Performance Management Initiative

Employee & Organizational Development

315 Cumulative Hours

Overview:

When I began working with the EOD office, Rebecca Murphy and her team had already began a project for a new performance management system to replace the old performance appraisal system that was in place to measure performance of VSU staff members. The performance appraisal system was a simple two-page form with a very simplistic 5-point Likert scale; however, the performance appraisal only measured the past performance from the previous year with no elements of professional development. The performance management initiative aimed to remedy this issue to create a performance measurement system that would not only rate the previous year's job performance but also create professional development opportunities to increase job performance for the next year and develop personal goals for the employees. I was able to work on the project from the beginning stages to the implementation stage. I have detailed the responsibilities and sub-projects I worked on throughout the duration of this project below.

Research:

Job Competency Identification:

The new performance management (PM) process was implemented to meet a need for a continuous cycle of feedback and professional development. Upon researching, we found that most of the position descriptions were greatly out-dated. We worked closely with the Human Resources team to update all position descriptions for staff-level employees, as the PM process would only be affecting those employees at the staff level and not faculty members. For a little over two months, we worked through each position description alphabetically to ensure that the knowledge, skills, and abilities were up-to-date as well as reflected the accurate duties of the current position holder. In order to update the position descriptions, HR dispersed forms to be completed by all staff members, which were submitted to the EOD office for position description modification.

Once the position descriptions were completed, we needed to identify job competencies at the subordinate and supervisory levels. We researched best practices from other USG institutions to see how they identified job competencies. After hours of research, we decided that the job competencies offered by the State of Georgia were the most detailed and sufficient for our purposes. The GAs identified the most relevant competencies from the State of Georgia for University purposes. From this step, we modified the competencies to fit with the goals and vision of the University based on information gathered through focus groups and meetings with administration. We split the competencies into two categories: VSU core competencies and VSU leadership competencies. We determined that splitting the competencies in this method would be most beneficial as not all employees should be held to the same standards as supervisors and leaders. When piloting the job competencies to focus groups, most participants were in agreement with the competencies that were identified.

Materials:

VSU Organizational Competencies

Core competency handout simplified

Leadership competency handout simplified

Scale Development:

When rating performance, scales are required to place value on an employee's job performance. The old scales for performance measurement were not sufficient for the new competencies because of the inability to distinguish between a mid-range, low, and high rating. The next step was to develop an appropriate scale for our purposes. The GAs identified three possible rating scales to use for the new system, which were deliberated and voted upon in the PMI meeting with administration. We opted for a 5-point behaviorally anchored rating scale because of the ability to select a rating that is closest to actual performance. We defined each rating overall and detailed what behaviors would be expected for each rating of each individual competency. The use of BARS increases accuracy of ratings as the supervisors and employees not have a method of comparing actual performance to the expected performance at each level of the BARS.

Scales:

Rating Scales Definitions

Competency and BARS Guide.docx

Focus Groups:

In order to test the validity of the BARS and competencies, we gathered influential employees across the University and conducted focus groups for one month. Each focus group was able to express concerns and ideas regarding the new system. We received minimal push-back from the new system and both employees and supervisors were excited to see that their voices were finally being heard. 

Korea Black and I moderated a focus group with Rebecca Murphy. We created activities to increase participation and illicit responses to the questions we were seeking. We wanted to know what was missing from the current system and what employees would like to see in the new system. We created cards with various competencies and asked the participants to rank order the competencies by importance. We gave everyone five minutes to complete the task and reconvened the group. The floor was open for discussion as to why each participant ranked the competencies in the way they did and asked if each participant felt that a competency that was not listed should be included.

Materials:

Overall PMI Pilot Report

Focus Group Data on VSU Core Competencies

Focus Group 8.14.15_Brandi

Training Design:

Once the system was approved by administration, the GAs were placed in charge of the training development and design for the management level training and the employee level training. I collaborated with Lorena Afa, Korea Black, and Benjamin Weil in designing the training and activities. We developed PowerPoint presentations for face-to-face sessions and online training.

