What is performance management?

Performance management is the ongoing process of setting expectations, providing feedback, and supporting professional growth to align individual contributions with team, unit, department, and university goals. 

Performance management matters for all employees—faculty, staff, officers of administration, graduate employees and student workers—because we all support the UO's strategic goals and its mission. 

Effective performance management:

• Helps employees develop their strengths and address their challenges.
• Increases productivity and efficiency by clarifying expectations.
• Improves employee engagement.
• Builds trust between employee and supervisor.
• Increases departments' and teams' alignment with strategic goals.
• Promotes a culture of positive recognition.

Performance management as a dialogue

Performance management works best as a two-way dialogue between employee and supervisor. The formal performance review is a key milestone in the performance management cycle, but regular feedback and check-ins are essential. 

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The performance management cycle

Performance management is a continuous process of:

• Feedback: establishing expectations and letting people know how well they're doing relative to those expectations. Formal performance reviews should summarize and document the ongoing feedback and dialogue.
• Evaluation: measuring performance against established and transparent expectations.
• Development: providing resources so employees can develop their skills, knowledge, and experience to enhance their performance and meet their professional goals.