This guide contains information, timelines,
and other resources to help University
leaders assist their employees with the
new Performance Management System
and the Goal-Setting Process for 2015.
Supervisor’s
Guide to
Goal-Setting
Helping your employees set
SMART Goals
Human Resources Department
Eastern Kentucky University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and educational institution and does not discriminate on the
basis of age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, national origin or Vietnam era or other veteran status, in the admission to,
or participation in, any educational program or activity which it conducts, or in any employment policy or practice. Any complaint arising by
reason of alleged discrimination should be directed to the Office of Equity and Inclusion, Eastern Kentucky University,
Rice Building, 224 Summit Street, Richmond, Kentucky 40475-3102, (859) 622-8020 (V/TDD), or the Director of the Office for Civil Rights, U.S.
Department of Education, Philadelphia, PA.
Introduction
Supervisors,
Human Resources welcomes you to this supervisor’s forum and thanks you for taking the time out of your busy
schedules to spend an hour with us today. The Human Resources Department, along with other areas on campus,
have been working for many months now to develop a more efficient process for delivering employee
performance management. We are excited to begin the implementation of this new evaluation process. So… why
are we doing this now?
For several years now you have been completing this process via a paper system and, yes, we heard you when you
voiced your frustrations. We understand how feedback is an integral part of the employment process and how it is
crucial to informing your employees on (not only) how they are performing their jobs, but also provides them the
direction for meeting and surpassing the expectations of those jobs. We are also responsible for maintaining our
SAACS accreditation and one of the requirements is to have a Performance Management Program. We were also
charged by President Benson to develop and implement a merit pay program and any such program must have an
effective way of documenting the performance of our staff.
After a month of meeting with several performance management vendors we reached a unanimous decision and
purchased a system from a company called Halogen. This system contains the tools and resources to assist us in
transitioning from our paper based system to a more effective, convenient, and efficient electronic system.
Halogen includes many features that allow supervisors and employees to monitor performance, reference their
goals, provide feedback, and update their status on a consistent and continual basis. Over the last couple of
months Human Resources has been working with pilot groups which is made up of many of your fellow employees.
These pilot groups have been using the system and providing us with feedback so that we can provide the campus
with a system that will not only meet the goals mentioned above, but also be received positively from the campus
community.
These supervisory forums precede a series of campus-wide announcements, invitations and trainings that will go
out to the entire staff to begin phase one of the performance management process; Goal-Setting. We are
committed to providing ample opportunities for the staff to ask questions and maintain an open dialogue about
this process. You, as a supervisor, will be one of your employee’s primary resources. This guide is intended to help
you introduce the goal setting process to your employees.
At the session today we will take you through the implementation timeline, give you an overview of “What is a
goal”, and provide you with a foundation for your role as supervisor. You are encouraged to ask questions during
the session, and share any insights you may have, challenges that you foresee, and/or make any helpful
suggestions. This will be a big transition and is an important initiative and your active participation is key to its
success. When employee performance is managed correctly, the benefits can have a huge impact on your
department’s productivity and the university’s overall success. Human Resources looks forward to working with
you throughout this process.
Thank you,
Human Resources
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Performance Management Annual Cycle
Employee
Set Goals
Complete
Performance
Review
Manager &
Employee
finalize goals
Perform Job
Functions
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General Planning and Implementation Considerations
December 2014



A campus-wide email goes out to all full-time, benefitted employees that includes information
about the upcoming goal-setting process. Employees will likely approach their supervisors with
questions after receiving this email.
Presentations offered for employees on “How to determine your goals”. These are voluntary
presentations that focus on general goal-setting concepts, definitions, and ways to
approach/think about what constitutes a goal vs. a general job expectation. Supervisors should
encourage employees who are having difficulty distinguishing what their goals might be to
attend.
Presentations/help sessions available for Supervisors (only) on “How to determine goals”. This
might be helpful for newer supervisors who haven’t had a lot of experience in managing
employees, who haven’t assisted others in setting goals, or for supervisors who haven’t
addressed job expectations with their employees in some time.
January 2015


Campus-wide email to all full-time, benefitted employees prompting them to begin entering
their goals. Information will include an introduction to the Halogen system, login directions, and
instructions/deadlines for goal setting. Attachments will include a step-by-step visual aid
detailing the goal-setting process with screen shots of the system, some general goal-setting
help sheets (how to set a SMART goal, etc.), and a list of times and locations that HR Staff will be
available for trainings on how to use the system/input their goals.
Human Resources will offer trainings designed to show employees how to input their goals into
the system.
February 2015

Supervisors and Employees should meet, face-to-face, to discuss the process and the goals that
they have set. Post- meeting, both the employee and the supervisor will login to the system to
“sign-off” on the finalized goals.
March- June 2015


Employees will perform their job and work towards attaining the goals that they have set.
Human Resources will offer training sessions for supervisors on how to evaluate their
employees.
July 2015

