Performance Administrator Playbook

The Inspire Performance module is designed to provide organizations with a highly customizable and user-friendly performance review process. This playbook serves as a step-by-step guide for Inspire Administrators on launching their first performance cycle in Inspire. Throughout this process, your Inspire Client Success team will be there to support you, offering insights and guidance to ensure a smooth execution of your performance cycle. The five steps for Inspire Performance Administration are

Step 1 – Cycle Planning

Step 2 – Cycle Configuration

Step 3 – Cycle Launch

Step 4 – Cycle Management

Step 5 – Cycle Wrap Up & Prepare For Next Cycle

Step 1 - Cycle Planning

In this step, you will:

Understand the Performance Agreement, 1-1 Execution, Self Assessment, and Appraisal stages of the performance cycle by reviewing the Performance Admin Overview article below.
Determine cadence. Consider what dates each stage should start and end. Note that the dates will be set in the next step - cycle configuration.

In the initial phase of launching a performance cycle in Inspire, it is crucial to understand the different stages involved. The performance cycle consists of several optional stages, starting with the Performance Agreement where employees and supervisors collaborate to establish objectives and set expectations for the entire performance period. Following that is the 1-1 Execution stage, where regular meetings between supervisors and employees occur to discuss progress and provide guidance. These meetings can be scheduled weekly, biweekly, or any periodicity based on your organization's preferences.

As the performance cycle nears completion, the Self-Assessment stage allows individuals to evaluate their own performance by reflecting on their 1-1s, grading objective achievements, identifying areas for improvement, and potentially inviting peer assessments through 360 evaluations. Finally, the cycle culminates in the Appraisal stage, during which supervisors write appraisals and meet with each employee to review grades, comments, peer assessments, and other relevant information before finalizing the performance cycle.

Selecting appropriate dates for each cycle event and determining the duration of each stage is crucial, considering factors like holidays and supervisor workload. By following these steps, your organization can ensure a well-planned and effective performance cycle in Inspire.

Cycle Planning Details:

Performance Admin Overview

Step 2 - Cycle Configuration

In this step, you will:

Create and customize new cycle
Establish Grading Scales, Sub Categories, Questionnaire & Guidelines, and set up graded sections.
Customize cycle to reflect your organizational culture

Customizing the cycle tabs in Inspire allows organizations to tailor the performance sections to their specific needs. This customization ensures that the questionnaire, guidelines, objectives, competencies, assessment questionnaire, shared measures, and values sections directly align with your organization's unique goals, culture, and evaluation criteria. By adapting these sections, organizations can create a performance management framework that resonates with their employees, reinforces desired behaviors, and drives organizational success.

In summary, the Performance Agreement, 1-1 Execution, Self Assessment, and Appraisal stages, along with customized cycle tabs, collectively promote clear expectations, regular feedback, self-reflection, collaborative assessments, and personalized evaluation criteria. These aspects contribute to a robust performance management process, fostering employee engagement, development, and alignment with organizational objectives.

Cycle Configuration Details:

Step 3 - Cycle Launch

In this step you will:

Send internal communications to all cycle participants at least 2 weeks before the cycle start date and share related resources with your team.
Consider also communicating timing and expectations in company meetings.
Send leadership specific communications
Add Participants to cycle
Activate the Cycle

During the performance cycle launch, effective communication is crucial. Utilize organization-wide channels such as email or intranet to share cycle details and consider discussing timing and expectations in company meetings. Additionally, communicate with leaders to clarify their involvement in Performance Agreement planning, appraisal processes, and highlight connections to competencies and values. Admins play a vital role as the primary point of contact for user inquiries, tracking progress, offering insights, and resolving issues, while regular meetings with the Inspire Client Success team ensure data review and future cycle improvements.

Since performance steps are used infrequently (just a few times per year), consider providing virtual training to your users to help them refresh on the steps required to perform such as the “Performance Overview” video in the learning library.

Cycle Launch Details:

Internal email communication examples:
- Self Assessment, 360, Appraisal Approaching (All Employees)
Add Participants
Activating the Cycle

Step 4 - Cycle Management

In this step you will:

Use the Completion Status report to track user progress throughout the performance cycle. Use the built-in email reminder tool to prompt users who are past due on each step.
Unlock Events: Administrators can unlock steps for specific users, allowing them to make changes or go back to a previous stage if necessary.
Modify supervisor or event due dates: Administrators can adjust the supervisor assigned to each participant during the cycle, accommodating changes in reporting relationships.
Communication to the organization: As the 1-1 execution cycle nears its end, communicate to the organization that objective due dates are approaching and self-assessments will soon be available (typically 2-4 weeks before the self-assessment start date).

Cycle Management involves various responsibilities for administrators throughout the performance cycle. They can utilize the Completion Status Report to track users' progress through the performance cycle and send reminders to those who are past-due on any step. In case a user needs to make changes or submit something earlier, administrators can unlock specific steps. They can also modify supervisor or event due dates for individual participants to accommodate changes in reporting relationships.

Administrators play a key role in communicating to the organization when the 1-1 execution cycle is nearing its end, reminding employees about approaching objective due dates and the availability of self-assessments. These mid-cycle management tasks ensure smooth progress, flexibility, and effective communication throughout the performance cycle.

Cycle Management Details:

Step 5 - Cycle Wrap Up & Prepare For Next Cycle

In this step you will:

Communicate the timing of Self Assessment and Appraisal due dates to your team, specifying the “sign off” step. Inspire does send notifications of these due dates, however these should not be considered a replacement for direct internal communication from HR or leadership.
Copy the cycle to create the next cycle. This new cycle will be created with grade scales and other customized content preserved. Label the new cycle and modify start and due dates for each step as you did in Step 1.
Determine new cycle timing. Inspire best practice is to start the new cycle on the first business day after the previous cycle concludes. This allows your team to complete self-assessments and appraisals without the need to simultaneously focus on goal/objective planning for the upcoming cycle. Some organizations do choose to overlap cycles, in which case it is important to share with all participants how to switch between cycles using the cycle selector at the top of the Performance module.

In this step, administrators should communicate the timing of the Appraisal due date to the team and copy the current cycle to preserve grade scales and other content. They should label the new cycle and modify start and due dates accordingly. Best practice suggests starting the new cycle on the first business day after the previous cycle concludes, allowing separate focus on self-assessments and appraisals. If overlapping cycles, participants should be informed about switching between cycles using the cycle selector in the Performance module. Following these steps ensures a smooth transition and effective preparation for the next performance cycle.

Cycle Wrap Up Details:

Inspire Client Success team will provide email communication examples