单选题
According to Scott Adams, creator of the comic strip (系列漫画) Dilbert, the annual performance review is "one of the most frightening and weakening experiences" in every employee"s life. Adam"s stories and comic figures poke fun at the workplace, but his characterization of people"s feelings about the annual performance review has its serious side. Although a recent study of 437 companies indicates that effective annual performance reviews can help raise profits, most employees of those companies hate them.
In theory, annual performance reviews are constructive and positive interactions between managers and employees working together to attain maximum performance and strengthen the organization. In reality, they often create division, undermine morale, and spark anger and jealousy. Thus although the object of the annual performance review is to improve performance, it often has the opposite result. A programmer at an IT firm was stunned to learn at her annual performance review that she was denied a promotion because she wasn"t a "term player". What were the data used to make this judgment? She didn"t smile in the company photo.
Although this story might sound as if it came straight out of Dilbert, it is a true account of one woman"s experience. By following a few ideas and guidelines from industry analysis, this kind of ordeal can be avoided:
To end the year with a positive and useful performance review, managers and employees must start the year by working together to establish clear goals and expectations.
It may be helpful to allow employees to propose a list of people associated with the company who will be in a good position to assess their performance at the end of the year; these people may be co-workers, suppliers, or even customers.
Goals should be measurable but flexible, and everyone should sign off on the plan.
By checking employees" progress at about nine months, managers can give them a chance to correct mistakes and provide guidance to those who need it before the year is out.
When conducting the review, managers should highlight strengths and weaknesses during the past year and discuss future responsibilities, avoiding punishment or blame.
In short, when employees leave their performance reviews, they should be focusing on what they can do better in the year ahead, not worrying about what went into their files about the past.
单选题
In his comic strip Dilbert, Scott Adams ______.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] 细节推理题。根据题干关键词comic strip Dilbert定位到原文首段首句和第二句。首句中的annual performance review与选项D重现;原文首段第二句中的poke fun at(嘲笑……)与选项D中的mocks(嘲笑)对应。故答案为D。
单选题
All the following are mentioned as the drawbacks of annual performance reviews EXCEPT ______.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 细节判断题。原文第二段第二句提到“In reality, they often create division, undermine morale, and spark anger and jealousy.”因此,B、C、D三个选项均被提及,唯独A没有被提及。故答案为A。
单选题
The word "ordeal" in Paragraph 3 probably refers to ______.
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[解析] 语义题。原文第二段提到that she was denied a promotion because she wasn"t a "team player",她被否决了晋升就是因为她不是一个队员,表明这是令人忧郁的经历。故答案为B。
单选题
The annual performance reviews, to be effective, must focus on ______.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[解析] 细节推断题。根据题干关键词performance reviews,focus on定位到原文尾段。原句中的do better in the year ahead与选项C对应。故答案为C。选项A、B、D文章也提到了,但它们都是提高的有效措施之一,而最关键的是让员工们明白如何能做得更好。
单选题
The general attitude of the author toward Adam"s comic strip Dilbert is ______.