Assessing Employee Performance Thomas P. Holland, Ph.D., Professor Institute for Nonprofit Organizations

Performance Appraisal Opportunity for worker and supervisor to discuss the individual’s work, review past performance, and identify goals for future improvement Can be done punitively, constructively, superficially Should be based on job description and explicit expectations of role, observed performance and not personality or rumor; what you see and what you want to see instead. Should be scheduled regularly (formal) and take place casually at times between Should result in mutually acceptable plan for improving performance in coming time period

Key Components of Assessments Measurement: performance should be evaluated against mutually understood targets and objectives Feedback: provision of information to individual about performance, achievements, needed improvements Exchange of views: truthful, two-way conversation about what has happened, explanations for performance, ideas about changes Positive reinforcement: emphasize what has been done well and make constructive criticism about what should be improved Agreement: joint understanding of goals, what needs to be done to improve performance and how it should be undertaken Record: conclusions should be documented on forms and/or narrative and included in personnel file, with copy to individual.

Appraisal Skills Asking good questions How do you feel about how your work has been going? How do you see the job developing? What do you think happened and why? Listening, paying careful attention to speaker, avoiding interruptions and generalizations Could you tell me more about that? Let me check my impression. Do you mean that….? Giving feedback, based on facts and evidence, building on skills, promoting understanding of what changes are important and why, emphasis on future successes

Examples of Assessment Approaches and Tools Microsoft Office has Employee Performance Review Form AFSCME Employee Performance Review Form.doc www.k-state.edu/hr/forms/reviewforms.html www.successfactors.com www.socrates.com/Newsletter0105_Performance.asp www.2020software.com/search/Employee_Annual_Review_Form Search web for additional examples

360 Assessments Provides performance feedback to individual from several sources Uses questionnaire composed of statements about quality of person’s work, including all relevant components Individual plus several others fill out questionnaire independently Others’ responses averaged, kept anonymous Averages of others’ assessments and person’s own assessments compared Identify aspects of person’s performance that both agree done well (good news you expected) both agree not done well (bad news you expected) other’s ratings higher than person’s own (good news you didn’t expect) others’ ratings lower than person’s own (bad news you didn’t expect)

More on 360 Assessments Challenges person’s views of self and work, differences between self-perceptions and those of others Useful to identify specific areas needing improvement, leading to learning contract with supervisor May be repeated to assess changes Items must be short and clear, relevant to person’s role Useful to have larger numbers of others knowing person’s work doing ratings Anonymity of raters essential, only averages reported Opportunities for comments can be provide useful information

Using Assessments in Coaching, Mentoring, and Training Identify specific competencies needing improvement Formulate goals for attainment Specify appropriate methods for addressing them, set tasks and timeframe Implement development activities Monitor movement, make use of feedback to refine efforts Continue practicing through work assignments