A Supervisor Receives Regular Information About a Sales Employee's Performance

question 11

Essay

A supervisor receives regular information about a sales employee's performance (e.g.sales volume, incomplete paperwork, etc.) and must complete a performance appraisal of the person's work.The supervisor has a complete description of the employee's job but has never worked in the field as a sales representative.Moreover, the supervisor is relatively new to this job and therefore has little experience observing or appraising the performance of salespeople.What attribution error is likely to occur under these conditions and what effect would it have on the performance appraisal results?

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Definitions:

Random Variation

The unpredictable changes in data that cannot be attributed to any specific cause.

Time Series

A time series is a sequence of data points, typically consisting of successive measurements taken at spaced intervals over time, used in statistical and economic analysis.

Five-period Moving Average

A technique in time series analysis, calculating the average of a specific number of the most recent periods, in this case, five, to smoothen short-term fluctuations and highlight longer-term trends or cycles.

Relative Steady Growth

A consistent increase in the size or value of something over a period of time, often seen in economic or financial contexts.