>> de | en | fr  N° 3-2010 / 15.01.2010
 

2010 APPRAISAL AND PROMOTION EXERCISE

Reference period: 1 January to 31 December 2009

This administrative notice explains the different aspects of the appraisal and promotion system and sets out the context for the 2010 exercise. You will find relevant information on promotion thresholds for 2010, the calendar and deadlines for the different actors, appraisal tools, basic principles, as well as the conditions for participating in the exercise.

The appraisal exercise aims at assessing the yearly individual performances, through a substantial dialogue with the jobholder, setting objectives and effective work planning. This exercise is complementary to the ongoing feedback given during the year and has to contribute to the optimisation of the performances and to the future development of the jobholders' careers. The award of promotion points is directly related to the appraisal of the performance that has been demonstrated during the reference period.

The 2010 exercise has been launched on the basis of the general provisions for implementing Article 43 and Article 45 of the Staff Regulations (DGE), adopted on 18 June 2008.

Nevertheless, DG HR drew on experience from the 2009 appraisal and promotion exercise and took due note of the comments submitted by the various stakeholders.

DG HR is thus currently considering to modify these provisions still in 2010 with regards to certain procedural aspects in order to facilitate and shorten the exercise. These provisions will be implemented in accordance with the principles of legal certainty, legitimate expectations and the principle that an amended Commission decision may not have any retroactive effect for the future. Staff shall shortly be duly informed about the changes envisaged and the evolution of the proposal. The revised provisions shall be adopted and enter into force in the course of the exercise. For the time being, it is likely that the appeal phase will be governed by these revised procedural rules.

More substantial modifications of the DGE are likely to be introduced for the future exercises, in close cooperation with the social partners and stakeholders.

  1. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF APPRAISAL

    The performance of Commission staff is evaluated every year. This evaluation is the subject of an individual report – the appraisal report – which is produced using the Sysper2 computer application.

    1.1 Who has to be appraised?

    All officials and temporary staff (jobholders) who were in active employment (1) or on secondment in the interests of the service for a continuous period of at least one month in 2009 have to be appraised. Contract staff are appraised under separate rules.

    Exceptions:
     
    • A report does not have to be drafted for jobholders who left the Community institutions in 2009 or who are going to leave in 2010, unless they request one from their reporting officer in writing.
       
    • This annual exercise does not affect those holding posts of Director-General or equivalent, or Director or equivalent; they will be assessed according to special rules.

    1.2 Tools for the appraisal

    1.2.1 Objectives and assessment criteria

    The reporting officers must make sure that objectives are set for each official and member of the temporary staff, because these serve as the basis for assessing their efficiency. The objectives must be consistent with the work programme of the DG and the unit and the jobholder's job description. They must be accompanied by criteria for assessing the results and an explanation of when they will be considered to have been met.

    1.2.2 Common appraisal standards

    The common appraisal standards which must be applied in all Commission departments were published in Administrative Notice No IA No 22-2008 and have been used from the 2009 appraisal exercise onwards.

    The standards will be used to assess efficiency, abilities and conduct in the service. Their aim is to harmonise staff appraisals within a DG, to facilitate the dialogue between the reporting officer and the jobholder and to ensure that appraisals are comparable across all DGs. With the agreement of DG HR, DGs may, if necessary, supplement the standards at the beginning of the reference period in order to cover specific aspects related to their work. In that case they must be published for the staff of that DG at the beginning of the reference period.

    1.3 What period does the appraisal exercise cover?

    The reference period runs from 1 January to 31 December 2009.

    If the jobholder or reporting officer moves during the reference period, the reporting officer will write a contribution to the appraisal in Sysper2, which will be taken into account by the reporting officer responsible for the annual report.

    1.4 The appraisal report and the five performance levels

    The appraisal report (2) brings together the information relating to the jobholder's individual performance during the reference period.

    There is a section for the jobholder to insert a self-assessment.

    The report itself is divided into three sections, in which the reporting officer comments on:

    • Efficiency: assessed in the light of the individual objectives and assessment criteria set for each jobholder at the beginning of the reference period. To what extent has the jobholder attained the objectives, taking into account the work situation? The common appraisal standards for organising, planning and performing work and ensuring quality must also be used.
       
    • Abilities: assessed on the basis of the common appraisal standards relating to communication, negotiation skills, analysing problems and applying solutions and awareness of the working environment. In the case of jobholders in management positions, their skills in leadership, people management and financial resources management must also be appraised.
       
