MONTANA BOARD OF REGENTS OF HIGHER EDUCATION
Policy and Procedures Manual
SUBJECT:
PERSONNEL
Policy
705.4 - Annual Commissioner's Performance Review
Effective
September 28, 2001; Issued October 9, 2001
Board
Policy
This
supplements the Board’s standing policy concerning Commissioner and Board
performance reviews. It details the
purposes and process by which the Commissioner’s performance shall be reviewed
each year.
The purpose of the
evaluation process is to enable the Commissioner to strengthen his or her
performance, to foster professional development, to enable the Commissioner and
Board to set mutually agreeable goals, and to inform annual decisions on
compensation adjustments and other terms of employment.
Responsibility
It
shall be the board’s responsibility to assess the Commissioner’s performance
and to solicit the views of other leaders within and outside of the institution.
For the purposes of annual Commissioner reviews, however, the process
shall be a private matter between the Board and the Commissioner and may be
conducted in executive session at the request of the Commissioner.
The board delegates to the Board Chair the responsibility for organizing
and conducting the performance review process with the Commissioner.
The
heart of this process shall be a written management-review statement by the
Commissioner in a format and timetable mutually agreed upon with the board.
The Commissioner will have wide latitude in the format of this report but
it should present a clear picture of the Montana University System’s academic
and financial progress and condition, and use appropriate qualitative and
quantitative benchmarks. It should
highlight the Commissioner’s major achievement and concerns and include
explanations of underperformance in specific areas. It should also document the University System’s record of
service to the State of Montana, the major improvements in and current condition
of the physical plant, and overall morale.
The Commissioner should reflect on his or her leadership style and
effectiveness, working relations with system members and other public and
private leaders, and with the broader higher education communities.
References to preceding annual performance reviews are appropriate.
The
Commissioner will also propose a manageable number of goals for the coming
twelve months (usually between five and ten goals).
The Commissioner will also suggest measurable performance levels for each
goal so the Board can decide in advance what constitutes poor, acceptable, or
outstanding levels of performance. The
Board and Commissioner will then jointly agree upon the goals and levels of
performance for each. At the end of
the reporting period, the Board and the Commissioner will then measure the
Commissioner’s performance against the objectives that have been jointly
agreed upon.
Normally,
unless revised by the Board in consultation with the Commissioner in the
intervening period, the Commissioner’s management-review statement will retain
the same format. This statement,
along with any supplemental information the Board may have requested of the
Commissioner, shall be sent to all Board members at least 30 days before the
board meeting at which the Commissioner’s review process and goals will be
discussed (with the Commissioner present).
Because this statement constitutes a potentially sensitive personnel
matter, all Board members will treat it as strictly confidential information.
The board meeting at which the Commissioner’s annual performance review is
conducted will be completed prior to the termination of the contract period for
the Commissioner. After the
performance review of the Commissioner, the Chair of the Board, with assistance
from other members as necessary, will draft a written, confidential summary of
the Board’s evaluation for consideration by the Board at the next meeting.
At
the Board’s next regularly scheduled meeting, in an executive session (if
requested by the Commissioner), the Board shall engage the Commissioner in a
discussion of the Commissioner’s goals for the subsequent year and the Board
will then approve the result. The
Board will also modify (if necessary) and ratify the written performance review
of the Commissioner prepared by the Board Chair.
This meeting is intended for the Board and the Commissioner to have a
wide-ranging discussion about the conduct of the Commissioner within the context
of the Montana University System’s progress.
The Board, of course, reserves the right to adjust the proposed goals and
priorities. At this time the board
will also review the Commissioner’s job description and make adjustments as is
deemed necessary.
Following
discussions with the Commissioner about the Commissioner’s performance, and
following agreement on his or her goals for the next twelve months, the Board
shall, in an executive session, receive, discuss, and ratify the recommendations
for the next year’s goals.
History:
Draft
Policy 705.11 Annual Commissioner’s Performance Review, approved by the
Board of Regents on September 28, 2001.
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