Partnership for Performance
Instructions
(Revised - January 2010)
University leadership believes that a sound, cyclical performance management system can lead to
greater job satisfaction, productivity and retention, an enhanced work environment, better people
management, greater communication and consistency, and also positively impacts business
operations. In 2001, after much research, development and testing, the University introduced
Partnership for Performance (PFP) to its employees. The PFP cycle is an annual process that
begins June 1st with setting objectives and concludes each year on May 31st when PFP evaluations
are to be completed, with a less formal mid-cycle review to occur between December and
February. Completed and approved PFP forms must be sent to HR at the end of the cycle, no later
than July 31st. Please take the time to read this instruction sheet.
WHO PARTICIPATES IN PFP
All regular full-time and part-time staff and administrators participate in the PFP performance
management process.
THE FORMS
There are two separate forms, each four pages in length. The Employee PFP Form is used for
all full-time and part-time staff and non-supervisory administrators, and the Leader PFP Form is
used for administrators who are responsible for managing other administrators and/or staff.
PFP consists of four sections: 1) Objectives (60% of overall rating); 2) St. John’s Values at Work
(20% of overall rating); Competencies (20% of overall rating); and 4) The Development Plan.
All of the weightings and ratings within the forms automatically calculate. All comment
sections allow for formatting, spell check and will expand to provide as much space as needed.
The form(s) can be found at: stjohns.edu/about/administrative-offices/human-resources/forms
CYCLE OVERVIEW
At the Beginning of the Cycle
Objectives
Both Objective Setting and Assessment will take place in the same section. Write up to six
objectives for employees or up to eight objectives for leaders, assign a weighting for each
individual objective and discuss with employee. Be sure to write each objective at the “met
expectation” level. In order for the Objectives year-end overall rating to automatically calculate,
you MUST assign a weighting to each objective indicating its importance, even if all are
weighted equally. Tip: You must use the Tab key on your keyboard to advance from the weighting
boxes in the Objectives section and to ensure the weighting calculates accurately; however, you
should use the mouse to click on the next text box manually to avoid creating additional boxes. If
extra boxes should occur, press Ctrl+ z to remove the extra row. Weightings in the Objective
section must total 100%.
St. John’s Values at Work
Review with employee and discuss possible campus-sponsored ways for the employee to
contribute to this section. The section St. John’s Values at Work is incorporated into the
Competency section and, while the section maintains its own section rating, comments for this
section will be written in the Competency comments space at the end of the cycle. Tip: The bullets
in the values section on the Leader form are written from a manager’s perspective while the bullets
in the values section on the Employee form are from an individual contributor’s perspective.
Competencies
Review with employee and communicate your expectations. The competencies place a strong
emphasis on being Student/Customer Centered in an increasingly diverse institution. Tip: The
bullet points under each competency are meant to be general examples of how each competency
might be demonstrated on the job at the “met expectations” level. They are not meant to be
exclusive or to limit the behaviors that might fit into this category.
Development Plan
For each employee, list at least one or two development opportunities for the employee to work on
in the upcoming cycle. You and your employee jointly create a development plan based on:
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Development for growth in the current job
Future development/career interests
Areas for improvement, where the employee is not meeting expectations
Mid-Cycle
Self Assessment – At the mid-cycle, ask each employee to assess him/herself in writing on each
Objective and in the comments section for the St. John’s Values at Work and Competencies.
Mid-Cycle Check-In – Next, you will assess the employee and have a discussion on progress to
date. Renew commitments and make relevant updates to the objectives and development plan for
the remainder of the cycle. Tip: No rating is necessary and nothing is due to HR at this time.
At the End of the Cycle
Self-Assessment
Ask each employee to assess him/herself in writing on each Objective and in the comments section
for the St. John’s Values at Work and Competencies and complete the employee summary located
on the last page of the form. Once the employee completes his or her written comments, you will
then complete the written assessment and add the ratings.
Objectives – 60% of overall rating
Both Objective Setting and Assessment will take place in the same section. Assess how well the
employee achieved the results and write specific examples on how each objective was achieved
throughout the year. Tip: You must use the Tab key on your keyboard to advance from the rating
boxes in the Objectives section in order for the weightings to calculate; however, you should use
the mouse to click on the next text box manually to avoid creating additional boxes. If extra boxes
should occur, press Ctrl+ z to remove the extra row. Weightings in the Objective section must
total 100%.
St. John’s Values at Work – 20% of overall rating
Review how the employee demonstrated the St. John’s Values at Work throughout the year and
assign a rating. Write specific examples of how the employee demonstrated St. John’s Values at
Work into the comments box at the end of the competencies section.
Competencies – 20% of overall rating
Assess how well the employee demonstrated the competencies throughout the year, assign a
rating to each individual competency, and write specific examples for each in the comments
section. The Year End Overall Rating will automatically calculate and the system assumes all
competencies are weighted equally and will calculate accordingly.
The Development Plan
The development plan is not rated separately and comments regarding either extraordinary
progress or failure to accomplish should be included in the comments section and factored into the
rating of the appropriate PFP section.
RATING
Assign a rating to each Objective, The St. John’s Values at Work and each Competency. When
considering a rating, read the definition of each rating and select the one that most closely aligns
with the individual’s performance. The overall Objectives rating will calculate automatically, taking
into account the weighting and rating assigned to each individual objective. The final Competency
rating will automatically calculate once each competency has been assigned a rating. Each overall
section rating will automatically transfer to the Overall Rating on the last page of the form and
calculate the final total.
Tips:
 In order for the Objectives year-end overall rating to automatically calculate, you MUST assign
a weighting to each objective indicating its importance, even if all are weighted equally. The
sum of the weightings must equal 100%. NOTE: Weighting should have been determined
and discussed with the employee at the beginning of the cycle.
 You must press the Tab key on the keyboard after entering each individual rating for the total
to calculate.
 Rounding is set as follows: .05 and above rounds up to the nearest tenth of a point (e.g.,
3.56 will round to 3.6) and .04 and below rounds down (e.g., 3.54 will round to 3.5)
If you have any questions about the PFP process or forms or need assistance with other aspects of
performance management, please contact Human Resources Services at (718) 990-1502.