Appraising Employee Performance. Introduction. David Hoak, M.D. Medical Laboratory Director InCyte Pathology

Transcription

1 Appraising Employee Performance Your Faculty David Hoak, M.D. Medical Laboratory Director InCyte Pathology Acknowledgements Gary Gemar, MS,MT(ASCP) Kelcey Hendrickson, CGSp(ASCP) cm,hemsp(ascp) cm,mlt(ascp) cm Jean Marie Dillon, MA, CFPʀ VP Human Resources & Development American Society for Clinical Pathology For their contributions Introduction Motivating and managing the work of others in pursuit of organizational goals clearly communicating your expectations coaching individuals to improve skills and performance evaluating performance through an annual or semi-annual appraisal A positive experience requires a basic understanding of the performance appraisal process as well communicating with and preparing your employees. 1

2 Performance Development Cycle INTRODUCTION Appraise Determine common lab performance requirements, prepare your staff for the appraisal process, and conduct the appraisal using best practices while avoiding bias. Performance Appraisals INTRODUCTION Why do them? Build relationships with team Motivate team members to succeed Maintain or improve current performance Impact future performance Document behavior Opportunity for staff to give feedback 2

3 Performance Appraisals INTRODUCTION How do supervisors feel about them? I am somewhat nervous when conducting employee performance appraisals There is not enough time or information to do a good review The appraisal is my chance to share with them my praise or criticism that I have kept track of in my head I prepare for performance appraisals shortly before they are due My reviews are subjective and not based on any concrete data Performance Appraisals INTRODUCTION How do personnel feel about them? Each supervisor/manager rates his/her staff differently I feel a rating of Satisfactory or Meets Expectations is like getting a C grade I feel like I am only rated on what has recently happened I am fearful that there will be surprises and I will be caught off guard 3

4 Learning Objectives INTRODUCTION Upon completing this course you will be able to: Identify common Lab performance appraisal requirements Describe the performance appraisal life cycle Discuss how you and your employees can prepare for the performance appraisal Identify the components of a typical Lab performance assessment form Discuss how to avoid perceptual distortions and errors when conducting assessment Conduct a performance appraisal using best practices Scenario INTRODUCTION Matt works in a busy anatomic pathology laboratory. He is a seasoned cytotechnologist with 8 years of experience. His efficiency is near the top of the department and his abnormal rate is in the expected range. Matt s supervisor, Jim, would like him to work on the following: improve his ability to work as a team player mentor newer techs to be more efficient without losing quality communicate more effectively with his team in a positive manner 4

5 Scenario PREPARATION Thanks! I have been working hard to make sure that cases are done in an efficient manner without sacrificing quality. I just don t see how I have the time to train new people. Matt, I would like to thank you for your significant contribution to the efficiency of the department. Your hard work has kept the department above it s goal for the daily turn-around-time. Now we need to focus on you passing on your great work habits to the newer members of our lab. Scenario INTRODUCTION That makes sense I guess, but, I really don t feel prepared. I know we have a new staff member starting next week. Do you have any suggestions to prepare me for working with her? I know we haven t discussed this before, but, I really feel like this is an area you need to work on. Your communication skills and relationship with your team are important to ensuring that your team can continue to meet our TAT requirements. 5

6 Preparing for Performance Appraisals PREPARATION When regular feedback is not established Performance appraisal process becomes stressful for everyone Employees are unsure of their supervisors expectations or their progress Reviews become one sided and employees do not feel the supervisor has their best interest in mind Benefits of Regular Feedback PREPARATION Why regular meetings are important? Expectations are set way in advance and discussed regularly; they become more clearly established Performance measures are more clearly communicated Employees feel more confident knowing their supervisors are interested in their progress Supervisors feel more confident about progress towards their overall goals 6