    • Conduct in the service describes the jobholder's behaviour in the working environment. The common appraisal standards cover aspects such as the ability to work in a team, service culture, commitment to the job, personal development and leadership.

    The comments are summarised by one of the five performance levels below:

    IA ®The jobholder's performance constantly exceeded expectations*.
    IB ®The jobholder's performance frequently exceeded expectations*.
    II  ®The jobholder's performance fully met expectations*.
    III ®The jobholder's performance partly met expectations*.
    IV  ®The jobholder's performance failed to meet expectations*.
    * in terms of efficiency, abilities and conduct in the service.

    Maximum percentages apply to each DG for performance level IA (8% of officials in each grade) and IB (22% of officials in each grade). The result of applying these percentages is systematically rounded up to the nearest whole number, so a second check is carried out at the level of each function group to ensure that the percentages are adhered to.

    1.5 Assessing the demonstration of potential for the purpose of the certification procedure

    When completing their self-assessment, AST function-group officials with no career restriction who wish to apply for the certification procedure must ask their reporting officer to fill in the section marked "Potential".

    The "potential" section of the appraisal report only has to be filled in if the jobholder explicitly requests it in his self-assessment.

    Using a drop-down menu, the reporting officer indicates what administrator level tasks the jobholder took on in the course of 2009 (see guidelines on the website "certification, exercise 2009"). Where appropriate, the reporting officer will indicate any occasions on which the jobholder has shown the potential to become a good administrator through his efficiency, ability or conduct in the service.

    It will be up to the countersigning officer to decide, on the basis of the reporting officer’s comments, whether or not the jobholder has shown the potential to become a good administrator.

    1.6 What are the implementing rules?

    The general provisions for implementing Article 43 of the Staff Regulations, adopted by the Commission on 18 June 2008, will apply to the annual appraisal reports covering the year 2009 for officials and temporary staff paid from both the administrative budget and the research budget of the Commission.

    For personnel assigned to the external service of the Commission, the decision of the Commission of 19 December 2008 regarding appraisal and promotion modalities applies.
     
  2. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF PROMOTION

    A promotion exercise is organised each year. It entails awarding promotion points and drawing up a list of the officials promoted.

    2.1 Who takes part in the promotion exercise?

    The promotion exercise applies to all officials paid from appropriations in the general budget, with the exception of grades AST11, AST7/C and AST5/D, and officials in grades higher than AD13.

    There is no promotion exercise for temporary staff or for contract staff (special rules apply to the reclassification exercise for contract staff).

    2.2 Promotion points and criteria for awarding them

    Officials may be awarded:
     
    • 10, 11 or 12 promotion points if their performance corresponds to performance level IA;
       
    • 7, 8 or 9 promotion points if their performance corresponds to performance level IB;
       
    • 4, 5 or 6 promotion points if their performance corresponds to performance level II;
       
    • 1, 2 or 3 promotion points if their performance corresponds to performance level III;
       
    • no promotion points if their performance corresponds to performance level IV.

    The following are eligible for promotion points:

    • officials who, in the year before the promotion exercise, were in active employment (this includes sick leave, maternity, parental or family leave, leave for military service) or seconded in the interests of the service;
       
    • probationary officials whose probation period ended no later than 31 December 2009.

    At the beginning of each year the Director-General, having consulted the Directors and Heads of Unit, draws up the list of criteria for awarding promotion points. These criteria take account of four elements:

    • the qualitative appraisal covering the year preceding the promotion exercise;
       
    • the official's use, in the course of his work, of languages other than the one for which he produced evidence of a thorough knowledge at the time of his recruitment;
       
    • the level of responsibilities during the reference period;
       
    • the tasks performed in the interests of the institution, in so far as these are not part of the official's normal activities; these tasks no longer give rise to the allocation of PPII, but they are among the criteria to be taken into consideration for awarding promotion points.

      These tasks are:
       
      • chair/member of a competition selection board or joint committee for the selection of temporary staff,
      • advisor to a selection board,
      • marker of competition papers,
      • chair/member of a joint committee.

    Each DG will inform its staff of the detailed criteria for awarding promotion points.

    Information about the use of languages and level of responsibilities will be included in the appraisal report for each official. In the case of tasks performed in the interests of the institution, the information will be collected centrally by DG HR from EPSO, from the chair of the joint committees and from the DGs. The list of officials who have carried out the tasks referred to above will be published in an administrative notice.

