Staff appraisal templates

RE: Staff appraisal templates

bob lehner — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 17:27:36 GMT

[quote user="Michael Woodhouse"]We have what we call appraisals but they are not the sort of thing you bring a friend or union rep too! To us its a case of sitting down, having a chat over any issues and discuss plans moving forwards - usually CPD or more responsibilities.[/quote]

Absolutely - that's really how I would envisage them - nice cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit. No hassle, no aggro....!

I must have led a very sheltered life .....

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Anthony Todd — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 17:21:50 GMT

[quote user="Braden Collins"]We do annual reviews for all staff, plus multiple reviews during a probationary period.[/quote]

Someone told me that "exit" interviews, when a staffer left, were valuable???

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Michael Woodhouse — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 17:12:08 GMT

We have what we call appraisals but they are not the sort of thing you bring a friend or union rep too! To us its a case of sitting down, having a chat over any issues and discuss plans moving forwards - usually CPD or more responsibilities.

Maybe should, but don't currently write things down.

Its very easy when running a practice day-to-day not to get the opportunity to sit down and see if anyone has any issues, problems etc and look to the future.

When employed I'd have loved such feedback.

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Neil Wheadon — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 13:31:52 GMT

[quote user="Clive Ansell"]I have never had/been subjected too/taken part in/engaged in a staff appraisal, but presumably they are recorded in writing and both parties sign a copy as long as they agree? no?[/quote]

Yes provided a year in advance with various SMART objectives that you are expected to comment on and these are essentially your 'targets for improvement' You then provide evidence for that and that's when the 'game' begins. The appraisal occurs, various to and fro comments and then signed by both parties.

Sounds great doesn't it. The hassle is that your line manager has the whip hand

[quote user="Clive Ansell"]In addition, presumably one can take along a representative if they are worried about bullying or intimidation, such as a friend, a legal advisor, or (dare I say it on such an extreme right wing site) a union representative ?[/quote]

Yes can be done and was done in AHVLA on occasions, however what kind of message is this sending to your line manager? Union Representitives are used in times of known conflict, the hassle is you have no ideal what is actually the agenda for your line manager especially poor ones and in that I agree with Bob they are very useful if done properly, however my experience with vets doing 15 a year was very poor even with training.

There is also a difference between AHVLA and clinical practice. In AHVLA the person doing the appraisal was ALSO being appraised, so at least had an understanding of what the recipient was going through. The person being appraised also theoretically had an outlet to getting things addressed by going up 2 levels in the chain of command, this isn't the case in practice, so in my opinion even more care is needed.

Neil

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Clive Ansell — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 09:34:12 GMT

[quote user="An On MRCVS"]For a bully, the annual appraisal is a perfect opportunity - an extended period, in private so completely deniable, in a position of power over the employee to rip their chosen target apart.[/quote]

I have never had/been subjected too/taken part in/engaged in a staff appraisal, but presumably they are recorded in writing and both parties sign a copy as long as they agree? no?

In addition, presumably one can take along a representative if they are worried about bullying or intimidation, such as a friend, a legal advisor, or (dare I say it on such an extreme right wing site) a union representative ?

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Braden Collins — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 03:32:50 GMT

We do annual reviews for all staff, plus multiple reviews during a probationary period.

All staff are given a comprehensive job description when they start with us, and our review is based on that.

We find during the probabtionary period, having regular reviews helps address any issues before getting to the end of three months and seeing them out the door because they have underperformed. By doing these regular reviews, they know what they are doing well and where imrpovement is needed. This means that the "wrong" staff are identified early and culled early, while the "right" staff can be encouraged and developed. Of course, all this comes with appropriate training and support systems.

For annual reviews, they are pretty straight forward as we tend to address problems as they come up (we have monthly Personal Progress Meetings for all staff), so there are normally no shocks for them, plus we have normally culled unsuitable staff by the end of their probationary period.

We see the reviews as a great opportunity for staff to come to us with their thoughts, dreams and ideas, and certainly wouldn't get rid of them now.

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Neil Wheadon — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 21:18:01 GMT

[quote user="Beats"]"The appraisal interview is one of the most ubiquitous features of life in organisations. It is also one of the most ridiculed. Evidence mounts each year to the effect that most such interviews are poorly managed, fail to improve organisational performance, demoralise employees and subject the managers who administer them to intolerable levels of stress.[/quote]

Spot on

We suffered with these in AHVLA

Observations

1) They were a career in themselves, those that wanted a good appraisal spent months doing little else except prepare for it. I was told by someone that to 'play the game' you gathered evidence 6 months before the appraisal, so you'd E Mail colleagues asking for positive feedback and keep and record any scrap of positives.

