as the PESTLE
technique is the simplest one.

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Market research offers the necessary and adequate information for the identification of
various market situations and also considers the strategies which can help in sales goals
achievement. Market research can be quantitative or qualitative. Market research will provide
insight into the necessary info following, the different scenarios of the market and proposed
strategies for the achievement of sales. For instance-Through the help of market research, the
organization can find the recognition degree which has been implemented through marketing
plan and brand campaigns. Organizations need to effectively introduce the new merchandise into
the market and improve with the innovative ideas of patrons. The customers must be asked
appropriate questions and their feedback is important in every scenario. The information
received through investigation can help in the correct planning as to how competitors lower the
market price of the products and services (Fialova & Schneider, 2009).
Guidelines to support the implementation of the Improved System
1. The implementation of an improved system can be achieved through strategic analysis.
This allows having the clarity of positive internal attributes which are present in the
organization that is controllable. By understanding the positive attributes, the
organization must be able to emphasize on factors which can guide to constructive
performance. The strategy can be replicated wherever it is applicable (Beyer, 2017).
2. The improved system within an organization helps in the identification of internal and
external resources. This also leads to increased competitive advantage.
3. The internal constituents can add worth and provide the competitive edge in its business.
When there is a realistic competitive edge present over the competitors present in the
market, half the game will be won.

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There are a few factors which must be taken into account:
1. Strategic Analysis generates more than one idea and managers may get confused to
select which is the best working strategy for the organization.
2. Strategic analysis is a time-consuming process within the organization. The managers
may find there is very less or no time has been left for the innovation of new products
and services, changes taken place at an organizational level.
3. Leadership effectiveness and direction such as the establishment of priorities,
managing the changes which are very high and making the prompt decisions.
4. The line of sight of the achievement of company goals can be very high and this must
be improvised (Palali, 2015).
5. Company image can remain strong similar to competitiveness within the industry and
customer focus. The research proves this will be continued in upcoming years within
high performing companies, which has a high base.
6. The support for the purpose of equal opportunity and diversity support must be
consistently high. The immediate scores of managers have been variable and this is
between seventy to eighty percent.
High performing organizations such as Sprooker Incorporation can provide multiple
services exceptionally well. These things are foundational towards sustained success. Customer
focus, employee development, and leadership competitiveness are few examples which drive
employee engagement, employee retention, and productivity. These are considered as part of
employee experience. However, the elements of employer-employee relation must be addressed
and market trends such as reward programs and effective management of the workplace must be
dealt with effectively.

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Conclusion
The Sprooker Incorporation identifies the reward and performance management within its
spectrum. This is adaptable and motivational influence is different with wide-spread of working
class and respective resolutions need to be met. The general equity and fairness in a system need
to be taken into consideration. The company needs to focus on creating the internal capabilities,
tools, data and processes, which can wide knowledge on reward system of employees. This must
be done in a scientific and robust manner.