Goal Setting Update

In 2019, the Office of Human Resources (OHR) initiated a multi-year project to develop and implement a standard process of performance management for staff across all of CMU’s campuses. The overall goal is to provide staff with consistent processes and training related to performance management, leveraging Workday, CMU’s enterprise system for human resources management.

OHR piloted the goal setting process in 2019. In 2020, the Tepper School of Business, Finance Division, Software Engineering Institute (SEI), and the areas previously designated as part of the Division of Operations were added to the pilot. In year 3, the Offices of the President and Provost, Marketing & Communications, University Advancement, University Libraries, Qatar and the Mellon College of Science were added to the project. By 2022 the remaining academic areas and administrative units are scheduled to begin using the new standard performance management process.

During each phase of the performance management pilot, OHR's Learning and Development team and the HR business partners provided training on the goal setting process. The training set the stage for performance management and provided an overview on how employees should draft SMART goals that can be objectively measured. To date, 607 employees have been trained on goal setting in 16 training sessions. As of September 30, 1302 employees have successfully submitted their goals in Workday for review and approval by their supervisor. An online version of the goal setting presentation is available via FocusU.

Ultimately, the training related to the performance management process will help unify and calibrate the review process across campus. In parallel with goal setting, OHR is also working closely with colleges and divisions to review staff position descriptions and job classifications. This process is intended to ensure consistency and promote transparency. Once complete, OHR will undertake a staff equity study.

Early feedback on the initial training is very positive. In early 2021, OHR will roll out additional training related to the self-evaluation, supervisor evaluation, and performance rating steps in the performance management process.