Employee performance management: charting the field from 1998 to 2018

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the development and consider the future of one of the most controversial areas of human resource development – employee performance management (PM). Design/methodology/approach Through bibliometrics, a multiple correspondence analysis identifies the main research directions of PM studies and provides a map of descriptors and a list of authors, along with a framework to track PM literature over 20 years (1998–2018). Findings Scholars have attempted to address some of the questions raised by earlier researchers. However, critical questions remain unanswered, and there is increasing dissatisfaction with the process. The most glaring yet unaddressed problem with PM is poor employee acceptability of the process. Practical implications If the research gaps are addressed, the lack of acceptability of the PM could be resolved and more effectively managed in the future. Originality/value The study particularly addresses poor employee “acceptability” of the PM process, a subject that has received limited attention by scholars.