What is the main purpose of performance appraisals and why do appraisal programs fail?

The main purpose as well as the cause of the failure of performance appraisal process is as described below-

Explanation:

Appraisal refers to the process (mostly formal) to evaluate the productivity of the manpower of an organisation. It serves for administrative as well as developmental purpose.

Performance appraisal serves three important purpose-

Providing adequate feedback to employees based on his/her performance. It can help in modifying employee behaviour and thus contributing to an effective workspace environment. Providing qualitative parameters to higher-order authority through which they can adjudge their subordinates.

However, appraisals occasionally fail in their motive due to following reasons-

Appraisals are prone to biases prevailing in the work environment. Moreover, the neutrality of the rating authority is also often under the scanner. The appraisals are often inflicted by sampling error. The conclusion of few cannot be generalised on all. Appraisals don’t take into account the variability of the employee's performance, Rather it relies on the end performance and the start.

The answer is one year.