HACC: Manager Goal Setting Toolkit_2023 : simplebooklet.com

1 Manager Goal-Setting Toolkit Why We Write Goals – Building a High Performing Team ............................................................................ 2 Tips for Communicating Priorities ................................................................................................................. 3 Tips for Supporting Employee Engagement and Wellness ............................................................................ 4 What is Performance Management? Toolkit.................................................................................................................................................... Ratings.............................................................................................................................................. Setting Goals & Expectations............................................................................................................

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2 Why We Write Goals – Building a High Performing Team Setting goals can help each member of your team better understand the work they need to accomplish in the next few months and how it aligns with overall priorities. It’s an opportunity to create a “feedback loop” between you and your employee, ensuring their needs are being met, barriers are removed, and employees understand expectations for high performance (more information on the year-end performance and reward will be available later in the year). Because goal setting is a critical part of our performance philosophy, it is important that people leaders understand and actively participate in this process. As your employees consider their goals, encourage them to be strategic and align their goals and priorities to your business unit’s priorities. Goals should consist of: • 2-3 agile goals focused on the most important work that needs to be accomplished in the next quarter. Employees should consider how they want to contribute to HACC’s culture through their actions and behaviors • If your role, team, or business has been through substantial change, employees should consider making one of their agile goals an integration goal to focus on how they can be a positive change ambassador

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3 Tips for Communicating Priorities Meet with your employee(s) on a regular basis to set, review, and discuss goals that prioritize the most important work your team needs to accomplish in the next few months. Remember that employees should consider how they want to contribute to HACC’s culture through their actions and behaviors. As a team, discuss organizational and business priorities • Explain the connection between the team’s goals and broader strategic priorities • What expectations/concerns does the team have about how priorities will affect workload or contributions? • What potential ideas/strategies can support the achievement of/or streamlining of goals? • As a team, how can we overcome possible barriers? What do you want people to think and feel when they walk away from an interaction with your team as it relates to your team’s culture? • Leading teams with a consciously inclusive mindset can help promote more equity. The first step is adopting a curious mindset to question - how opportunities and key projects are distributed, how decisions are made, what your core team practices are (e.g., how meetings are run), and whether you are centering the cultural narratives/norms of a particular community in your established norms or expectations? Do you think the equitable assignment of work is not only good for employees, but also beneficial for the business? Provide opportunities for your team to ask questions and build their understanding of broader priorities to which they can align their individual goals • Describe what’s expected and why it’s important (e.g., We need to achieve…(measurable outcomes) in order to…(inspiring purpose)) • Share your expectation of when goals should be written • Ask if there are any items that are unclear? Agree on goals with your employee(s) • Use a coaching style with your employee by shifting from ‘telling’ to asking great questions • Help your employees identify the most critical work over the next few months by asking: • Does the work align to the team or business priorities? • Will this have a large impact? • Are there opportunities to streamline or explore alternatives with a similar impact? • What are the tradeoffs if this work is not completed? • If your role, team, or business has been through substantial change, take inventory of the current situation to help you and your team manage uncertainty and write some goals to help yourself and your team navigate through the change. Consider opportunities to focus on empathy, wellbeing, collaboration across teams, and creating space for all to share ideas and be heard. Encourage your employees to document their goals using Word, Excel or the HACC goal-setting template.

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4 Tips for Supporting Employee Engagement and Wellness Managers are uniquely positioned to support their employees. Below are some examples of what you may hear or observe, and suggestions for ways you can support your employee’s unique needs. Suggestions to consider: What you may hear or observe: Suggestions to consider: Possible Theme: Workload • Frequent late night or weekend emails • Reluctance to take on projects • “I’m tired and can’t take on more” • May express anger or irritability at work • May notice changes in work output • Concerned about duplicate work • Consider streamlining or exploring alternatives that would have a similar impact but require less time or effort • Check in regularly so you are aware/can help problem-solve • Share free, confidential support resources available to employees and their families through their legacy Employee Assistance Programs. Possible Theme: Engagement/Retention • Expresses desire for career advancement, development, etc. • “I want to know more about how I can grow my career at HACC” • Encourage goals aligned to employee’s career aspirations/growth areas whenever possible • Encourage peer networking & skip-level exposure by proactively connecting individuals with others to build their network with other housing authorities. • Provide feedback to employees to help them identify strengths and areas for continued growth. Be specific and cite your employee’s impact as it relates to the ‘what’ and ‘how’ of their work. Possible Theme: Equity & Inclusion • May express concerns about lack of support • Expresses desire to do more or different work • “I don’t know what work I should be prioritizing” • “I feel I don’t belong” • Expresses concerns or insecurity about their voice being heard • Treat inclusive behaviors as a performance issue, not a personality issue • Write your own goals around diversity, equity, and inclusion and encourage your team to do the same • Discuss priorities and opportunities to take on stretch projects within your team – allow opportunities for questions • Use 1:1s to discuss growth/development opportunities with each employee. Keep discussions in mind as you assign work • Courageously address role clarity issues with appropriate leaders Possible Theme: Change Fatigue • “I’m nervous about org. changes and what that means for my role.” • “I can’t believe this is happening again” • May express discomfort or displeasure with adapting or adjusting • Communicate more than you think you need to • Support your employees with empathy and advocacy • Individuals process change at their own pace and may sometimes oscillate between phases of processing the change. Focus on meeting employees where they are along the change curve and be proactive about providing support