7 Benefits of Regular Feedback PREPARATION Discussions about issues should take place prior to the performance appraisal process. Schedule regular check-ins with employees. Regular feedback results in Better performance appraisal experience Issues are addressed sooner rather than later Supervisors and employees can voice concerns and ask questions Employees become more comfortable meeting with the supervisor Benefits of Regular Feedback PREPARATION Coaching sessions give the supervisor smaller snapshots of the employees performance. It also provides the employee with a sense of security. Regular feedback results in Supervisors are more informed about employee performance when preparing for performance appraisal Employees feel more secure going into the performance appraisal because they know what to expect Employee adjusts performance based on consistent reminders of expectations Employees have more success making smaller adjustments rather than trying to make big moves 7

8 Performance Appraisal Components PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS Based on prior expectations Agree on future goals that are S.M.A.R.T. Summarize and validate prior conversations Performance Appraisals Specify ways to improve performance Highlight achievements Discuss areas for improvement Effective Appraisals PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS Performance Appraisals Typically completed twice per year for new employees and annually there after Examine employee performance over a 6 month and 1 year cycle Supervisor and employee meet in person and event is documented 60-minute conversation Supervisor and employee typically sign and p p y yp y g date the form 8

9 Effective Appraisals PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS Performance Appraisals Document is placed in the personnel file Provide a copy to team member Justifiable should a demotion or termination be challenged Liabilities for bad documentation exist Best Practices PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS You should: Remind your team of expectations by providing an agreement about specific measures and goals Generate content including work samples, notes and recollections of performance for the entire year Formulate a tentative appraisal Set it aside and review it a day prior to the performance appraisal 9

10 Best Practices DOCUMENTATION You should: Be prepared to have a dialog with your employees about their performance Document your ratings when employees have performed at a Superior or More than Satisfactory level Document specific areas where improvement is needed or unsatisfactory Best Practices DOCUMENTATION Expectations of the Employee Ask employees to write a tentative selfappraisal that includes specifics about performance List areas of accomplishments including Superior or More than Satisfactory ratings with examples List areas for improvement with examples 10

11 Documentation Major Task Accomplishment Impact Obstacles Accurately perform microscopic screening to diagnose gynecological and non-gynecological specimens Screen 72 slides/day in an Surpassed minimum 8 hour shift workload requirements by 5% Difficult cases could slow down screening productivity Participate in Quality Assurance Programs (GYN) 98% accuracy for all diagnoses every 6 months (Non-GYN) 94% accuracy for all specimen types every 6 months Reduced number of false negative slides by 1% from previous 6 months Variation in diagnosis by multiple reviewers Trains other Trains new Reduced time spent Cytotechnologist does not Cytotechnologists on entering patient information and diagnosis into computer system Cytotechnologists to successfully enter data and microscopic descriptions with an accuracy rate of 99.95% at a rate of 9/hour in 6 months entering information in computer system by 10% from pervious 6 months use the macroscopic diagnostic short cut descriptions appropriately to enter diagnoses Best Practices DOCUMENTATION Expectations of the Employee Provide employees with a blank evaluation form Employees are more prepared p to discuss specifics creating a more meaningful experience Helps fill in details needed for a score that is above or below in the prior appraisal 11

12 Multiple Choice PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS Scenario Mary has her annual evaluation with several of her team members in the next month. The best way to prepare for it is: a. Wait until the last minute and write the evaluations up an hour before they are scheduled. b. Have each employee fill out his or her own evaluation and just sign off on it. c. Carefully begin gather data on each employees performance in the last yearincluding expectations on performance and a list of issues that she have been meaning to discuss with them. d. Pull out data from her quarterly coaching sessions to refresh herself on issues that she has discussed with them in the past. Click HERE to the 4 Keys Menu Scenario MEASURING PERFORMANCE I gave you a 4 out of 5 in the category of quality assurance. I am pleased with your initial progress in reducing your team s errors over the last two quarters, but feel there is room for further improvement. Thanks Jim. The checklists we have implemented have helped reduce the error rates by 5%. It sounds like you have some additional ideas to decrease the error rates further, can we discuss your ideas? 12

