Creation of a Structured Performance-Based Assessment Tool in a Clinical Research Center Setting

Employee performance is a critical factor in the success, or failure, of any organization. Therefore, it is paramount that the leadership and/or management team in an organization establishes and implements an approach that can effectively assess and evaluate the performance of its employees in an objective manner. Research administrators are often involved with the performance evaluation process at their respective institutions. However, there is a limited amount of publicly available information on the use of work performance and assessment methods in research settings. The primary aim of this pilot project was to establish a structured performance-based assessment tool that would allow for an objective and clearly articulated evaluation of staff performance at our clinical research center. The secondary aim was to determine if a structured performance-based assessment tool would improve staff satisfaction with the Center's overall performance evaluation process (PEP). A baseline survey was conducted to examine employee perspectives of and satisfaction with the current performance evaluation process. A follow-up survey was conducted after the mid-year performance review period and implementation of the new PEP, including goals templates and performance evaluation guidance documents. The results of the baseline survey showed that staff had mixed reviews of the overall performance evaluation process (somewhat satisfied-33%, very dissatisfied, dissatisfied, neutral, satisfied-all 16%) and all thought the evaluation criteria could be improved (100%). The results of the follow-up survey showed that staff reviews of the overall mid-year performance evaluation process had improved (63% satisfied, 12% very satisfied, 25% somewhat satisfied) and that 50% of respondents were satisfied with the ease of use and clarity of the templates that were used to record their progress towards achieving their goals. Staff shared additional suggestions for strengthening and better aligning the templates with Center-specific roles and activities. Overall, the leadership/management team at our research Center was successful in creating a performance-based assessment approach that facilitated a more objective and clearly articulated evaluation of staff performance. There are numerous challenges to effectively evaluating staff performance in both research and non-research organizations. As a result, the strategies outlined here may be transferable to other types of work settings.