The employee level training focused on an overview of the entire process. Lorena and I discussed the need to keep the employee level training simple as the employees are not responsible for creating a work plan. The detailed training for employees focused on the self-assessment. The new PM system is similar to a 360 feedback system in that in order to create a work plan, the employee's supervisor must receive the self-assessment from the employee. The self-assessment allows for the employee to reflect upon his/her past performance and reveal areas in which the employee would like to improve through the the creation of personal development goals as well as professional development goals. The purpose of the self-assessment is to provide employees with a method of accounting for their own performance as it can be difficult for supervisors who oversee multiple employees or who do not directly interact with their employees. The self-assessment aims to decrease common rating errors such as the halo effect, primacy effect, recency effect, and etc. Because of the huge numbers of employee level staff, the employee training was designed as an online training resource that employees would be able to access from the Performance Management website. Face-to-face training was made available by request. Departments/work units without regular access to computers are among the constituencies that were eligible for face-to-face training.

The management level training was more detailed out of necessity. The PowerPoint presentation included information about the self-assessment, work plan, check-in, and the employee assessment. The management training was designed to be a three hour face-to-face session with all supervisors across campus. Korea and Ben developed activities for the supervisors to interact with the different phases of the cycle. Three break-out activity sessions were created for the supervisors to develop a work plan, check-in on the "employee," and a final assessment. The activities provide the supervisors with a realistic job preview of what the entire cycle would be like. During the management training, we included visuals and charts for reference throughout the training as we discussed concepts of the new PM system.

PowerPoint Presentations:

Manager training 

Performance Management Process Non-Manager Training 

PLANT TRAINING 2015

Training Facilitation:

I volunteered to assist with two management level face-to-face sessions. The first session I moderated was with Tim Yorkey and Benjamin Weil. As this was the first management level training, I answered a few questions from participants and assisted in the activities. Participant reactions to the training were positive and the supervisors voiced opinions about how beneficial the new system will be; however, they also wanted more training as each phase of the new system approached in an effort to better understand the intricacies of each cycle.

The second session I acted as co-instructor with Rebecca Murphy at Plant Operations. This management training was designed for all of the supervisors that work in Plant Operations. The training was a three hour session with 15-20 supervisors. Becky and I split the training up into two pieces with Becky starting the training and me finishing it. I spoke about the rating scale, progress notes, and the final assessment. The training was received differently as the supervisors felt that the new PM system being online would be difficult for their employees to complete. We received this feedback and ensured the supervisors that the EOD staff would assist in any way possible.

Materials:

Terminology Handout

Example Work Goals for VSU

Self Evaluation Tips

Core competency handout simplified

smart goals

Press Release:

The PM training sessions became open to the public in Spring 2016 with management sessions and employee sessions. I designed and dispersed a press release to the staff and faculty email lists, as some faculty members are also supervisors to their front desk employees. An example of one of the press releases for the PM system training courses can be found here.

External link: http://us7.campaign-archive1.com/?u=c8d2ac6c968974c109b17a2a3&id=c82af2a5e9&e=

Application:

The work I completed with the implementation of the new PM system is truly invaluable experience. The consulting firms and assessment centers are flagging my resume and establishing interview times with me to discuss the work I did on the PM system overhaul. Organizations are beginning to realize how instrumental feedback and employee development can be for retention, motivation, role clarity, and job satisfaction. I was fortunate enough to be involved with the project from the earliest stages and that experience will be valuable as I interact with organizations who are in dire need of new methods of performance management. I will be able to come into an organization, conduct a needs analysis and job analysis, identify important job competencies, customize BARS for an organization, and design/facilitate training of the new system to employees of all levels.

Final Materials:

Performance Management Spring Communication & Training Plan

Final Draft PMI Annual Performance Review

Self Assessment

Rubric Tool_Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale

Final Draft PMI Work Plan

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