Administrator Feedback Survey Process

February 2022

Purpose

UWGB seeks to assure that all members of its community have accurate information as to performance expectations and assessments of that performance. In accordance with SYS 1254: Performance Management, faculty and staff have annual processes for the review of accomplishments, goals, and possible areas for improvement. Because of the leadership roles of administrative positions, the University Committee seeks to complement existing annual review procedures for administrators with a feedback process that more formally and systematically incorporates broader input from faculty, staff, and other members of the university community. The review of university administrators has been recommended by American Association of University Professors since at least 1974. According to the AAUP, “Institutions should develop procedures for periodic review of the performance of presidents and other academic administrators. The purpose of such periodic reviews should be the improvement of the performance of the administrator during his or her term of office. This review should be conducted on behalf of the governing board for the president, or on behalf of the appointing administrator for other academic administrators. Fellow administrators, faculty, students, and others should participate in the review according to their legitimate interest in the result, with faculty of the unit accorded the primary voice in the case of academic administrators.” The process that follows applies to the UWGB Chancellor, Provost, and Deans.

UWGB’s process is as follows:

1. All administrators to whom this process applies participate in annual evaluations governed by SYS 1254: Performance Management. These annual evaluations provide an important means by which the employee and their supervisor share information about appropriate goals for the coming year and about the degree of achievement of goals for the preceding year. This process will supplement, not replace, those annual evaluations required under SYS 1254: Performance Management by soliciting feedback from the larger campus community in an attempt to improve the health and the strength of the institution.

2. Surveys will be staggered so that all administrators listed above are not going through this process simultaneously. The scheduling of surveys is included as part of the timeline below. Following their initial survey process, each administrator will undergo this process every three years thereafter. In the case of administrator turnover, a newly appointed administrator will have a survey conducted prior to the completion of the third year and every three years thereafter. The survey will be conducted through a voluntary and participatory process. Creation and distribution of the survey will primarily be the responsibility of the University Committee (UC). The UC will coordinate and distribute the administrator feedback survey.

3. The UC, in coordination with the Secretary of the Faculty and Academic Staff, will be responsible for the development and distribution of the applicable questionnaire to all personnel in all areas reporting to the specific administrator. Prior to circulation, Human Resources must review and approve the questionnaire to ensure that all queries are appropriate under UWSA Personnel Policy. A selected list of other constituents may be included, as deemed appropriate by the UC, for the purpose of soliciting feedback about the performance of the administrator. The position description for the administrator will accompany the questionnaire. The administrator/entity who is tasked with conducting a given review will have the opportunity to examine and provide feedback on the questionnaire prior to dissemination. However, the final decision about the content of the questionnaire will rest with the UC and Human Resources. The timeline included below is recommended, and it may be modified as is necessary to align with the formal evaluation timeline.

4. To ensure confidentiality of responses and enable the feedback survey to be utilized as a part of the structured performance evaluation (in accordance with SYS 1254: Performance Management), the Office of Human Resources and Workforce Development will use the submitted survey responses to compile a comprehensive report of the results of the submitted surveys. The report will include the number and percentage of faculty and staff reporting. The summary of questionnaire responses will be prepared to assure the confidentiality of respondents.

5. The comprehensive report for each administrator is to be considered a confidential personnel document and will only be shared with those individuals who have a legitimate need to see the report. Human Resources will be the only party with access to raw data from the survey. Consistent with sound practices for effective personnel development, the comprehensive report document will only be shared with the employee under review, their supervisor, and, as these are key administrative positions, with the Chancellor. The feedback survey results may be attached to the formal performance evaluation as documentation within ePerformance by the employee and/or supervisor.

6. The survey shall be compiled by HR not less than one month prior to the formal annual review of the employee and the UC shall have the opportunity to review the aggregate report for the Chancellor and Provost in a closed session meeting after the report has been shared with the employee/supervisor but before the performance review is finalized. Given that they are not institution-wide administrative positions, the Dean reports will only be shared with the applicable Dean, Provost, and Chancellor.

7. When conducting annual reviews, supervisors will discuss the results of 3 comprehensive report with the employee being reviewed, with the goal of constructive feedback on performance, leadership, and administrative skills. As noted above, information from the comprehensive report is intended to supplement information that is currently used when conducting reviews. It will not be used as a primary source of information when conducting reviews, nor supersede the review criteria established through SYS 1254: Performance Management.

8. SYS 1254: Performance ManagementThe Office of the Secretary of the Faculty and Academic Staff will maintain records regarding the year of the most recent survey for each administrator. If an administrator is due for a survey in a given year, the SOFAS Office will alert the administrator, their supervisor, Human Resources, and the UC by the fourth week of Spring semester.