Introducing behaviours

There is broad recognition that how people go about their work has a major impact on the quality of outcome, and this is the factor most often linked with improved performance. Consequently many organisations, and an increasing number of Universities, now include this as part of their review processes.

As a consequence behaviours, or behavioural competencies, are a core part of Employee Performance Review process.

Behaviours are simple statements that define a particular aspect of how people go about what they do, i.e. putting emphasis on the underlying behaviour rather than only on the result or outcome. (Examples - “treats people with respect”, “communicates effectively”).

Depending on whether you manage other people or not will influence how many behaviours apply to you.

For employees who do not supervise other people there are five core behaviours, chosen to align strongly with the University strategy “A Clear Future”. They are:

 Treats people with respect
 Maintains good working relationships
 Communicates effectively
 Maintains a high personal standard of delivery
 Looks for and implements improved ways of working

The five core behaviours underpin everything we do and the way we do it; in particular they help define how we should interact with other people (staff, students, external contacts - everyone)

In the Employee Performance Review process the behaviours are “given”, i.e. there is an inherent requirement for everyone to behave in a way that fits with the five core behaviours.

If someone has a particular strength in a given area, or there is a need to improve in a given area, this should be discussed during the review meeting. Any training or development need associated should form part of the agreed development plan.

Example A – an employee meets all their objectives, but in the process delegates work to others without adequate guidance and plans work badly, putting undue pressure on other people to deliver to very tight deadlines. There is now a conflict; the employee has met their objectives, but the way they have done this leaves significant room for improvement on several of the five core behaviours.

Example B – an employee, although producing exceptional performance tends to treat people differently based on their position, and tends to build good working relationships with selected people. As a consequence they have development needs around treating people with respect and building good working relationships.

If you manage other people

For employees who manage other people the five core behaviours are expanded to either 9 or 12 (depending on your level in the organisation).

Why is this? Because when people manage teams, they need to consider their responsibilities to the team, both collectively and as individuals.

For managers and supervisors up to an including grade 10 (including Professors who lead a team but are not senior managers) there are an additional four leadership behaviours:

 Openly encourages and recognises the contribution of others
 Gives constructive feedback on a regular basis
 Builds effective team performance
 Encourages personal development and provides appropriate opportunities

These are fundamental to team and individual performance and hence a core part of the role of anyone who supervises other employees.

For managers up to and including grade 10, the full leadership behaviours matrix can be accessed by clicking on the link below.

(The matrix has 3 levels of attainment for each behaviour, recognising that people are likely to be at different levels of attainment for different behaviours).

Leadership behaviours - staff up to and including grade 10 + Professors who are not senior / excutive managers

For managers above grade 10 (i.e. in senior or executive management positions) there are 3 further leadership behaviours (over and above the 9 already mentioned):

 Is decisive, particularly when confronted with challenging issues
 Able to adapt and capitalise on new opportunities
 Demonstrates integrity and high ethical standards

The 3 additional behaviours at this level reflect the strategic nature of these roles.

For senior and executive managers, the leadership behaviours matrix can be accessed by clicking on the link below:

(The matrix has 3 levels of attainment for each behaviour, recognising that people are likely to be at different levels of attainment for different behaviours).

Leadership behaviours - senior and executive managers

The Leadership behaviours matrix should be used as both a self-assessment and reviewer assessment tool, and the combined result used to inform a meaningful discussion about the reviewee’s leadership skills – particularly around strengths and development needs.

The objective is to recognise areas of strength (in order to focus on how best to use those strengths more effectively) and areas for development (in order to enhance overall leadership skills).

The review should be informal, focused more on using the behaviours to broaden the discussion rather than to agree assessment outcome, since the overall aim is to improve leadership skills across the University.