    2.3 Promotion thresholds

    2.3.1 All grades, except end-of-career grades (AD12, AST10, AST6/C and AST4/D)

    The general provisions for implementing Article 45 of the Staff Regulations provide for a convergence plan for the period 2008-2011. This specifies the pace at which the transition will be made from the "historic" promotion speeds in the period 2000-2004 to the speeds resulting from the multiplication rates set out in Annex IB to the Staff Regulations.

    For each year, the convergence plan gives the average waiting time in each grade before promotion. The waiting time is the basis for calculating the promotion threshold using the following formula:

    Average waiting time x average number of promotion points awarded per official
    = promotion threshold.

    The advantage of such an approach is that it makes it possible to calculate the promotion threshold in advance.

    All officials with a number of points higher than or equal to the promotion threshold and who fulfil the conditions specified under point 2.6 will be promoted.

      2010 promotion thresholds
    AD13 30
    AD11 27
    AD10 24
    AD09 24
    AD08 18
    AD07 18
    AD06 18
    AD05 18
    AST09 30
    AST08 28
    AST07 24
    AST06 24
    AST05 24
    AST04 18
    AST03 18
    AST02 18
    AST01 18
    AST05.C 31
    AST04.C 27
    AST03.C 24
    AST02.C 24
    AST03.D 27

    2.3.2 End-of-career grades (AD12, AST10, AST6/C and AST4/D)

    There is no historic average waiting time for end-of-career grades. The annual thresholds for these grades will be announced at the official launch of the exercise, but will remain indicative until the end of the promotion exercise. By promoting the specified number of officials, the definitive threshold will be determined by the number of points obtained by the last official promoted.

    If budgetary constraints make it impossible to promote all the officials who have accumulated exactly the same number of points as the threshold, the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee will suggest which of them can be promoted, by referring to subsidiary criteria such as seniority in the grade and considerations related to equal opportunities or the nature of the tasks performed.

    However, the Staff Regulations do provide for a gradual increase in the annual promotion rates for the end-of-career grades until 2011, which means that the number of promotions increases further during this period.

      Indicative promotion thresholds 2010
    AD12 45
    AST10 53
    AST06.C 41
    AST04.D 54

    2.4 Accumulation of points in the rucksack

    The promotion points (between 1 and 12) awarded each year on the basis of the official's appraisal report and of the criteria for awarding promotion points laid down by the Director-General are collected in a rucksack.

    After promotion, the number of points corresponding to the promotion threshold is deducted from the total number of points accumulated. The balance, if any, is carried over to the next promotion exercise.

    2.5 Quotas of promotion points by performance level, grade and DG

    The total number of promotion points available for each DG for each grade and performance level is as follows:

    Performance level

    Promotion points available by performance level

    IA 10.5 points per official in level IA
    IB 7.5 points per official in level IB
    II 5.1 points per official in level II
    III 2 points per official in level III
    IV 0 points

    The points are calculated by grade only; points cannot be transferred from one grade to another. The results are rounded up to the nearest whole number.

    If the quota of points available for a performance level in certain grades is not enough to allow at least one official to be awarded the highest number of possible promotion points for the performance level in question, the Director-General may request a derogation from the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee.

    2.6 Who will be promoted?

    An official may be promoted if:

    • he has accumulated a number of points in the rucksack which is higher than or equal to the promotion threshold in the current grade;
       
    • by 31 December of the year of the promotion exercise, at the latest, he has achieved the minimum seniority in the grade required by the Staff Regulation (two years);
       
    • he has demonstrated his ability to work in a third language and if it is the first promotion after recruitment;
       
    • he is in active employment (this includes sick leave, maternity, parental or family leave and military service) or seconded in the interests of the service on the date of adoption of the promotion decisions by the appointing authority;
       
    • his performance has not been rated at level IV (underperformance).

    Any decision on the promotion of an official who is the subject of disciplinary proceedings will be suspended until the results of those proceedings are known.

    2.7 When does the promotion take effect?

    Promotions will take effect on 1 January of the year of the promotion exercise. If the official does not have the required minimum seniority on that date, the promotion will take effect on the first day of the month following that in which he attains the seniority required.

    2.8 Demonstrating the capacity to work in a third language

    All officials whose first promotion after recruitment takes effect after 30 April 2006 are required to demonstrate the ability to work in a third language. With effect from the 2009 exercise, the minimum requirement is level 6 of an interinstitutional language course (equivalent to level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEF) of the Council of Europe).

    The demonstration of this ability can be made in three main ways: successfully passing a language course, passing a test organised by EPSO or having a language certificate which is recognised by the appropriate assessment committee of EPSO.

    For further details an additional Administrative Notice will be published in January 2010.

