INTRODUCTION
Performance evaluation is not, at base, an arcane concept. We all use performance evaluations in some capacity to guide our purchase decisions, whether we are buying items off the shelf at an established retail outlet or hiring a local carpenter to install cabinets in our kitchens. Indeed, we use past performance information even if there isn’t any, because the absence of any knowledge of past performance informs how we think about or judge a prospective seller, and this informs our thinking on the seller’s future performance. When we buy something important, do we want to buy it from someone who will be “learning on the job” on our job? Or do we want to buy that item or service from someone who has provided it previously, perhaps ...
