Final answer:
Misdirected effort employees are best improved by coaching, performance feedback, goal setting, and restructured job assignments. These methods help realign their efforts with organizational goals. The effectiveness of these methods depends on the organization's culture and implementation.
Step-by-step explanation:
Coaching, frequent performance feedback, goal setting, and restructured job assignments are effective ways to improve performance for employees in the category of 'Misdirected effort'. These types of interventions are designed to clarify expectations, provide guidance, and realign the employees' efforts with the goals of the organization. In contrast, other categories of employees might require different approaches. For example, 'Under-utilizers' may benefit more from opportunities that challenge them and utilize their untapped skills, whereas 'Deadwood' employees might be so disengaged that more drastic measures such as performance counseling or termination might be considered.
The subject of this question revolves around the effective methods of performance appraisals and employee development. Performance appraisals like the 360-degree feedback appraisal involve multiple sources of feedback, which can create an opportunity for employees to understand various perspectives on their performance. Whether or not this system is ultimately effective at improving performance is debated and varies depending on the organizational culture and how well the appraisals are implemented.