Line managers’ AMO to manage employees’ performance: the route to effective and satisfying performance management

Performance management systems are used to increase employees’ performance with the ultimate aim of increasing organizational performance. Organizations rely on line managers to implement performance management systems and to engage in a continuous process of goal-setting, feedback, coaching and performance appraisal with their employees. Drawing on the AMO theory, we predict that the effectiveness of performance management implementation will be a function of three factors. First, line managers should have the Ability to enact the activities that are involved in performance management. Secondly, they should be Motivated to perform these activities. Thirdly, line managers should have sufficient Opportunity to fulfill these activities on top of the demands from other organizational. If not, they could experience role conflict. We developed several cross-level hypotheses. The data came from 71 line managers and 318 employees working in Flemish education. Hierarchical linear modelling found that line managers’ AMO to implement performance management systems was positively related to employees’ satisfaction with the system. These relationships were mediated by employees’ perceptions that the performance management system is strong. A strong system signals that its features are salient across employees and that the system is clear and understood. This study has several theoretical and practical implications.