ABSTRACT
Performance appraisal is today a central element in many Western companies’ strategic human resource management (HRM). Although there is no universally accepted model of performance appraisal, it often includes a definition of the employee’s objectives, monitoring and measuring of the performance, feedback on the results and, possibly, rewards and plans to improve future performance (Mabey and Salaman 1995). Research has indicated that, provided the design of the performance appraisal is appropriate, it tends to have a positive effect on company performance (Williams 1991). However, while there has been extensive research on performance appraisal in a domestic context, much less work has been conducted on the international dimensions (Vance et al. 1992; Dowling et al. 1994). In particular, few studies have investigated the performance appraisal practices of Western companies’ operations in developing countries.