2) We were graded 1-4. Someone had to be a grade 4, that was the rule. The joke was 'who's turn is it this year' . One year a very kindly vet was gifted the grade 4, he was so upset he was never the same again, demotivating wasn't the word.

3) The quiet ones who just get on with it are never rewarded. You know the ones, those that stay late, do 3 times the amount of work of the others but don't shout about it and are simply too nice to communicate this in an appraisal. Those that shout about everything, cc their line manager every time they do something are those that get good appraisal reports.

4) I left AHVLA having survived 6 months in the pressure cooker of the files room where I was expected to interpret every single TB test in Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. It had broken 2 VO's before me and that was on top of a 62 mile commute as they wanted me to do it. I got a grade 3 whilst a VI who frankly did very little (I did 80 Disease Report's a year, he did 20, and was bottom of all of us doing them) but played the 'game' got a 1.

They are awful, awful, awful

Neil

RE: Staff appraisal templates

bob lehner — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 21:17:12 GMT

That is truly appalling and I am deeply shocked and feel desparately sorry for you and ashamed that any member of our profession should behave in such a way.

But don't tar all employers with the same brush - there are some good ones out there.

RE: Staff appraisal templates

An On MRCVS — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 21:01:33 GMT

[quote user="bob lehner"]Can't really see how they could possibly do 'serious harm'.[/quote]

That's because you are a reasonable, normal person and cannot comprehend the mindset of a bully. I was badly bullied in my last job by my boss, but I didn't realise that was what was happening, despite having seen him do the same thing to previous vets, because it was such a gradual process. For a bully, the annual appraisal is a perfect opportunity - an extended period, in private so completely deniable, in a position of power over the employee to rip their chosen target apart. Most vets are motivated by wanting to do their best - and this is a powerful weapon to use, especially when it is part of a sustained campaign to make the employee question their ability, their memory and their sanity, a bit like coercive control within a relationship. Colleagues, clients and other vets told me I was a good vet, I had on more than one occasion kept his practice going virtually single handed, working 80-90 hours a week because of known staffing issues he had failed to address before his holidays - yet I was blamed for the fact that the problems happened. Every tiny error and omission from the previous 12months would be thrown back at me, but any positive things were slapped down, and the rules and goal posts kept moving. Prior to the appraisal I would be physically shaking and after one appraisal found myself driving home desperately looking for a tree to crash the car into because I did not want to continue living. I have now become a locum, purely and simply because I will NEVER again put myself in the position where I am an employee and vulnerable to the same things happening again. The stress and severe depression I'd developed working there lifted the day I handed in my notice. It was never stress at being a vet - it was the workplace pure and simple, but very difficult to see when you are in it.

RE: Staff appraisal templates

bob lehner — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 12:06:01 GMT

[quote user="Beats"]the evidence suggested that they did more harm than good on average for the average employee (yes, there's those that benefit, but they are outweighed by those that are seriously harmed). [/quote]

Well, I would quite agree that they need to be done appropriately and with the right attitude on both sides. Can't really see how they could possibly do 'serious harm'. In a giant multi-employee corporation they may well be seen as a tedious paper exercise - but in a small to medium sized business, such as the average veterinary practice, I remain convinced that they can be very worthwhile and appreciated by the staff.

I think the appraisal must be a two-way dialogue - not just an interrogation of the employee. Both parties should feel that they can speak frankly in a private and confidential one-on-one situation.

I'm quite sure many employees welcome this (particular those at the lower end of the food chain). It can make them feel that the employer actually has an interest in their career and what they think. It is very easy for junior staff in particular to feel isolated and unappreciated.

Most importantly, anything agreed or promised must be carried through - otherwise appraisals will certainly be seen as a worthless paper exercise.

(Allowing three days per appraisal is nonsense).

p.s. This from the BVA website:

'Personal development reviews, often referred to as appraisals, are an excellent management tool.

Done well they can lead to happy, well-trained, motivated staff and a positive team attitude, which is good for you, your clients and your business. However, done badly they can be more damaging than not carrying out the review in the first place.'

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Hannah Wynne Richards — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 08:08:28 GMT

An appraisal can only be as good as the person doing the appraisal.

