What HR Can Learn from American Idol to Improve Individual, Team, and Organizational Performance

American Idol – the Fox TV series that employs a panel of judges and the viewing public to identify the next pop sensation – represents the grandest, most public, and most fashionable performance evaluation process ever seen. American Idol’s popularity – and what separates it from similar shows of the past such as The Gong Show and Star Search – rests in part on its ability to integrate and simplify six basic elements of a successful performance appraisal process: standards, auditions, critiques, developmental suggestions, advisors, and advertisements – which, in the language of Human Resource professionals would be referred to as criteria, performance, ratings, feedback, mentors, and communication (respectively). Through the final twelve weeks, as the competition intensifies, the performance of both the singers and the show frequently improves thanks to an ongoing commitment to these six elements. Although the show’s producers have streamlined and packaged these elements to make contestants’ growth and progress appear smooth and relatively effortless, the analogy reflects what many organizations fail to understand: all six elements must be developed and integrated to achieve current and future success. This virtual session will focus on how to leverage the performance appraisal elements embodied by this smash hit to drive performance at individual, team, and organizational levels. Specifically, we will discuss 1) various criteria used to evaluate performance, including structure, format, and content; 2) the importance of opportunities to display as well as observe performance; 3) how ratings can be used to propel performance; 4) linking evaluations to feedback, action planning, and developmental resources; 5) the relationship between mentoring and performance; and 6) the significance of communication to program success.

Any HR Professional

1. How to identify performance criteria in support of organizational goals 2. How to leverage the appraisal process to increase performance 3. How to design and integrate developmental resources and other tools with the performance appraisal process 4. How to promote program transparency through communication 5. How to evaluate your program to ensure it is right for your organization

1. Handbook of Workplace Assessment (Scott & Reynolds, 2010) 2. Performance Management: Putting Research into Action (Smith & London, 2009) 3. The Human Resources Program-Evaluation Handbook (Edwards, Scott & Raju, 2003)

		Robert Satterwhite APTMetrics, Inc. View Profile