UC Encourages Engaging Staff Through Performance Management
Members of the UCSF community are all currently engaged in significant efforts toward achieving operational excellence and the variety of change initiatives that will ultimately lead to improved support for the University's strategic and business objectives.
While the process of implementing these initiatives can be challenging, it is even more critical now that managers and supervisors create a supportive work environment and continue to use the programs and follow the processes currently in place that are designed to help staff clearly understand their work expectations and support their success in achieving those expectations.
Upon her arrival to UCSF in August 2009, Chancellor Susan Desmond-Hellmann, MD, MPH, outlined her top five priorities including people – specifically fostering an environment that helps faculty, staff, students and trainees reach their full potential.
"We see a lot of success here," she said. "And there are good reasons for that. When goals are clear and achievement is recognized, people flourish.
"None of the other four priorities – patient care, discovery, education and business – I’ve embraced can amount to much unless we continue to foster a supportive and diverse environment where we recruit and retain the very best people – from Nobel Prize-winning scientists to the person cleaning the operating room, making sure it’s sterile for the next patient."
Engaging Staff
An effective performance management process is proven to be an important tool in engaging and supporting staff. Each member of the UCSF community expects and deserves an annual performance appraisal.
At UCSF, ongoing performance feedback, coaching, recognition and development should be baseline activities that all staff should expect to receive from their managers and supervisors. Research has shown that supervisors who set clear expectations, providing feedback and rewards, and developing their teams, have employees who are more engaged and productive. For more information on effective management, and how to measure and develop in these areas, see UCSF Great Manager.
Good performance management is much more than documenting an annual performance rating for employees. Effective performance management is an ongoing process of communication between a supervisor and an employee that occurs throughout the year, culminating in formal feedback and evaluation of an employee’s performance level for that year, as well as documented goals and expectations for the next evaluation period.
At UC, performance management is deemed to be so important to organizational success that it is set out as a clear expectation in the UC systemwide policy. Per Policy 23, Performance Management, the performance of each employee shall be appraised at least annually in writing by the employee's immediate supervisor. In addition to the policy, a local guideline was developed that corresponds to Policy 23 which provides enhanced direction and guidance regarding this process.
In conjunction with the UC Office of the President, UCSF is interested in ensuring that performance evaluations are conducted in a timely and regular manner in accordance with policy.
UCSF is currently involved in discussions of the development of a uniform system of processes and tools to ensure that every employee across the system has the opportunity to benefit from a well-defined and standardized process.
While these efforts take shape, it is an expectation that all UCSF managers and supervisors ensure that they use the current campus performance management tools to fully comply with the University's performance management policy. Periodic audits will be conducted to ensure annual performance evaluations are completed and on file for every employee.
Questions or comments regarding the performance management process can be directed to your department assigned Labor and Employee Relations Analyst.