Employee Performance Management System (EPMS)

1. Employee Performance Management System (EPMS) Clemson University Office of Human Resources Presented by: Joy Patton joyj@clemson.edu

2. Objectives for Today • Identify traits of successful managers • Describe the 3 phases of performance management • Develop ideas to make EPMS more meaningful to my subordinates and to me as an employee • Discuss employee motivation

3. Did you Know? The best managers are those who build a work environment where employees respond positively to the following statement: “I know what is expected of me.” "Employees join a company because of its leaders, generous benefits, salary, and training, but how long an employee stays and how productive he is while he is there is determined by his RELATIONSHIP with  his IMMEDIATE SUPERVISOR" "First Break All of The Rules," Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman

4. What are the traits of a “good” supervisor?

5. Why do a Performance Appraisal? • Legal defensibility & Accountability • Improved performance/productivity • Means to track performance/Personnel actions/Pay • Tool for succession planning and career path development • Facilitates communication • Delegation of duties • Sets expectations and helps measure goals • Eliminates surprises • Focuses on goals, eliminates degree of subjectivity

6. Key Points of EPMS policy EPMS is an annual review process that ensures that employees know what is expected of them by having supervisors set and communicate expectations. Key Points: • March 1st due date. • State employees. • For probationary employee, review due before anniversary of employment. • Used in salary increase, promotion, reassignment, demotion and termination. • Permanent part of personnel file. • If job responsibilities change significantly, form should be revised to reflect that change. • Final appraisal must bear the signature of the rater, the reviewer and the staff member.

7. 3 Phases of EPMS • Planning stage – “Where are we going , how will we get there and how will I be rated on the process? Map” • Ongoing communication – “Where are we? Any detours? Will we be on time?” • Evaluation stage – “Are we there? How did we do?”

8. What happens during the planning stage? • Review position description • Supervisor and employee identify and develop SMART goals and objectives (aka functions and objectives) for the rating period – “Map” • Solicit input from employee – Does employee have the ksa’s? • Meet and discuss

9. Ongoing Communication • Second stage of the EPMS. • Supervisors should be providing feedback to an employee about their performance. • “No surprises.” • “Check their location.” • “Any speed bumps?” • Unofficial mid-year review. • Observe.

10. Key points with Evaluation Stage – Are we there? • Provides employees feedback on their performance during the year. • Supervisor completes actual performance narratives, may use examples or attach documentation where appropriate. • Rates performance based on the success criteria outlined in the planning stage. • Completes summary and improvement plan. • Begin discussion for next year.

11. Performance Characteristics • Ratings for Performance Characteristics Acceptable - work that meets requirements Unacceptable- work that fails to meet requirements • Performance characteristics are behaviors that an agency wants an employee to exhibit.  Performance characteristics can be tied to a  position, a department, or the entire agency. • Not weighted. • http://media.clemson.edu/humanres/epms/epms_general_perf_char.pdf

12. Group Activity – “Tom and the DOT”

13. Levels of performance • Exceptional – Work that is consistently above the success criteria for the job throughout the rating period. • Successful – Work that meets the success criteria for the job. • Improvement Needed – Work that barely or marginally meets success criteria. • Unsuccessful – Work that fails to meets success criteria.

14. How can I motivate employees? Scenario: Lisa is a new IT manager who has supervisory responsibility for five technicians. The former manager left the position without performing recent performance appraisals on staff or leaving good notes about the process used in the past. Lisa decided to sit down with each employee, discuss performance expectations, and develop a plan for each one. Unfortunately, when she did, she received mixed reactions. Two staff seemed interested in the process and in setting performance standards. However, the remaining three were far less enthusiastic.

15. Top Ways to Make Performance Appraisals More Meaningful • A goal of the review should be to build a relationship between managers and subordinates. • SMART GOALS– especially the Measurable and Attainable attributes – help make managers' feedback more objective and less subjective. • The more closely an individual's goals can be connected to an organization's performance goals, the more significant they become. • Managers should be having far more frequent conversations. • Put employee in the driver’s seat. • Go beyond the form. • References: http://blog.winningworkplaces.org and ww.mncpa.org/publications/footnote/2011-06/meaningful-performance-reviews.aspx

16. Substandard Performance An unsuccessful level of performance means that an employee is not meeting the expectations of the supervisor.  If an employee is performing at this level, a plan should be developed using the substandard performance process prior to the employee receiving a "below" rating in a job duty that significantly impacts performance. http://workgroups.clemson.edu/FIN5337_HR_POLY_PROC_MANUAL/view_document.php?id=119

17. Questions/Discussion Joy Patton 864.656.2726 joyj@clemson.edu http://www.clemson.edu/employment/worklife/epms.html