Employee evaluations will begin. Supervisors will review their employee’s goals and the
progress made and conduct a performance evaluation. Again, supervisors will sit down with
each of their employees to discuss their goals.
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Timeline
Goal-Setting Timeline and Key Events
Date
Event
Comments
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
Campus-wide Email to all Full Time Employees
Introduces new process and invites employees to begin
considering their goals
Monday, December 8, 2014
Supervisor Session Offered on Goal-Setting
Supervisor-specific training to assist with determining goals
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Employee Session Offered on Goal-Setting
Focuses on helping employees consider their goals
Wednesday, December 10, 2014 Employee Session Offered on Goal-Setting
Focuses on helping employees consider their goals
Thursday,December 11, 2014
Employee Session Offered on Goal-Setting
Focuses on helping employees consider their goals
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Employee Session Offered on Goal-Setting
Focuses on helping employees consider their goals
Wednesday, December 17, 2014 Final Session Offered for Supervisors on Goal Setting Supervisor-specific training to assist with determining goals
Monday, January 5, 2015
Online system available for goal-entry
The system will be "opened" so employees may begin entering
goals. An email with a tutorial will be sent out.
1/8/2015 thorugh 1/30/2015
Systems-trainings Offered
Trainings on how to use the system, for those who need it
(supervisors and employees). Dates and Locations TBD
Friday, February 6, 20145
Deadline for goal-setting
All employees must have their goals entered into the system
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Deadline for Supervisor/Employee Meeting
Supervisors should have met with all of their employees, faceto-face, by this date and discussed finalized goals
Monday, March 2, 2015
Goal-Setting Process is complete
Employees should have completed the final sign-off
3/2/2015 -6/30/2015
Employee performs their job
Employee should be attempting to meet their goals
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
End of goal-setting/review period
Employees should have completed/met their goals
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Beginning of evaluation period for supervisors
Supervisors will be offered additional trainings on how to
evaluate their employees.
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Guidelines for Setting SMART Goals
Setting mutually agreeable performance goals with employees allows you and the employee to share
hopes and ideas for the future. Setting goals annually will lead to higher levels of performance and more
motivated employees. The purpose of setting goals is to give employees targets on which to focus.
Your employees will most likely ask you how many goals they need to write. The number of goals is not
nearly as important as their quality. Three or four well thought out, specific goals that will help set
expectations for employees and help them reach their fullest potential should be what you are
targeting. If there are groups of employees you supervise in the same job group, doing the same
functions, they can have a shared goal that is set by you, their manager.
Goals are meant to stretch oneself as an employee. A goal is not simply to show up to work on time. This
is an expectation of everyone in their job. Strong goals have specific attributes that will be discussed
further.
Writing Effective Goals
What makes a good goal statement? Using the “SMART” acronym will help you form a goal:
S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Attainable
R – Realistic
T – Time-Oriented
1. Specific – write a concise statement of the goal that explains what needs to be accomplished
and when – the specific results or outcomes expected.
2. Measureable – include in the specific goal statement the measurements to be used to
determine that the results or outcomes have been achieved. Measurements are not necessarily
numeric in nature.
3. Attainable – the expected results or outcomes must be within the authority, skill, and
knowledge level of the employee, and the resources needed to achieve the goal must be
available to the employee.
4. Realistic – a goal must represent an objective toward which the employee is both willing and
able to work.
5. Time-Oriented – deadlines for achieving expected results and outcomes should be set, not leftopen ended.
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In other words, the goals you and your employee write should answer these questions:



