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Downsizing Assessment
Using the Scaled Comparison
The Scaled Comparison asks a rater or evaluator to compare the performance of two individuals using the following format:
| Question: |
Which person demonstrates greater Leadership ability? |
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Much
Better |
Slightly
Better |
Equal |
Slightly
Better |
Much
Better |
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| Doug Reichman |
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Jim Craig |
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The task is to indicate which person demonstrates greater ability than the other in some quality and how much greater the difference.
In the actual rating process, the evaluator is presented with many such pairs rather than a single pair. Each person being rated is paired with each of the others a number of times.
| Question: |
Which person demonstrates greater Leadership ability? |
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| Doug Reichman |
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Jim Craig |
| Rene Bouchard |
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Sara Salazar |
| Jim Craig |
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Rene Bouchard |
| Sara Salazar |
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Doug Reichman |
| Clancy Broom |
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Sara Salazar |
| Doug Reichman |
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Clancy Broom |
| Clancy Broom |
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Rene Bouchard |
| Sara Salazar |
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Jim Craig |
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The evaluator will only see the names of people known to him or her well enough to evaluate on the criterion. Typically, the names of from 5 to 15 persons will appear on a page, matched in different ways with the others. Some of these names will appear in another evaluator's group of subjects. Each person is thus judged by more than a single evaluator, and eventually compared to others in many more ways than any single evaluator could accomplish. A second criterion can appear on the next page, and so on.
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Evaluators are usually selected by the person being evaluated, which greatly enhances the perceived fairness of the process. The criteria used for downsizing are not necessarily the same as for regular performance reviews. Criteria such as "Willingness to acquire new skills" or "Adapting to instability and change" are often included, anticipating a different environment in the period of time following a downsizing. Criteria may also be weighted differently for persons in different jobs.
The Reports
The most important document for decision-makers is the ranking report, which shows how the individuals compare to each other on each criterion.
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This report shows not only the ranking, but displays the intervals that exist between the performances of different people. This shows that the people in a performance ranking are not all the same "distance" from each other. If a "line" has to be drawn between individuals in a ranking, it is far better to know where the gaps appear in the minds of their coworkers, than to assume they are all equidistant from each other.
The Profile Report shows each individual's strengths and weaknesses by criterion. A composite score can be calculated that is either unweighted or weighted according to the importance of the criteria in the individual's job.
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Other reports summarize the behavior of raters and the decisions they made that were unique and different from the consensus.
How do I get more information?
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