How to Write an Evaluation on Productivity

The productivity of your workers is a chief determinant of the healthiness of your company’s bottom line. The classic measurement of productivity is calculating output per production-hour, but this formula does not fit all types of businesses. Finding an effective way to measure and record your company's productivity is valuable to you and your employees. Periodic evaluations force you to carefully consider each aspect of productivity. You can then share these assessments with your staff to reward what is working well and determine where improvement is needed.

Create a template evaluation form in which to record your findings and label it “Productivity Evaluation” to separate it from general appraisals. Decide whether the form will address an entire team’s productivity or if you prefer to consider each of your staff members separately. In either case, break the evaluation form into sections. One area of the document might be devoted to criteria and its measurements, another to management’s specific comments and a third could be a section in which employees can write their own input.

The criteria you use in an appraisal should focus on specific factors that affect the level of productivity, such as time management, skill level, quality, cooperation and communication. The most common way to assess each factor is with a numbered scale. Typically, evaluations use low numbers to indicate poorer performance and high ones for better work. For instance, an appraiser might rate quality low even though cooperation is high. In this case, you learn that while the team gets along well, its output is sloppy and must be addressed.

Measurements likely make up a major portion of a productivity evaluation, but a commentary section can prove equally important. For example, a leader could identify a key issue in depth in this area that illustrates a low score in the rating section. Here, a supervisor could report quality is suffering because of a lack of proper resources, such as improved software or adequate training on particular systems. A leader should also include an associate’s comments section so workers can point to issues a manager might be missing.

Evaluations are not the solution to productivity issues but only assessments. Groups should use the appraisals as tools to identify what is working and what is not going well. Guard against evaluations bringing down the morale of your workers. Focus on the positive and the opportunities for growth rather than cause workers to doubt their abilities. Present your findings honestly and directly but frame them so that your workers are inspired to pull together for improvement.