Singapore - Enlightened managers are the key to conducting performance reviews objectively without a need for a bell curve distribution, says UOB Group's head of rewards management Alan Lee.

Speaking at a recent Human Resources Insight event on performance management, Lee says it is especially hard for managers to be objective when it comes to telling someone they are ranked as a low performer during a performance review. Although Lee admits inducting managers into programmes which trains them to conduct reviews objectively is easy theory-wise, it's always hard for anyone to take on the villain role. "Nobody wants to be a bad manager and say I am going to rate you a two or a one which is at the lower end [of the performance rating]."

But Lee believes organisations still have to train managers to make these hard calls if they want objective employee assessments. "If you've got enlightened managers who can do the right thing, then we don't really need to have a bell curve."

However, he did ask out loud, "The question many organisations face is how many enlightened managers do we have in our ranks?"

What's more, eliminating the bell curve distribution in performance reviews might not work for all companies. Citing an organisation with a size of 100,000 employees and 25,000 managers, Lee says it's unlikely all 25,000 managers would be enlightened to conduct objective reviews so strict performance measurements are still a necessity. Hence, it would be difficult for any growing or large organisations to dismiss using a bell curve in performance reviews. Lee says, "But if you want to dispel the bell curve, invest in making sure managers do the basics right."

Managers also have to know when to use their sense of judgement and not follow a "hard qualitative system" blindly during an employee's performance review, says Lee. "As a manager, you must make the right decisions and register the [employee] satisfaction."