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10 Ratings Scale The three-rating scale is simple to communicate and allows for honest communication of employee effectiveness while maintaining flexibility to differentiate performance Performance is based around expectation; therefore, these ratings can be applied to individuals with any length of service at HACC PERFORMANCE RATINGS FOR INDIVIDUAL COMPONENTS Rating Description Illustrative Example Successful Demonstrates the appropriate level of knowledge and/or skills. Performs effectively and consistently. Achieves goal targets Sets goal to cut department expenses by 10%, cuts by 8-12% Exceptional Demonstrates and applies exceptional level of knowledge and skills. Consistently excels. Significant achievement relative to goals Sets goal to cut department expenses by 10%, cuts by over 12% Needs Improvement Demonstrates a lack of knowledge and/or skills. Does not perform consistently. Does not achieve goals Sets goal to cut department expenses by 10%, cuts by less than 8% PERFORMANCE RATINGS FOR OVERALL COMPONENTS Rating Description Illustrative Example Successful Contributor Consistently proficient in individual evaluation components; may be strong in several areas. Meets goals and job requirements; consistently demonstrates competencies & behaviors Sets goal to cut department expenses by 10%, cuts by 8-12% Exceptional Contributor Consistently strong in the majority, if not all, individual evaluation components. Exceeds goals and job requirements; goes above and beyond to demonstrate behaviors Viewed as “Exceptional” on almost, if not all, goals, behaviors, and job responsibilities; “Successful” in remaining program components Needs Improvement Needs improvement in most individual evaluation components. Does not meet goals and fails to satisfy job requirements; does not demonstrate competencies & behaviors Receives a “Needs Improvement” on a majority of goals, job responsibilities, competencies & behaviors; may be “Successful” in a few areas

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11 Setting Goals and Expectations: A Collaboration Individual Contributor 1. Understand your role and how it supports the work of your department; participate actively in setting expectations 2. Work with your supervisor to set clear, measurable performance goals 3. Monitor your own performance compared to expectations 4. Seek advice and guidance as needed from your supervisor Your Supervisor’s Role 1. Clearly communicate expectations re: your job responsibilities and competencies (skills) and behaviors 2. Communicate how your individual goals align with department and organization goals 3. Help you set clear, measurable performance goals 4. Offer advice and guidance regarding your performance on a consistent, on-going basis

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12 I. Discuss and Document Job Responsibilities Discuss your role and job responsibilities with your supervisor and work together to ensure that your duties are accurate Starts with a conversation around your Responsibilities Worksheet, a useful tool for managing performance; serves as an negotiated agreement between you and your supervisor. The JRW includes: • Summary of the position • Key job responsibilities • Required competencies: Communication, Effective Knowledge, Teamwork/Leadership, Problem-Solving& Innovation, and Accountability/Self-Management • Supervisory responsibility (if applicable) II. Discuss Expectations Discuss any expectations your supervisor may have regarding HOW you get your work done. Job Responsibility Expectation Manage supply inventory for upcoming events • Maintain process for tracking programs • Inform appropriate staff when supplies are running low in order to replenish supplies before they are needed • Monitor supply delivery to ensure timely ordering and receipt of supplies for events Compile event status reports for the board on a quarterly basis • Ensure data contained in reports is 100% accurate • Deliver reports to the group no later than 2 weeks after each quarter ends Monitor expenditures against events budget • Update supervisor bi-weekly on expense activity versus budget • Alert staff when their expenses are close to the budget levels

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14 Draft individual goals: Work with your supervisor to identify 2-5 goals for you to work towards achieving in the upcoming year/cycle. At least one goal should support department/unit goals and one goal should support ongoing job responsibilities/professional development. If you are a supervisor, a goal should be set that directly links to that part of your role. Goals may be accomplished over several years. ✓ Goal description: Be sure it is SMART! ✓ Action steps to achieve goal: The specific actions or steps you will need to take to reach your goal ✓ Metrics/definition of success: The measurement you will use to determine whether or not you achieved your goal ✓ Resources needed: Resources you may need in order to achieve this goal-- such as time (your time, your supervisor's, your colleague's), money, materials, etc. ✓ Target Date: The specific deadline for when you expect to achieve this goal. Be realistic. The goal span over more than one performance management cycle.

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15 Setting Goals and Expectations Example A good start A SMART finish! If the focus is to reduce department expenses… Lower department expenses. Reduce department expenses by 1-2% by September 15th, 2023 by following the new departmental purchasing procedures. If the focus is on a program project… Complete new system implementation. Complete and implement the new system by August 1, 2023 through effective collaboration across IT functions and cross-functional teams. Strive for SMART goals! Specific Measurable Achievable Results-oriented Time-bound

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18 Step One: Setting Goals and Expectations Immediate Next Steps 1. Meet with your supervisor to review your Job Responsibilities Worksheet (JRW) and to identify 2-5 goals that you will work towards achieving by May 31, 2023. 2. After your meeting, update your Responsibilities Worksheet into and submit it for your supervisor’s approval. Complete your Goal Setting Worksheet (pdf) and share with your supervisor. 3. Goals will be reviewed formally during the Mid-Year Check In– and then will be rated as part of the End-of-Year Review. Track your Performance Management Conversation on a regular basis to record the on-going conversations you are having with your supervisor around your progress towards goal achievement, professional development and examples of strong performance and/or challenges.