Dear Strategic Resources and Support team,
As performance review season ramps up, I am writing to ask that you approach this work, both individually and with your teams, with perhaps a shared mindset this year.
Why reviews and performance planning matter
I recognize that often performance reviews can be viewed merely as an exercise in achieving the highest score possible or even as a mundane task to check off the list. Highlighting your good work is no doubt important, and each of us should constantly be striving to assess our effectiveness and opportunities for growth. However, these reviews –– and the performance planning process that follows –– also provide a great opportunity to assess what we’re doing, how we’re doing it, and what adjustments we can make. Stated another way, performance planning serves as an important time for all of us to identify the places where we can make the university a better place for students, faculty and staff. Ìý
Each of us, individually and collectively in our units, has limited resources, and we want to ensure our time and energy are being spent on the portions of our roles that are most important and impactful to the university mission. Sometimes this will mean changing course on tasks or initiatives that are less impactful. Sometimes it will mean devoting even more time to the university’s top priorities. These are the types of conversations that everyone should be having with their supervisors, with the expectation that we align our work across our teams.
Planning now will help ensure that we remain focused on our most important work and prevent the burnout on our teams that comes when we try to make everything a priority. We should have goals that are achievable, measurable and that help to advance the university’s mission. We all have a role to play in CU Boulder’s success.Ìý
Sharpening our skills
Our Department of Human Resources hosts a number of online resources that can help guide you through performance review and planning processes, as well as checking in with your supervisor or employees throughout the year.Ìý
- The basics of performance management, including review timelines and how-to information
- Supervisor and management development
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Other notes and events from around SRS:Ìý
- Pulse survey: After a couple of months off, we’re resuming our pulse surveys. This month, I’m on aspects of working at CU Boulder you enjoy, as well as how well-cared for you feel, whether you have the tools to do your job and your work expectations.
- Juneteenth: Please join your colleagues in celebrating Juneteenth and ensure that you and your teams use your Juneteenth personal observance day holiday hours before they expire on June 30. If you haven’t used the hours already, the day of Juneteenth, June 19, provides an excellent opportunity to reflect on the history and significance of this day commemorating the emancipation of enslaved Black and African Americans, as well as the progress still to be made. Campus and surrounding communities are hosting a number of Juneteenth events starting on Thursday.
- Pride Month: Similarly, a number of Pride Month celebrations are occurring in Front Range cities during June, including Denver PrideFest, which is co-sponsored by the CU System, as we look to build belonging and community on our campuses for our LGBTQ+ students, faculty and staff.
- July 3 admin leave: In alignment with the state, CU Boulder has granted in conjunction with the July 4 Independence Day holiday. As with Juneteenth and Pride Month, I hope you will use the time off to relax, rejuvenate and reflect on the July 4 holiday and, in particular, the work still needed to ensure that the ideals and rights expressed in the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution can be enjoyed equitably by all people in the United States. As Chancellor DiStefano has noted, universities play a vital role in preserving and advancing our democracy.Ìý
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Thank you for all you do in service to our students, our university and our state.Ìý
Sincerely,
Pat