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

2. 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

3. 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.

4. 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

5. Examples of Assessment Approaches and Tools
Microsoft Office has Employee Performance Review Form
AFSCME Employee Performance Review Form.doc
Search web for additional examples

6. 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)

7. 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

8. 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