13 Scenario MEASURING PERFORMANCE I been looking at specimen tracking software and if we implement the product, I believe we can reduce the error rate to less that 1% for all samples processed. I want you to work with the vendor, IT staff and me to determine if we can achieve this reduced error rate. That sounds like a S.M.A.R.T. goal and an opportunity for me to get more experience working with vendors and IT. We can add that to my list of outcomes for the next 6 months. Performance Measures MEASURING PERFORMANCE Typical performance measures include diagnostic ability pathology and business knowledge performance of job duties productivity adaptability judgment problem-solving customer service accountability/ethics cross-cultural sensitivity professional development 13

14 Performance Measures MEASURING PERFORMANCE Professionalism follows standards of conduct safety and compliance work ethic respects diversity and authority attendance End of period Outcomes accomplishments impacts cost or time savings degree of customer satisfaction Manner of performance timeliness quantity of work quality of work reliability positive relationships with coworkers Rating Performance MEASURING PERFORMANCE Job Duties Ability to perform all of the duties expected measured against a data-driven standard Professionalism Attendance to meetings Provide leadership Employee Responsibilities Safety, Attendance, Compliance, Continuing Education 14

15 Rating Performance MEASURING PERFORMANCE Typical Rating Scale 5. Superior = Work performance is consistently superior to standards for the job 4. More than Satisfactory = Work performance is consistently above the standard performance for the position 3. Satisfactory = Meets standards 2. Improvement Needed = Does not consistently meet standard 1. Unsatisfactory = Inadequate and inferior to standards of performance Rating Performance MEASURING PERFORMANCE If this is Satisfactory What is Superior or More Then Satisfactory? In all categories, where has the employee gone above and beyond his or her job description? Efficiency/Productivity Where are they compared to the lab standard? This should be hard data collected over time, not comparisons to other employees. Work with the employee to document specific instances 15

16 Measuring Performance LEARNING ACTIVITY Mark is Histology technologist who has worked a private clinic for 3 years as a Histology technician but only 1 year as an technologist. Ellen has supervised Mark for 9 months after he switched from a evening schedule to a day schedule. She has met with Mark quarterly to discuss his performance on the job. Ellen reviews her notes of his performance over the last nine months. Select the next to view notes about John s performance. Measuring Performance LEARNING ACTIVITY What overall in-progress rating should Ellen provide Mark? Mark is a solid performer. He is always on time to work and dresses in a professional manner. He consistently meets performance expectations; and has surpassed expectations a couple of times when performing diagnostic tests and procedures. His work can be described as good quality in all significant areas of responsibility. He has the neatest handwriting of any of the staff. All his reports and documentation are easy to read. He is supportive and responsive to customers; has applied basic C.A.R.E. standards. His overall performance is in line with his peer group with the exception of his neat handwriting. He completed one formal training course this year on Animal safety. Explain your answer <Click here to enter your response> Submit 16

17 Measuring Performance LEARNING ACTIVITY Jane is a Cytology Technologist. Jane as worked at the hospital for 1 year. Martin hired Jane and have supervised her for all 12 months. He has met with Jane quarterly to discuss her performance on the job. Select the next button to view notes about Jane s performance. Measuring Performance LEARNING ACTIVITY Jane started out somewhat slower then her peers but mastered her job skills quickly (3-4 months). She has learned to implement the more technical procedures (scanning slides with efficiency, i using the automatic scanners) and doesn t complain when she has to pick up extra cases. Jane comes to work generally on time, however, she has been late to work 6-times due to the fact one or more of her three kids had the flu. Her work can be described as consistently excellent quality in all significant areas of responsibility. She is supportive and responsive to requests from her Supervisor (she has taken on many data entry projects for the department). She has enthusiastically applied basic C.A.R.E. standards. She is one of the better performers on her peer team. She has participated in on-the-job training as needed and appears to have a natural talent for learning things quickly. What overall in-progress rating should Martin provide Jane? Why? <Click here to enter your response> Submit 17

18 Scenario Why are you always comparing me to someone else? I work really hard and you don t appreciate me. Brian does less work than me and you never talk to him. COMMON ERRORS Matt, you are a great worker, but I really wish you could be as efficient at responding to department inquiries as Mary is. She gets out twice the amount of work that you do in the same amount of time. Common Errors Stereotyping Contrast Effect First Impression Error Select each button on the diagram to review a description and questions to assess potential performance gaps in each area. Recency Effect Common Appraisal Errors Halo/Horns Effect Attribution Bias Similar-tome Effect Negative and Positive Skew Central tendency 18

