Employee evaluations are done by most employers. While the criteria employees use can differ widely, the list is generally limited to a standard set of appraisal factors. The important thing is that they are measurable and consistent.
Knowledge
Employees can be evaluated on their knowledge of the organization, job they perform, regulations and other areas that impact ability to perform. Knowledge is not performance but adds to the ability to perform the work.
Skills
Skills are the tools with which an employee does his job. Skills can range from basics like math and writing to using software or equipment. Certification in certain skill areas is a good measure of competency.
Goals
Many organizations set goals for their employees. These goals can be sales related or service related or even internal goals such as organizing or leadership. Performance reviews are a good time to review progress toward goals.
Results
Previous sections focus on how an employee does her job—results are another measure that allow employees who may not have the skills or experience to be judged on the output even if they don't conform to a standard approach to their job.
Considerations
There are less measurable factors such as attitude, willingness to learn, cooperation, communication and loyalty that often find themselves part of a performance evaluation. Subjective evaluation criteria is often skewed by human emotions but does not have value in assessing an employee's performance and value to the organization. When using these criteria you must also include measurable factors to support findings that are less tangible.
