Viewpoints of Bank Personnel on Performance Evaluation: Example of Çorum Province

In today’s banking sector experiencing rapid and continuous change, performance evaluation has become an important tool for banks to keep up with the competitive environment, keep their profits at maximum level and achieve their goals. Performance is the extent to which pre-determined conditions for a job or task are met, standards are met while those responsibilities are met, and the objectives for which the job or task is expected are met. Performance evaluation is a method that deals with all aspects of the performance of the person or organization whose performance is to be evaluated. Performance evaluation calls for a quite challenging and long-lasting process. This process comprises various acts and actions such as performance evaluation studies, evaluation stages of staff performance by the organization, communication of evaluation results to the staff, and finally, planning of what actions can be taken by the staff to improve themselves on grounds of the feedback provided to them. As it can be seen, the performance appraisal process does not reveal only how effective the staff works. In order to increase the productivity of the organization, both the activities and the personnel should be planned, while the staff is also guiding the career planning and encouraging the self- development. Particularly in the service sector where banks are located, employees have a much more important attitude towards performance appraisal. Employees in this sector are in direct contact with the customer segment. The satisfaction and happiness of the staff in the working environment will also be reflected in their attitudes and behaviors. What matters is that the staff has confidence in the performance evaluation process in terms of its objectivity, justice and alike. The more the staff has confidence in this evaluation, the more their working performance will increase. If this can be achieved, the quality and efficiency of the bank s activities will increase, and the bank will be able to gain significant advantage regarding its competitiveness in the sector. In this study, the problems faced by bank staff regarding performance evaluation and their expectations in this respect have been analyzed. Study data were obtained by survey method. The surveys were applied to bank staff in the city center of Çorum. Data obtained in the study have been analyzed using the SPPS program. Accordingly, there are several reasons that affect performance, notably issues like working environment, the manager’s attitude, and wage. From the analysis, results have been achieved such as that the personnel are capable of doing their jobs, that they find the cost inadequate, and that the problems they experience with the managers affect their performance badly.