Why 72% of employees don’t trust performance management – and how to fix it
Summary
The article highlights a major trust gap in performance management: Deloitte’s 2025 Global Human Capital Trends Survey finds 72% of employees and 61% of managers do not trust their organisation’s performance processes. Gaelle Devins argues the fix is a shift from system-centred, tick-box KPIs to people-centric KPIs that measure wellbeing, growth and capability alongside traditional financial and operational metrics. She proposes three practical actions: reassess KPI design, match tasks to people’s strengths, and increase the frequency of meaningful feedback.
Source
Source: https://hrzone.com/why-72-of-employees-dont-trust-performance-management-and-how-to-fix-it/
Key Points
- Deloitte 2025: 72% of employees and 61% of managers don’t trust performance management; only 6% of organisations are making significant progress to rethink it.
- Traditional KPIs (sales, revenue, efficiency) overlook the human drivers of performance; people-centric KPIs fill that gap.
- Three practical actions: (1) reassess KPIs to include people-focused measures; (2) match challenges to individual skills and strengths; (3) increase regular, constructive feedback.
- Managers currently spend only 13% of their time on people development — raising this is essential to rebuild trust and improve outcomes.
- Balancing People, Purpose and Performance creates flow@work, improving engagement, innovation and sustainable results.
Content Summary
The piece opens with the stark Deloitte statistics to set the scale of the problem. It argues many performance systems serve the system, not the people, turning reviews and KPIs into tick-box exercises that damage trust.
Devins recommends introducing people-centric KPIs that measure culture, wellbeing and learning alongside financial and operational metrics. She provides reflective questions HR teams should ask when reassessing KPI frameworks, stressing that the right measurement logic separates talk from action.
Next, the article explains how matching challenge to skill maximises engagement and output. It suggests using self-assessments and soft-skills tools so leaders can allocate work that fits capability — avoiding boredom and overwhelm — and thereby improve individual and team performance.
Finally, Devins highlights feedback frequency: with managers spending just 13% of time on development, organisations must increase regular, specific feedback and recognition so employees know where they stand and can course-correct quickly.
Context and Relevance
This is a timely read for HR leaders, line managers and execs who are rethinking people strategy post-pandemic and in an era of skills shortages. The article ties into broader trends: employee wellbeing as a business metric, skills-based work design, and continuous performance conversations replacing annual reviews. Adopting people-centric KPIs aligns with current best practice on engagement, retention and innovation.
Why should I read this?
Short and blunt: if your people don’t trust your performance system, it won’t lift performance. This article gives three simple, practical levers you can start using now — rethink what you measure, match work to strengths, and give feedback more often. We’ve read it so you don’t have to — but do act on it.
Further reading
The author links to related HRZone pieces on relationship-led performance management, better questioning techniques for reviews, and why traditional performance systems fail most CHROs — useful next steps if you want to turn these ideas into practice.