Frequently Asked Questions: Performance Evaluation Process

  1. SELF-EVALUATIONS

    1. What form do I use for a self-evaluation?

      Use the UCSD Libraries' self-evaluation form. Include ratings for each item in Section I. Job Functions, II. Performance Review and III. Supervisory Performance Review (if applicable). You may also include an overall rating of your performance if you wish.

      On the back of the form, complete Section V., Comments Supporting the Overall Evaluation. Attach additional pages if necessary. In this section you should document your achievements, reflect on the quality of your performance, and mention any areas in which you think you can improve.

    2. How long does the Comments section (Section V) on my self-evaluation have to be?

      This section should be no more than two pages.

    3. What happens to the self-evaluation?

      Give your self-evaluation to your supervisor or workleader (see below) to be used as input into his or her evaluation of your work. After the evaluation process is completed, your supervisor will submit your self-evaluation along with his or her evaluation of your performance to the Library Personnel Office.

    4. Why do a self-evaluation?

      You are the person most familiar with your performance. Your self-evaluation helps your supervisor to gain an accurate picture of your performance during the past year.

    5. Why do I give my self-evaluation to my supervisor before my supervisor writes his/her evaluation? Shouldn't we both do evaluations and then meet to discuss them?

      Your supervisor should base the evaluation on his or her observations of your performance, plus all available input from other sources. Your own self-evaluation is essential input; to write an objective evaluation, your supervisor should have your record of your accomplishments available. If your supervisor does an evaluation without access to your self-evaluation, he or she will be missing important information.

      Note also that the UCSD Implementing Procedures for HRMI* state, self-evaluations are provided "to the supervisor in advance of the supervisor writing the final performance evaluation."

    6. What if I disagree with my supervisor's evaluation?

      You have two opportunities to voice any disagreements:

      First, when your supervisor gives you the evaluation, it should be in draft form. Ratings should be in pencil. The final evaluation should be written only after you and your supervisor (or workleader) have met to discuss the evaluation. Changes can be made during that discussion.

      Second, after the final evaluation is written, but before it is signed, the supervisor should return it to you for comments. At that point, you may write any concerns you have. These concerns will then be attached to the evaluation and forwarded to LPO.

    7. Is a self-evaluation required?

      Yes. LMG approved PERT's recommendation that self-evaluations be required for all library staff beginning with the August 1996 review cycle.

      PERT's recommendation was based, in part, on the results of a staff survey conducted in the fall of 1995. In that survey, staff classifications who already do self-evaluations (MAP, A&PS, and Librarians) listed self-evaluations as one of the things they liked about the performance process, while staff who did not do self-evaluations listed them as one of the things they would like to see added to the process.

  2. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

    1. What's a goal and what's an objective?

      A goal is what you are trying to achieve, an objective is what you will do to achieve that goal. One goal can have one, several, or many objectives.

    2. Is there a required format for goals and objectives?

      No, you can use whatever feels comfortable to you and your supervisor.

    3. How general or detailed should goals be? How do I structure realistic goals that leave room for challenges?

      Goals should be realistic, i.e., practical and achievable. Realistic goals provide a "balance" between what is hard and what is easy to achieve. Goals should motivate people to improve and to reach for attainable ends. For a goal to be motivational, the person must feel that the goal can be achieved. Impossible goals demotivate and defeat the goal-setting process. Likewise, easy goals do not motivate any more than unattainable goals. You should review your goals on a quarterly or semi-annual basis to check your progress and to make any necessary adjustments.

    4. How are goals and objectives used in the self-evaluation?

      Your self-evaluation should discuss your progress toward your goals and objectives during the past year. You should describe your successes and discuss why some goals (if any) were not achieved.

    5. How are goals and objectives used by supervisors (and/or workleaders)?

      The supervisor (and/or workleader) should include, in their comments on the evaluation, an assessment of the progress you made toward achieving your goals and objectives. That progress, plus compliance with performance standards, should be the major criteria used in judging your performance.

    6. What happens to the goals and objectives I write each year?

      One copy of your goals and objectives should be retained in the department and one copy for the upcoming year should be sent to LPO with the evaluations for the previous year unless your department has made other arrangements with LPO. You and your supervisor should review your goals and objectives on a regular basis and revise as needed.

    7. When are next year's goals and objectives developed?

      They are developed as the final step in the performance evaluation process (see step #7 in the "Performance Evaluation Process Worksheet").

    8. What is the relationship between the section labeled "Future Plans and Actions" on the evaluation form and my goals and objectives?

      Since both goals and objectives and "Future Plans and Actions" refer to plans for next year, completion of the section labeled "Future Plans and Actions" is optional. Items in your goals and objectives do not need to be repeated in this section.

    9. Who sets my goals and objectives?

      The supervisor and the employee set the employee's goals and objectives by mutual agreement. Some may be suggested by the supervisor, others by the employee. In some departments, an individual's goals grow out of the departmental goal setting process. Goals should be discussed and agreed upon as the final step in the evaluation process.

  3. WORKLEADERS and SUPERVISORS

    1. What responsibilities for performance evaluation may be delegated to the workleader?

      The supervisor may delegate some or all of the performance evaluation process to the workleader. For example:

      • The workleader may receive the self-evaluation, write the performance evaluation, and give the evaluation to the employee.

      • Or, the supervisor may ask the workleader to complete an evaluation form, and use that form, along with the self evaluation, to write the performance evaluation.

      • Or, the supervisor may meet with the workleader to discuss performance, and use the discussion as input when writing the evaluation.

    2. Is there any part of the evaluation which cannot be delegated?

      Yes. The supervisor is legally responsible for the evaluation. Therefore he or she must:

      • Sign the evaluation form

      • Write something on the form - even if it is just "I concur" with the workleader's evaluation.

      • Meet with the employee to discuss the evaluation before it is finalized and signed.

    3. What responsibility does the supervisor or workleader have in writing the evaluation?

      The supervisor or workleader is responsible for evaluating the employee's performance as objectively as possible, using information from their own observations plus that from other available sources, such as coworkers, customers, and the employee.

  4. General items

    1. What are the steps in the performance evaluation process?

      The steps in the process are outlined in the Performance Evaluation Process Worksheet and in the UCSD Guide to Performance Management:

      1. Employee and supervisor/workleader review and update job description.

      2. Employee writes self-evaluation.

      3. Supervisor/workleader writes evaluation and discusses with employee.

      4. Employee and supervisor agree on goals and objectives for the coming year.

      5. Evaluation is signed and submitted to LPO along with self-evaluation and goals and objectives.

    2. Do I have to use the Performance Evaluation Process Worksheet?

      No, this worksheet is only intended as a guide to the steps in the process. Use it only if it is useful to you.

    3. What does my signature on the Performance Evaluation mean?

      According to the UCSD Implementing Procedures for HRMI:

      • The employee's signature indicates that the evaluation form has been reviewed and discussed. It does not necessarily mean that the employee concurs with the evaluation.

      • The supervisor's signature on the completed evaluation form indicates that this is the supervisor's appraisal of the employee's performance and that the supervisor has discussed it with the employee.

      • The department head's signature on the evaluation form indicates that the evaluation form has been reviewed and accepted as the supervisor's appraisal of the employee's performance for the periods indicated.

      • The "UCSD Implementing Procedures for HRMI on Performance Appraisal" can be found at:
        http://www-hr.ucsd.edu/~qwl/policies/index.html


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