EFFECT OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL METHODS ON EMPLOYEE PRODUCTIVITY IN PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS IN RWANDA, A CASE STUDY OF RWAND AIR

ABSTRACT Performance management has been gaining momentum both in private and public sectors. Performance appraisal which is part of performance management, refers to the process that evaluates the performance of employees at work in relation to the task or project the employee has worked upon. It is an evaluation of the contribution of employees towards the performance of organizations. The main objective of the research was to investigate the effect of performance appraisal methods on the employee productivity in public institutions in Rwanda, taking a case of Rwandair. The specific objectives included, to investigate the relationship between results-based management performance appraisal method and employee productivity in Rwandair; to determine the effect of assessment centre performance appraisal method on employee productivity Rwandair and to establish the relationship between 360-Degree feedback performance appraisal method and employee productivity Rwandair. Descriptive research design as well as correlation design were used to achieve these objectives. A sample size of 119 respondents were selected using stratified random sampling technique. Data was collected using structured questionnaire. The data collected was analysed using SPSS version 21 and presented using tables and graphs. Pearson’s coefficient correlation and regression analysis were also conducted to determine the relationship among the study variables. The findings on objective one showed that 74.4% of the respondents said that they were aware of appraisal methods used in evaluating employee performance in Rwandair. A total of 97.7% of respondents agreed that the result-based management has made everyone accountable in their office of work. The findings on objective two revealed that all the agreed that continuous evaluation of the employee progress ensures that the employee appraisal is detailed. All respondents were also in agreement about the statement that the performance appraisal help the management to increase the productivity of the employees. All the three indicators of the independent variable, namely, result based management, assessment centre method and 360-degree method, are positively and significantly related to the dependent variable, employee productivity. The regression model was found to be significant 𝐹 with an R-squared of 0.549. This showed that the combined effect of the three performance appraisal methods influences 54.9% of the employee productivity at Rwandair. The results revealed that all the three indicator variables were significant at 5% are presented. The researcher highly recommends that Rwandair and other organizations should have effective employee appraisal methods if they are to keep their employees motivated. The researcher also recommends that employees should be collaborative with