Managing performance through people

Successful performance management means staff performance matches your organisation’s goals. This course invites you to step back from your own situation and focus on themes of understanding and improving performance through the people you manage. Its proactive, systematic approach highlights how managers can agree performance objectives with team members, set up mechanisms for monitoring and reviewing progress, and actively support improvements in performance. The course will be of interest to first line and middle managers in large organisations; those with leadership or management roles in smaller organisations; and recruitment or administrative personnel who support the performance management process.

What you will study

Effective and consistent supervision and line management has a direct relationship with improved productivity. The course provides the tools and techniques you need to improve performance in your team, department or project. You will work at your own pace through study materials that examine the four main processes of performance management through people: objective setting, measuring performance, performance review and improving performance. Throughout, a series of activities enable you to reflect upon and assess your current practice and build a personal development plan for your continued development in this area.

By the end of this course you will be able to:

• Understand the different approaches to managing performance
• Identify how your own practice fits with these approaches
• Set meaningful performance objectives
• Select appropriate approaches to measuring and reviewing performance in your organisation
• Identify ways of helping staff to improve performance
• Plan further development in managing performance through people.

The strong link between course learning and your work practice creates relevant, enduring and transferable outcomes. It requires no more than 30 hours of your time in total, over whatever period suits you. But the learning is far richer than more expensive one- to three-day workshops. Register online today and start tomorrow – no need to wait!

The course features the distinctive strengths of The Open University from its years of expertise in work-based learning:

• The convenience of accessing its clearly presented and sequenced materials, activities and support whenever suits you and wherever you have access to the dedicated website – if you prefer, you can print key materials to work on them offline.
• The support of an expert learning adviser who can clarify study materials, answer questions and help you relate the course to your specific needs.
• A work-based activity helping you to connect the course to your individual and organisational context and needs. This is built up from short activities during the course, leading to a Personal Development Plan. At the end of the course you send this to the learning adviser, who provides personal feedback.
• Certification of completion from the OU for those who complete the course. You can use this to demonstrate your Continuing Professional Development (CPD) activity to your employer and/or professional body. (N.B. The course does not carry academic credit points.)

Entry

Although there are no formal academic requirements to study any of our CPD courses, you are expected to have some experience in the field and the course assumes a familiarity with the subject.

For each course you can register and begin at any time during the life of the course. You can study at your own pace and submit your work-based activity at any date before the final submission date for the course. Information about the final submission date is available when you register for the course.

If you have a disability

The course is delivered online and makes use of a variety of online resources. If you use specialist hardware or software to assist you in using a computer or the internet you are advised to talk to the Student Registration and Enquiry Service about support which can be given to meet your needs. If you are a new learner with the OU, make sure that you look at our website.

Study materials

What's included

All learning materials, exercises, study support and work-based activity are delivered entirely online.

Computing requirements

You will need a computer with internet access to study this course as it includes online activities, which you can access using a web browser.

• If you have purchased a new desktop or laptop computer since 2007 you should have no problems completing the online activities.
• If you’ve got a netbook, tablet or other mobile computing device check our Technical requirements section.
• If you use an Apple Mac you will need OS X 10.6 or later.

You can also visit the Technical requirements section for further computing information including the details of the support we provide.

Learner support

Expert, confidential learner support is available when you need it from a learning adviser, who will respond to you direct within 24 hours. Other support is available via the GB002 forum, library, StudentHome website and computing helpdesk.

Work-based activity

The work-based activity for this course is a written report and has been designed as an integrated ongoing activity which you submit at the end of your study. It will allow you to reflect on your learning and how to use it in your professional work.

Professional recognition

Successful completion of the course enables us to recognise your achievement of the course learning by issuing an OU certificate which you can use to document your commitment to continuing professional development in your personal portfolio, or to provide evidence to employers or professional body.

Student Reviews

Student Reviews

Managing Performance is an interesting subject - when I first started performance management it was with little training and given ...
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