London Borough of Hillingdon

Performance and Development Appraisal (PADA)

Management in Action

A Toolkit for Managers

“Putting our Residents first”

10th June 2011

  1. The competency Framework
  • There are 3 levels of competency framework in Hillingdon
  • Staff
  • Manager
  • SeniorOfficer
  • Senior Officer revised (2010)

Click on the above link for the complete documents

  • Manager and Senior Officer competencies detail the management skill, and behaviours that Hillingdon expects from it’s management team
  • The management skills and behaviours are often found within each competency heading and we have called this sub section, competency descriptors as they describe the detail of the skills and behaviours expected.
  • The competency framework can be found within the PADAguidance

Familiarise yourself with the competencies you and your member of staff are working within as this is vital for the PADA discussion, appraisal and grading.

  1. The competency framework – making it live
  • It is your behaviour and approach that will make the competencies and descriptors a reality for staff.
  • Discussing the competency framework during 1:1’s and PADA discussions will make sure everyone knows the standard they are expected to work to.
  • Talk about your competency framework too, so that employees know what to expect from you as a Hillingdon Manager.
  • By encouraging employees to be involved in team decisions, listening to them and giving timely praise will make help motivate employees and make the competencies come alive

For example: If a member of staff is saying:-

“My manager listens to me and encourages me to think of ways in which the service could be improved”

We can link this to the manager’s competency ‘Can do – positive attitude’ and the descriptor:-

Creates opportunities for debate to improve services

  • Other examples can be found in the Management Competences – Making it Live document.

  1. 1:1 Discussion.
  • Managers are expected to have regular meetings with employees so that work issues, performance and praise can be dealt with in a timely manner
  • 1:1s are important informal update discussions to ensure that things are on track and to identify any problems, obstacles, health, welfare, safety issues etc. that may be affecting performance or the achievement of objectives
  • It is vital that the staff member's current PADA is referred to in every 1:1 meeting. The PADA shouldguide the 1:1 discussion,in this way the link is made between the Team Plan, the individuals PADA andthe progress of theirwork targetson a monthly basis.
  • Recording the 1:1 discussion ensures that both the manager and employee know the outcome of the discussion and can follow up on action points.
  • A suggested 1:1template is attached. It is intended for use by Senior Managers in the first instance but can be adopted by others if found to be useful. This recording template is not intended to be used for services where there is a statutory duty and more detailed 1:1 notes are required.
  1. PADA Discussion
  • The PADA discussion is a twice yearly opportunity to focus on the work of the individual. Looking at targets that have been achieved and revising / structuring targets for the future.
  • It not only focuses on work targets but also on the attitude and behaviour of the individual
  • It is a two way discussion, managers and employees having a debate about the past periods work
  • It is an opportunity to look in detail at the competences framework and see how well each area is being addressed
  • 1:1 notes are a useful source of information to site examples of what has gone well and why and what didn’t go so well and why
  • There should not be anything new or a surprising that is raised in the PADA discussion.
  • The employee should be encouraged to add their comments but as a minimum, employees should sign and say that they have read the content.

  1. Grading
  • There are two types of grading. Grading against each of the competency headings – Competency Review and an overall grade at the end of the year – Whole Job Rating.
  • The competency andgrading keybookletis a reference document for your use
  • Use the 1:1 notes, and competency framework to help you think about the grade you would give the employee and find examples to support your decision
  • During the PADA discussion, ask the employee what grading they would give themselves. Most often employees are fully aware of how they are performing.
  • If the employee’s and your grading differ, discuss why this might be.
  • The grading decision is not a bartering process and the final decision rests with the Manager but a full and frank debate is healthy to understand each others perspective.

Grading Key
A / Exceptional - exceeds or demonstrably performs above the quality required. An A rating means that you exceed the standard required.
B / Achieves or demonstrably has the quality required. In other words you are consistently doing what is expected at this level.
C / The minimum quality standard has generally been achieved over the period but this is an area for improvement which should be reflected in the Learning and Development plan.
D / Demonstrably does not have quality required. This means that you are not performing at the standard required.
  1. Skills development
  • There will be the need to look at the learning needs of the individual.
  • If a new target is set
  • If an employee gets an A or B rating
  • If an employee gets a C or D rating
  • If there are issues about the achievement of targets
  • Employees need development to:-.
  • Help them perform effectively
  • Achieve their targets
  • Maintain morale
  • Improve customer satisfaction
  • Etc..

Remember staff receiving A’s or B grades could apply to be part of the HillingdonAcademy

  • Identifying learning needs is a crucial part of the PADA process
  • Learning doesn’t automatically mean attending a Training Course. There is a lot of things that employees can do to learn e.g. research the topic, talk to others, shadow someone doing the task etc. Think about the person’s learning style when devising learning plans

Team objective
To ensure all calls are answered within the standard and managed with a strong customer focus
Personal objective (SMART) / Target
date / Learning action
(Y/N)
1. Monitor the volume and nature of calls into the centre to determine how many meet the customer service standard.
2. Increase the number of calls that meet or exceed the customer service standard expectation, by 10%.
3. Ensure all staff in the team understand the customer service standard / May 2009
April 2010
May 2009
/ Y
Y
Y
  • Possible Learning needs could be:
  • Researching – understand the current service standard for answering telephone calls, know the current performance of the service, ensuring it is fit for purpose
  • Presentation / Communication skills –disseminate the service standard to the team, involve the team in identifying improvements, sharing knowledge within the team
  • Management skills – monitoring performance, feedback to staff, identifying performance improvements, support individuals to improve., foster a team spirit so that workers support one another
  • Etc..
  • The learning need will depend on the competency level of the individual. However for every personal objective the learning action box must be completed and the employee needs to sign the learning plan.

Learning and development plan

Learning action / Activity to be undertaken / Expected impact-
what success will look like / Target date (each activity) / Date of evaluation
To develop presentation skills for use in team meetings and away days / Shadowing AP in the roll out of customer care standards training across the group and adapt the delivery to suit the needs of the team / Present customer care standards to team so that they understand what is expected of them in their role / May 2009 / June 2009
Performance and Development Targets set for year: ………………………… Date: ……………………….…………………
Employee’s signature:………………………………………………
Date: …………………………………………………………………………. / Manager’s signature:………………………………………………..
Date: ………………………………………………………………………….
Manager’s manager signature: …………………………………..…………………………………………………………………………………….
  1. Performance Management
  • If an employee is not performing in their role, this needs to be tackled. 1:1’s should be used to raise issues of poor performance in a timely manner. The PADA is an opportunity to formally grade an employee. Use the 1:1 notes to give example and use the competency framework to support your grading decision
  • Being honest about an employees work performance is critical to the work of the other team members and the service as a whole
  • Just because an employee is not performing at the level required, doesn’t mean that the employee can not develop and improve their performance. Learning opportunities, your support and guidance are vital in this process.