Wynne

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Beats — Tue, 04 Oct 2016 23:32:50 GMT

[quote user="bob lehner"]Staff appraisals, if done properly, are extremely valuable for both employers and employees.[/quote]

Where is the evidence for this? A decade ago when I was doing CertAVP module and was obliged to write on this trendy topic it appeared that the evidence suggested that they did more harm than good on average for the average employee (yes, there's those that benefit, but they are outweighed by those that are seriously harmed). The repeated failures of staff appraisals to actually be benficial rather than detrimental appear to be resiliently met with the belief that their failing merely indicates a need for improvement in the appraisal system, more time, more training in appraising, more elaborate appraisal systems etc without any evidence that any of these things will actually fix the fundamental problems and yield any useful benefit.

[quote user="bob lehner"]Yes, they can be time-consuming in a big practice[/quote]

A decade ago it was suggested to me that 3 days per employee was a necessary amount of total time to be dedicating to the task to prevent failure. Can I suggest that 3 days additional holiday / study leave termed "appraisal days" would be massively more motivating to the average employee than the average appaisal system in operation in a veterinary clinic (particularly ones that are mandated by some outside body).

I think requiring staff appraisals is box-ticking at its worst. Even if I thought there was a grain of truth that "staff appraisals" were a positive task to be encouraged (I don't), I would at least have to believe that this could only be achieved where they were done willingly by converts. Mandating someone to run a staff appraisal scheme cannot be anything other than box-ticking bureaucracy. If you genuinely believe that folks will try them and find them so useful that they become converts, then a fair approach would be to simply have to tick a box that says I have tried running a staff appraisal scheme and approached it in good faith in the last 5 years rather than force people to do it annually (if that is indeed what is rqeuired, I'm not familiar with PSS requirements).

To quote from one of the CertAVP recommended readings the RVC provided at the time, a Professor in Leadership and Organisational Sudies at University of London has this to say:

"The appraisal interview is one of the most ubiquitous features of life in organisations. It is also one of the most ridiculed. Evidence mounts each year to the effect that most such interviews are poorly managed, fail to improve organisational performance, demoralise employees and subject the managers who administer them to intolerable levels of stress. No wonder that one researcher, unkindly but accurately, has described them as ‘the annual fiasco’ (Pickett, 2003,p.237). It is typical of the data that a conference of human resources professionals found over 90% of those present declaring that, if given the chance, they would modify, revise or even eliminate the performance appraisal system currently used in their organisations (HR Focus, 2000). Thus, appraisal interviews are governed by some seemingly impregnable assumptions that research nevertheless suggests may be invalid – e.g. that organisations are rational entities, administrative systems are highly reliable, and most people can be trained to be unbiased and candid in their assessments of others (McCauley, 1997). Some have even argued that traditional appraisals are so inherently dysfunctional that they need to be abolished altogether (e.g. Coens and Jenkins, 2000). Their ongoing popularity represents another instance of hope triumphing over experience."

...

"When a certain kind of ship sinks in fair winds or foul it is timely to question the integrity of its basic design. In terms of appraisal interviews, the insights derived from research in recent decades has been negligible and the improvements in practice insignificant. As two researchers in the area have commented, ‘After decades of research, where is the performance appraisal process today? Have the tools and the processes advanced to the point of accurately and effectively measuring the performance of employees? The answer is “probably not.” "

sourced today from: https://openair.rgu.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/10059/197/Appraisal%20chapter.pdf;sequence=1

RE: Staff appraisal templates

bob lehner — Tue, 04 Oct 2016 14:25:58 GMT

[quote user="Hannah Wynne Richards"]

Typical Royal College box ticking exercise

Wynne

[/quote]

I would totally disagree with this.

Staff appraisals, if done properly, are extremely valuable for both employers and employees.

Yes, they can be time-consuming in a big practice (and possibly less necessary in the one vet-one VN type practice), but virtually everyone I have spoken to on the subject (and that is rather a lot!) say they are worthwhile and particularly appreciated by the staff, who have a rare opportunity to have a one-on-one confidential discussion about their job and career with someone senior in the practice.

In the daily hurly-burly of everyday practice life people seldom get an opportunity to discuss things in this way unless a special time is set aside to do so.

It's also an ideal opportunity to discuss the employees' professional development plans and formulate cpd for the practice team.

With regard to a template - I don't know of any which are particularly suitable for veterinary practice - make up your own - and ask the staff to contribute their own ideas on what they would like to discuss - you may be surprised!

And most importantly - review the appraisals later and make sure what has been agreed/promised actually happens!

RE: Staff appraisal templates

Hannah Wynne Richards — Tue, 04 Oct 2016 09:39:33 GMT

Typical Royal College box ticking exercise

Wynne