Unit 6 Learning Activity 2 – “Performance Appraisal”

One of the remarkable things about being part of a large organization, The Salvation Army, is that we have a performance appraisal system in place. We call it PEAC: Performance, Excellence, and Coaching. Another one of the great things is that I just had to have one with an employee, which means that I’m hoping I can use that for this post. We’ll say his name is Bob.

The questions I used were from Dan Rockwell’s article, The Anatomy of Performance Enhancing Coaching Conversations. I will be known as “Daniel,” and Bob will be “Bob.”

Daniel – “What skills/behaviours are essential for success in your role as the Children’s and Youth Director? Just list them.”

Bob – “managing and training teams, ability to work with children and youth, problem-solving, authenticity, and the ability to be flexible in certain circumstances.”

Daniel – “Thanks for this. I would agree with that you’ve said. If you were to give yourself a number, a rank, for each of these skills and behaviours, what would that be?”

Bob – “I’m not sure I understand.”

Daniel – “Your proficiency, how well do you think you use these skills and behaviours on a scale on 1 to 10? Also, I’m not going to comment on them because it’s your rating.”

Bob – “Oh I get it, could you read them for me?”

Daniel – “Sure: Managing and training teams.”

Bob – “I would give myself a 7 when it comes to this “

Daniel – “Ability to work with children and youth?”

Bob – “8.”

Daniel – “Problem-solving?”

Bob – “6.”

Daniel – “Authenticity?”

Bob – “5.”

Daniel – “And the ability to be flexible in certain circumstances?”

Bob – “7.”

Daniel – “That’s great. I’m wondering now if you can narrow that list down now to about two items, which do you see as most important?”

Bob – “I would say that managing and training teams would be at the top of this list because that’s my role. I was hired to not only introduce children’s and youth programs to the church but also help create and train a team for these children and youth.”

Daniel – “I’m thrilled that you recognize this because it’s so true. We put so much responsibility on a single person that it can become overwhelming. I appreciate that you see the importance of creating and managing teams. So, you gave yourself a 7 in regards to managing and training teams, what are some steps that you can take to move from a 7 to an 8?”

Bob – “I believe that I need to take more initiative with the team. What I mean by this is to not just have the team in place but to help develop them as leaders in the church and empower them.”

Daniel – “That makes sense, and we would appreciate that. How are you going to do that though?”

Bob – “Well, right now we meet once a month to discuss issues, and we look at the program as a whole; however, I could also use that time to speak into them personally and ask how they’re doing and we can develop them and not just the program.”

Daniel – “And when is your next meeting?”

Bob – “Next week, as it’s a new month soon.”

Daniel – “So this is something that you could easily implement then?”

Bob – “Absolutely, I just need to take the initiative and do it.”

Daniel – “Awesome, I look forward to hearing how your team responds to it.”

The conversation went on where he said his second most important skill which was the ability to work with children and youth. I then proceeded to engage him and ask how he could move that from an 8 to a 9.

It was a great conversation, and I thoroughly enjoyed the framework that Dan Rockwell set forth.

References:

Read Rockwell, D. (2017, March 17) The Anatomy of Performance Enhancing Coaching Conversations.