WHAT specifically do you want to improve or accomplish?
By HOW MANY, HOW MUCH, or TO WHAT EXTENT?
By WHEN?
Example Goals:
Needs Clarification and Editing:
Title: Clean desk and work area
Finish projects on my desk, so I can file papers away and not look so cluttered
Better:
Title: Enhance personal organization, professional image, and strategic impact.
• Earn certification in my field of study by May 31, 2015.
• Clean desk & work area by finishing projects on my desk by June 30, 2015, so I can file
papers away and not look so cluttered.
• Polish professional image and communications through coaching & practicing on written
communications.
• Seek opportunities for public presentations and practice with high-level audiences
(ongoing).
Needs Clarification & Editing:
Title: Customer Service
• Greet people as they come into the office and be friendlier.
Better:
Title: Improve Customer Service
• Achieve and maintain an average student service rating of at least 4.0 (out of a possible 5.0)
on our annual survey by June 30, 2015.
Needs Clarification & Editing:
Title: Office Supplies
• Order office supplies on time.
Better:
Title: Improve Inventory Order Process and Costs
• Check supply inventory bi-weekly and re-order as needed to avoid shortages starting
February 2015.
• Develop inventory spreadsheet to track orders and costs to reduce waste by 2% by June 30,
2015.
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The Role of the Supervisor
The role of the supervisor in this process multi-faceted and critical. As a manager and potential mentor,
you should serve as a knowledgeable resource to your employees. You should be open and
approachable when they have questions and take the time to address their questions. Most often, they
will be seeking guidance from the person that they feel has the most influence on their reputation as a
good-employee, their job security, or their promotional potential. They likely view you as the person
that has the most authority to determine what role they themselves will serve within University, and
when they come to you seeking guidance or direction, your response will send a strong message.
Finding, or scheduling, a dedicated amount of time to spend with them, if that is what they need, is
something you should consider seriously.
Your attitude and approach to this process will most likely set the tone and dictate the kind of attitude
that they will have towards the process. Taking the time to devote your attention to setting
expectations for employees can be challenging but is a necessary and rewarding function of being in a
supervisory position. Your employees should know what you expect of them and should be able to
reiterate the standards that are set within your area. You might provide them with some examples of
goals that help capture the vision that you have for your area, or you might reflect on ideas and identify
things that you would have liked to accomplish within your area that were difficult to achieve. It is the
role of the supervisor to provide (and subsequently promote) the vision for your area and the direction
that you would like your department to be going towards. When employees know what is expected of
them, and how those expectations will help the department achieve its objectives, their performance is
reflective of the shared understanding and strong leadership that they experience while on the job.
Supervisor Responsibilities
Before you can accurately evaluate someone on the job that they are doing, you should know what the
job entails. If you don’t already have a strong understanding of their position, you should first get
familiar with their job. You might review their job description or have a conversation about how their
job has changed or evolved. You could observe them doing the work that they do, and ask questions.
It is the responsibility of the supervisor to set the expectations for performance. Oftentimes, people
assume that everyone is on the same page, or overlook differences in personality and work-style that
can have an impact on job performance. Within your area, there should be some general work
expectations that are shared among all your employees, and there should also be job-specific
expectations for the variety of titles that you might supervise.
When you are talking with your employees, it is important to give HONEST, and ACTIONABLE feedback.
The approach one might take can be variable, but being direct and factual about performance should
not be overlooked. If you have an employee whose performance is consistently lower than par, it is
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your responsibility to address that. Consider whether or not you’ve set forth a standard or expectation,
and if not, do so. If you HAVE been clear about performance expectations, you should be honest with
the employee if they are not meeting them. The dialogue that you have might reveal something that
could be an easy resolution to the problem, but you won’t discover that until you have the conversation.
Supervisors are responsible for communicating with their employees. They should not always
communicate through notes, or emails, or other workers. Additionally, conversations about
performance should happen on a continual basis, not just once a year at the end of the review period.
Providing feedback and following up on the things that were addressed in the previous meetings is a
helpful way to ensure that you and your employees are still “on the same page” and that progress is
being made. Having face-to-face conversations and initiating an open dialogue with your employees
throughout this process is more than a responsibility… it is a requirement. This process is purposefully
structured to be an interactive and interpersonal process that allows supervisors and their employees to
discuss the issues and challenges that the work generates and the achievements and accomplishments
that can be realized. The convenience of an electronic system should not substitute for appropriate
management.
It is NOT your responsibility to set each goal for the employee, but it is your role to offer them the
guidance and support that they need to be able to set their own goals. Human Resources will provide
support throughout the process, but it is ultimately the supervisor’s responsibility to make sure that
their employees are participating in the goal-setting process, are setting and working towards their
goals, and are paying attention to the guidelines and successfully meeting the deadlines.
Supervisor’s Toolkit
You are encouraged to utilize the resources available to you. Attend the trainings, ask questions, and
encourage your employees to do the same. If you find that you need more help during this process,
please refer to the contacts listed below to identify people who are eager and happy to help you.
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HR Contact
Area
HR Specialist Team
(859) 622-5094 Option #1
human.resources@eku.edu
Assistance with:
Password resets, Login issues,
Questions about the system or evaluator/employee assignments
Your Department’s HR Consultant:
Erin Bailey
(859) 622-1324
erin.bailey@eku.edu
Human Resource Consultant, serving:
University Programs
Student Success & University Counsel
Libraries
Graduate School
Angela Keene
(859) 622-8637
angela.keene@eku.edu
Human Resource Consultant, serving:
College of Arts & Sciences Marketing & Communications
Quenna Norris Thompson
(859) 622-8616
quenna.norris-thompson@eku.edu
Human Resource Consultant, serving:
College of Business & Technology
University Development & Alumni Relations
College of Health Sciences
University Athletics
Emily Potter
(859) 622-6834
emily.potter@eku.edu
Human Resource Consultant, serving:
Finance & Administration
Tarena Tyree
(859) 622-1325
tarena.tyree@eku.edu
Human Resource Consultant, serving:
College of Education
e-Campus
Affairs
Government Relations
Becky Smith
(859) 622-2614
becky.smith@eku.edu
Human Resource Consultant, serving:
Training Resource Center
University Training Consortium
Toni Wells
(859) 622-8296
toni.wells@eku.edu
Human Resource Consultant, serving:
College of Justice & Safety
Don DeLuca
(859) 622-1329
don.deluca@eku.edu
Assistant Director, HRIS
Jennifer Strauel
(859) 622-8873
jennifer.strauel@eku.edu
Interim Director, Human Resources
Center for the Arts Academic
Internal Audit
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