Which of the following concepts refers to a performance management system in which managers rank subordinates relative to one another? a. Behaviourally anchored rating scales b. Critical incidents c. 360-degree feedback d. Forced ranking e. Benchmarking

The answer is **(d) Forced ranking**.<br /><br />Here's why:<br /><br />* **Forced ranking (also known as stack ranking)** requires managers to distribute ratings into a pre-determined distribution, essentially comparing employees against each other and ranking them from best to worst. This creates a competitive environment where some employees are inevitably ranked low, even if they are performing adequately.<br /><br />Let's look at why the other options are incorrect:<br /><br />* **(a) Behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS):** BARS focus on specific behaviors that exemplify different performance levels. They provide descriptive anchors for each rating, making evaluations more objective but don't inherently involve ranking employees against each other.<br />* **(b) Critical incidents:** This method involves documenting specific examples of effective and ineffective employee behavior. While these incidents can be used in performance evaluations, they don't necessitate ranking employees relative to one another.<br />* **(c) 360-degree feedback:** This approach gathers feedback from multiple sources (supervisors, peers, subordinates, etc.) to provide a more holistic view of an employee's performance. It doesn't inherently involve ranking employees against each other.<br />* **(e) Benchmarking:** Benchmarking involves comparing an organization's practices and performance against industry best practices or competitors. It's not a performance management system used to evaluate individual employees.<br />