Office of Human Resources / Employment at NMU / Performance and development
Prepare examples of your work for a performance review, respond to your evaluation, and request the training or resources needed for your assignments.
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Employees receive a documented performance evaluation at least once a year. HR identifies the review schedule and responsible reviewer. Faculty with teaching or dissertation responsibilities also receive an academic review during each year they hold those assignments. New faculty receive feedback early in their first teaching assignment.
Confirm the review period, meeting date, assigned duties, and criteria with your reviewer. The criteria must be communicated before you perform the work being reviewed. If you hold several employee roles, one coordinating supervisor consolidates the review, with qualified academic leadership evaluating the academic work.
Contractors are assessed against their agreements and deliverables. Faculty teaching and dissertation supervision remain subject to academic quality review for both employees and contractors.
Prepare a self-assessment describing completed work, progress toward previous goals, difficulties encountered, and support you need. Select examples that relate to your assigned duties, such as completed projects, instructional activities, assessment feedback, service records, or changes you made after earlier feedback.
Explain workload changes, unavailable resources, or other circumstances that affected the work. Staff and administrative reviews consider the quality, accuracy, timeliness, and effectiveness of assigned services. Before courses are running, reviews focus on planning, preparation, and readiness rather than student outcomes that are not yet available.
Keep confidential evidence in approved university systems. Give the reviewer its location or arrange authorized access instead of copying student or personnel information into general review documents.
Academic reviewers directly examine teaching and supervision. For course assignments, this includes instructional engagement, assessment practices, the substance and timing of feedback, student communication, academic standards, and use of instructional resources. Check the response and feedback deadlines in Remote Work and Workplace Support.
For dissertation assignments, reviewers consider methodological and subject guidance, feedback on milestones, research oversight, and coordination among committee members. Bring examples that show the guidance you provided and how you followed up.
Student feedback contributes to the review, but satisfaction scores, pass rates, retention, or completion speed cannot determine a rating alone. Reviewers must consider the assignment and factors outside the faculty member’s control.
At the review meeting, discuss the evidence behind each rating, accomplishments, concerns, and goals for the next period. Ask for an explanation if a rating does not identify the work or expectation it addresses. You receive a copy of the completed employee evaluation.
Signing the acknowledgment confirms receipt and discussion. It does not mean you agree with every conclusion. To correct a factual error, identify the entry, explain the error, and provide supporting information. You may also submit a written response for attachment to the evaluation.
Email hr@newmeridianuniversity.org for help obtaining your evaluation or submitting a response. Personnel records instructions explain how to request records. If a concern involves HR, use the independent reporting contact supplied during orientation.
Each annual employee evaluation establishes or updates a development plan. Work with your reviewer to record the goal, activity, support needed, responsible person, target completion date, evidence of completion, and follow-up date.
When a review identifies a performance gap, ask the reviewer to specify the expectation, the work that needs to change, and the evidence that will demonstrate improvement. Follow-up reviews assess progress and whether further support or revised expectations are needed.
Keep completion records and examples showing how you applied the training or feedback. A workshop certificate alone does not establish that a performance concern has been resolved.
All active faculty, including contractors, must complete assigned refresher training at least annually. Academic leadership sets the topics and deadlines, covering university policies, online teaching, instructional methods, technology, and academic resources. Training for dissertation or research duties also addresses research methods, ethical oversight, and committee practice.
Discuss proposed development with your supervisor or academic lead. For help submitting a request, email hr@newmeridianuniversity.org with the activity title, provider, dates, learning objective, relevance to your assignment, cost, requested work time, and any coverage needed. Explain how you will use what you learn.
Obtain written approval before spending university funds or taking discretionary release time. Funding and release time are approved case by case; there is no automatic annual allowance. Required employee training is scheduled, recorded, and paid according to payroll rules and applicable requirements. Contractor training obligations and payment follow the agreement.
After the activity, record the completion date and where the certificate, work sample, or other completion evidence is stored. Tell your supervisor how you applied the learning and ask for approval if a deadline, activity, or agreed support needs to change.
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