With the new rating scale, the commonwealth anticipates that the majority of employees will be contributors. In order to receive an overall rating of extraordinary contributor, the employee must have received at least one documented Acknowledgment of Extraordinary Contribution form during the rating cycle. However, this form does not guarantee or necessarily warrant an overall rating of extraordinary contributor. With the past evaluation, approximately 80 percent of Mason's classified employees received the exceptional and exceeds expectations rating, according to Ilse Riddick, Human Resources. Because the highest rating is now to be used for truly exceptional cases, the university has set up a number of ways for supervisors to recognize employees.
Recognition can be monetary, nonmonetary, or both.
Human Resources is offering a workshop on reward and recognition in April. Formal award programs include the Outstanding Achievement Awards, University Day Service Awards, Employee of the Month, the University Citizenship Award, the Customer Service Award, and the Employee Suggestion Program. Immediate recognition is available with the Individual Impact Award and the Recognition Leave Program. To find out more detailed information about these programs, visit the Human Resources web site and click on Recognition Programs. Another big change with the new plan is that salary increases are formula based.