Vol 23, No 4; Article by S Senthil Ganesh and Jerome Joseph; December 2011
Complexity has been identified as one of the structural properties of organisations and is measured quantitatively as well as qualitatively in organisation theory. Over the years, studies have shown that the degree of complexity has a more direct relationship with formalisation and formalisation has been conceptualised as a source of alienation. From the human resource management perspective, the degree of formalisation in an organisation can be seen from the organisation's need to establish a formal performance review system which has been regarded as one of the most complex and controversial human resource techniques in organisations.
However, attempts to measure the complexity of the performance review system have been limited mainly to the appraisers' cognitive complexity related to the performance review processes and formats. While cognitive complexity in the context of performance review systems has been recognised as an important attribute of the appraisers, the cognitive complexity of the appraisees has been given little or no attention. This is a major research gap because dealing with some of the problems which practitioners face in implementing more complex performance review systems cannot be based on an understanding of appraisers alone. Therefore, we present a model to study experiential perceptions of performance review system complexity from the appraisee perspective and explore its mediating effect on the relationship between formalisation and alienation through powerlessness (control) and meaninglessness (uncertainty) and other forms of alienation such as normlessness, social isolation and selfestrangement. We discuss the implications of this study for researchers interested in studying performance review systems and managers who are striving to design and implement performance review systems to create a high performing culture in organisations.
