Performance Management for Success

ASSIGNMENTS AND POSITION DESCRIPTIONS
The employee and supervisor need to have a shared understanding of how well the employee is doing. For this, duties and responsibilities must be clarified to provide a framework. The first step in clarifying understanding of the job is to make sure the position description is accurate and up to date. The employee should see a copy of the position description and have an opportunity to ask any questions. Keep in mind that the same job title will likely have different duties from one department to another.

USF'S STRATEGIC PLAN
Employees at USF should be familiar with the Strategic Plan and understand how their role supports and contributes to the University's mission and goals. Employees and supervisors should review the information well in advance to ensure that employee and departmental goals strategically align.

FOR SUPERVISORS: USE SMART GOALS
How do you know if goals are being met? Set specific achievement markers by using SMART goals. Access a one-page example here or view the online LinkedIn Learning video, Setting Team and Employee Goals using SMART Methodology (Total run time: 55 minutes).

• Need help accessing LinkedIn Learning videos? Learn about free USF employee access here.

Keep conversations balanced to address strengths as well as concerns. For example:

• How is the employee doing handling their workload?
• Does the employee need help or motivation?
• Is there something done well that can be recognized?

Provide appreciative feedback and recognize successes. Pay attention between conversations to catch people in the act of doing great work. Thank people in person and attach praise to meaningful results. Instead of just good job, try, the solution you offered helped us to avoid a potential problem and exceeded the client’s expectation.

Address concerns and solve problems. Be timely and address concerns as the needs arise, but only address a manageable number of concerns at one time. When addressing problems with the employee’s performance:

• Be specific and give examples
• Focus on observable actions and their impact
• Focus on problem resolution rather than blame
• Collaborate to accurately define the problem and brainstorm solutions
• Present your view of the problem. If the problem is a concern you have about the employee’s actions, consider the Action- Impact format to present your concern.

The quarterly check-in is a “progress check” conversation at least once per quarter to review goals, progress and results. It is time to acknowledge successes and identify improvement opportunities. The following should be considered in the quarterly check-in:

• Is the employee meeting expectations and standards?
• Is the employee achieving performance goals?
• Is the employee achieving developmental goals?

If any areas cause concern, make mid-course adjustments where needed and review or clarify any standards not being met.

• What changes would enhance performance or progress toward the goal?
• Are expectations still clear?

The quarterly check-in should be scheduled ahead of time, allowing both the employee and supervisor time to gather all necessary information. It may be helpful to have the employee complete a self-report before the meeting.

During annual performance reviews, supervisors and employees work together to:

• Review the employee’s work achievements and challenges over the past year.
• Establish work expectations and performance goals for the coming year.
• Define the employee’s professional development goals and learning plan for the coming year.

The forms utilized in this process will assist supervisors and employees in preparing for performance review discussions. Although these forms are helpful and necessary tools, the filling out of forms is not the primary goal of a review. Reviews are most effective when forms are used to help prepare for a conversation and document the outcomes, rather than as a substitute for the conversation.

Preparing for the Formal Review

Review the following:

• The employee’s position description (PD)
• Standards and expectations
• Past year’s goals and objectives
• Other documentation gathered during the review period

Ask the employee to prepare by reflecting on the following:

• Successes and challenges over the past year
• Additional support he or she would like from you
• Additional skills/knowledge he or she would like to develop or enhance

Complete an Evaluation Form. Be prepared to share your perceptions and feedback about the employee’s performance over the past year, including:

• Key achievements and successes
• Performance concerns and/or challenges
• Changes and enhancements that you recommend (or require)
• Learning opportunities relevant to the employee’s job function that would help enhance current skills or develop new ones
• Key employee strengths and contributions over the past review period

Conducting the Review

• Share your feedback about the employee’s performance, including information about strengths and successes as well as areas needing improvement.
• If assigning ratings, communicate the rating you’ve assigned for each of the performance indicators. Provide rationale for each rating - include behavioral examples whenever a rating is above or below “achieves.”
• Invite and listen to the employee’s assessment of his/her performance. Ask the employee to share his/her feedback for you, including ideas for improvement.
• Re-enter the performance planning phase for the following year.

USF has three types of performance reviews:

• Annual
• Probationary
• Special

Annual performance reviews for most employees will be conducted using the fiscal year (July 1 – June 30). 

For probationary employees procedures, click here. Additional information and procedures can be found in the Staff Performance Management Procedure and in the Staff Progressive Discipline Procedure.

A Staff employee with a substandard evaluation will be put on a Performance Improvement Plan, abbreviated as PIP. Administration employees receive an action plan for improving performance and ONE performance evaluation either at start or end of improvement period.

The Performance Improvement Plan is a document to fill out laying out the standards and expectations based on the duties, responsibilities and requirements of the position that must be met to obtain an overall "Achieves" rating. See the Performance Improvement Plan format here.

After the PIP is completed, the employee will have another evaluation. Supervisors should work with their Service Center HR Manager, as the HR manager will send a letter outlining the Performance Improvement Plan process. In turn, supervisors need to send weekly or biweekly updates to their Service Center HR Manager.

An improvement period needs to be implemented for no less than 60 calendar days from the date that the employee received the Performance Improvement Plan. Additional time can be requested for up to a total of six months from the date of the PIP.

At the end of the period, a follow-up Special Evaluation is completed and:

• Rating revised upwards or
• Extension of improvement period requested or
• If no improvement, employee's dismissal proposed
• An employee can also be demoted to another job instead of terminated

Collective Bargaining Agreements should be thoroughly considered during the performance management process. For example, a CBA may make provisions for an employee who does not meet performance standards. Each union has their own agreement; review the most up-to-date agreements online via the Central Human Resources - Collective Bargaining and Labor Relations site.

Employee Relations(ER) provides education, training, mentoring and guidance to individual employees, supervisors, managers and administrators to address questions and workplace issues for non-Faculty employees.

HR Managers work with department administrators and individual employees on effective employee-manager communications and provide individual coaching to improve employee performance and resolve conflicts and problems before the point of formal corrective action and grievance.

HR Managers advise on and interpret University policies, procedures, regulations, labor contracts, key state statutes and federal laws, and oversee the University layoff, progressive discipline, performance improvement plan, and non-reappointment processes.

Employee Relations services include:

• Performance management
• Complaint resolution and conflict mediation
• Counseling and formal discipline
• Collective bargaining agreement compliance
• Grievance procedures
• Applicable alcohol/drug testing (pre-employment and regulatory)

Evaluations should be sent to the following emails below for uploads into AppXtender (employee Personnel file, etc.). Employee Relations receives notice of ‘Needs Improvement’ and ‘Unsatisfactory’ performance evaluations so that we can address any necessary PIP/action plan(s) for the employee(s).

• Tampa campus: AS-HR@usf.edu (CHR Records)
• USF Health: HR-healthevals@usf.edu 
• St. Pete campus: stp-hr@usf.edu
• Sarasota Campus: sar-sarasotahr@usf.edu 

The form can be used as long as the goals and expectations have been shared with the new employee, however staff employees may be too new to rate if in their probationary period.

• No, there is not a different form for probationary employees. 
• Nothing has changed in terms of PIPs.

Yes, the same form is used for both.

The best practice is to move to the new format because the rating system is different and it will better prepare them for our future state.

Yes. Our recommendation is to introduce the new timeline in preparation for the launch to Oracle next year.  This timeline follows the University’s fiscal year.