19 Contrast Effect COMMON ERRORS Tendency to evaluate an employee in comparison with other employees rather than against the standards/ performance expectations of the position. Click HERE to return to previous menu First Impressions COMMON ERRORS Tendency to make an initial positive or negative judgment of an employee and allow that first impression to color or distort later information Click HERE to return to previous menu 19

20 Horn or Halo Effect COMMON ERRORS Inappropriate generalizations from one aspect of an individual s performance to all areas of that person s performance Click HERE to return to previous menu Similar to Me Effect COMMON ERRORS Tendency of managers to rate people who resemble themselves more highly than they rate others. Click HERE to return to previous menu 20

21 Central Tendency COMMON ERRORS The inclination to rate people in the middle of the scale even when their performance clearly warrants a substantially higher or lower rating. Click HERE to return to previous menu Negative and Positive Skew COMMON ERRORS The opposite of central tendency, this is the rating of all individuals as higher or lower than their performance actually warrants. Click HERE to return to previous menu 21

22 Attribution Bias COMMON ERRORS The tendency to attribute performance failing to factors under the control of the individual and performance successes to external causes. Click HERE to return to previous menu Recency Effect COMMON ERRORS The tendency of minor recent events to have more influence on the performance rating than major events of many months ago. Click HERE to return to previous menu 22

23 Stereotyping COMMON ERRORS The tendency to generalize across groups and ignore individual differences. Click HERE to return to previous menu Multiple Choice COMMON ERRORS Scenario It is time for June s annual evaluation. Ellen knows in this past year June has gone through some tough times- a divorce and both of her parents passed away. Ellen just went through a similar situation, so she should: a. Give her a break. Ellen knows her performance has been suffering but she know what she is going through b. Evaluate her on the same data scale that she evaluates everyone else on c. Evaluate her on the data scale as she evaluates everyone else on and offer support and mentorship to get through it d. Put off her evaluation until her feels better Click HERE to the 4 Keys Menu 23

24 Best Practices MEETING WITH THE EMPLOYEE Say Thanks Relax Explain Thank employees for their service and contribution to the team The performance review is an opportunity to develop their potential Exchange assessments. Provide concrete examples of performance and specific documentation of behaviors. Cooperate Be open to differences of opinion and reconcile differences where possible Best Practices MEETING WITH THE EMPLOYEE Create a Performance Plan Listen Identify and plan opportunities for future development Give employees a chance to determine ways they can improve and specific measures Agree and Document Document your agreement and allow for feedback 24

25 Multiple Choice MEETING WITH THE EMPLOYEE Scenario Amy has left the her supervisor Julie s office in tears following her annual review. She thinks she was unfairly rated. She was never made aware of many things that were brought up as performance issues, nor was she given the chance to address them. What should Julie do? a. Sign off and turn in the review; she will get over it. b. Do not change anything on her review, but, give her a few days to think about it and reschedule a time to talk more. c. Let her write her own review. Julie brought up many issues that she should have talked to her about before but never had the chance until now. d. Review the evaluation together, being open to possible changes if merited by documentation. Click HERE to the 4 Keys Menu CONCLUSION Don't lower your expectations to meet your performance. Raise your level of performance to meet your expectations. Expect the best of yourself, and then do what is necessary to make it a reality. - Ralph Marston¹ 25

26 Reference 1 Marston R. Brainy Quote web site. Accessed May 15, Completion Requirements CONCLUSION You have successful completed the online learning course: Appraising Employee Performance Credit is awarded upon successful completion of the post-test. Access the post-test by exiting the course and returning to the course content page. Click the link Post-Test to take the exam. You must score 80% in three attempts for credit to be awarded. Interested in applying these best practices on the job? You can download LMU Educational Tools and Resources from your Learning Plan in LMU. Please join the discussion in the Lab Management University online communities of practice. The more you participate and share, the more everyone can benefit including you and your team. 26