Staff Performance Appraisal Evaluations

Tips and Hints

Texas Woman’s University has three (3) types of performance appraisal evaluations, Professional/Administrative, Classified, and Self.  Below is a definition of each type of evaluation:

1.      Professional/Administrative:

·        Professional Employee - An employee primarily responsible for the performance of work requiring advanced specialized academic training or certification beyond the Bachelor's level in a recognized professional field of science or learning and for performing recognized professional services directly related to that academic training. (page 1 of the TWU Pay Plan).

·        Administrative Employee – An employee whose duty consists of the performance of work related to the administration or direction of a recognized department or budgeted entity not more than one level below a full vice president and is responsible for the preparation and administration of the policies, programs, and internal procedures of the department or entity; or who is an assistant or associate director of a recognized department not more than two levels below a full vice president and who is responsible for the administration or direction of the department or entity or a major function thereof and is responsible for performing the duties and responsibilities of the administrator or director in his/her absence; and who is employed in an occupational category requiring academic training of at least the Bachelor's level. (page 2 of the TWU Pay Plan).

2.      Classified – This evaluation is to be used for all employees not included  in the definition of professional/administrative.  It is for both exempt and non-exempt classified positions.

3.      Self – This evaluation is optional.  If the supervisor chooses the Self-evaluation, it is to be used in conjunction with either a P&A, or Classified performance evaluation.  This evaluation provides the supervisor with information regarding the employee’s perspective of her/his own performance assessment.  It also encourages two-way communication between the employee and supervisor in goal setting. 

Performance appraisals are one of the first things reviewed during a legal   investigation.  To protect yourself and TWU you should:

·        Maintain accurate and well-documented written records (i.e. absences, days that the employee came in late, missed deadline, etc. – items that would be written in an “incident file” (see TWU OP 50.01, page 8 of Attachment A).

·        Base your evaluation on specific, objective, job-related behaviors.

·        Make sure performance expectations and standards of measurement are clearly communicated and understood.  Remember, expectations and standards of performance should be communicated to employees from the first day of employment and as job duties change.  The evaluation process is to assess success/problems with performance.

·        Use valid and fair standards to evaluate performance and apply then equally to all employees, as appropriate.

·        Give employees recourse if they feel their evaluation is unfair.  Let employees know that they can respond, in writing, to any point(s) in the evaluation that they do not agree with.  The supervisor should send a copy of the response, attached to a copy of the evaluation, to Human Resources.

To prepare for a Performance Appraisal Evaluation you should:

·        Organize your documentation so that you will have specific example of performance issues (when things went well and/or when things went wrong) when completing the evaluation.

·        Let the employee know in advance when and where the evaluation meeting will be.  If you choose, this would be a good time to give your employee a “Self” evaluation and have her/him bring the completed form to the meeting for discussion.

·        Choose a time and place, your office or a conference room, for the meeting where there will be no interruptions. 

·        Evaluate how your performance has helped or hindered the employee.  This may be difficult to do, but it is important.

·        Develop specific goals and recommendations for improving the employee’s performance.  At the end of the evaluation meeting, make sure the employee has a clear understanding of all goals that have been discussed.

When conducting the appraisal, you should remember to:

• Begin the meeting by putting the employee at ease; remember that most employees are nervous at evaluation time.
• Get the employee’s feedback on every area of the discussion.  It is important that you be willing to listen, to learn, and to change your evaluation when/if necessary.  Give the employee a chance to tell you about performance from her/his point of view (if you have chosen to use the self-evaluation, this is a good time to review and discuss it).
• Give feedback that builds on the employee’s strengths and provides constructive suggestions for areas that need improvement. 
• Set goals that are motivating, meaningful, and realistic.
• If there are performance problems, let the employee know that you will assist them in reaching acceptable standards of performance as long as she/he makes an effort to improve.
• End the meeting on a positive note, even if some parts of the evaluation were negative.
• Administrative Officers please note that by signing the "Administrative Officer" area of the performance evaluation, you are confirming that you have reviewed the performance evaluation for compliance with all TWU policies and procedures, state and federal regulations.

Things that you should avoid when conducting a performance appraisal:

• The Halo Effect.  This is when an employee is overrating because she or he is liked by other employees or yourself, or is particularly good at one aspect of the job, or has been with the university for a long time, etc.
• Also avoid the “Horns” effect that underrates an employee because of personal style, a particularly negative incident, poor performance in just one aspect of her or his job, etc.
• Giving all of you employees an across-the-board rating because you feel you do not have the time to put some thought into the appraisal process, or because you feel since there is no current merit raise system, the whole appraisal process is a waste of time.  Employees want and need to know how they are performing!

For additional information on Performance Appraisal Evaluations, please review TWU OP 50.01.