    2.9 What are the implementing rules?

    The general provisions for implementing Article 45 of the Staff Regulations, adopted by the Commission on 18 June 2008, apply to the promotion of officials paid from either the administrative budget or the research budget.

    With the exception of Article 9(3), these general provisions do not apply to promotions resulting from an appointment following the publication of a vacancy notice under Article 29(1)(a)(iii) of the Staff Regulations (management posts).
     

  3. THE APPRAISAL AND PROMOTION EXERCISE

    The appraisal and promotion processes will take place at the same time. The exercise will be launched on 15 January 2010. Generally speaking the annual appraisal reports should be finalised by 12 May.

    The appraisal and promotion procedure is managed using the secure IT application Sysper2. Every official has an appraisal file and a promotion file, which form an integral part of the official’s personal file. An official has access to the system via a personal, secret password. The appraisal file comprises all the appraisal reports entered in Sysper2, and the promotion file shows the number of promotion points awarded in the course of the current exercise and the total number of points accumulated. Jobholders who know they will be unable to access Sysper2 over a long period can communicate in writing through other channels.

    3.1 Actors
     
    Title Person(s) concerned
    Jobholder The person to be appraised
    Reporting officer The jobholder’s line manager (usually the Head of Unit) at the end of the period covered by the report (31 December)
    Countersigning officer The reporting officer’s immediate superior (usually the Director); the person who is to be countersigning officer is determined at the time the countersigning officer appears in the appraisal report.
    Appeal assessor In most cases this will be the Director General; the appeal assessor is likewise determined at the time at which he first appears in the process
    Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee A joint committee for each function group (one for ADs and one for ASTs); each committee has seven joint working parties (one per group of DGs or services)
    Director In the context of the promotion exercise, the Director is determined at the time he first appears in the promotion process
    Director-General For the purposes of the promotion exercise, the Director General establishes his formal intentions for the award of promotion points
    Appointing authority(promotion) For the purposes of the promotion exercise, the appointing authority is the Director-General of DG HR.

    3.2 What are the steps in the procedure?

    3.2.1 Self-assessment

    The reporting officer asks the jobholder to write a self-assessment; the jobholder has eight working days in which to do so. The jobholder should make use of the common appraisal standards. With an eye to the promotion procedure, the jobholder is also asked to comment on his level of responsibility and to list the languages he actually uses in the execution of his duties in response to the requirements of the service.

    If the jobholder has been elected or designated to represent staff, he should mention the fact in his self-assessment. In that case the self assessment should be divided in two, so that the reporting officer can consult the ad hoc group regarding the work the jobholder has done as a staff representative. That consultation takes place outside Sysper2.

    Specific rules for officials who are absented on a full time or half time basis to work for the staff representation are set out in the general provisions for implementing Article 43 and Article 45.

    Days of justified absence (for missions, leave, illness, …) are to be deducted from the time-limits given to job holders during the procedure.

    3.2.2 Dialogue

    After receiving the self assessment, the reporting officer holds a dialogue with the jobholder. The dialogue constitutes one of the reporting officer’s basic management duties (art 7.4 of the General Provisions of article 43 of Staff Regulations). It is also an essential opportunity for the jobholder to obtain a constructive feedback on his performances during the reference period and to discuss his future objectives and career development. The dialogue must be transparent, substantial, and well prepared both by the reporting officer and by the jobholder.

    The reporting officer and the jobholder discuss in particular the appraisal of the jobholder’s performance in 2009, the objectives to be set for 2010, and an updating of training needs for 2010 and perhaps beyond. The objectives must be measurable and consistent with the work programme of the DG and the unit.

    If the self assessment refers to staff representation work for which the jobholder has been elected or designated, the reporting officer must have consulted the ad hoc group. He must have received the opinion of the ad hoc group before the dialogue can take place.

    3.2.3 The reporting officer draws up the qualitative report

    In the ten working days following the dialogue the reporting officer drafts a qualitative report. This personalised report has to reflect the real performance of the jobholder during the reference period.

    The reporting officer has an obligation to state reasons in the report in a sufficient and detailed way, thus allowing the jobholder to grasp an informed understanding of his evaluation.

    As input for drafting the report, the reporting officer has the self-assessment, the discussion at the dialogue, the objectives for the reference period, and the common appraisal standards. He should take account of any contributions made by other reporting officers in the course of 2009, and of the opinion of the ad hoc group if any was called for.

    3.2.4 The countersigning officer examines the report and the jobholder’s comments

    The countersigning officer examines the comments in the report and checks that the standards have been applied; he then confirms or supplements the qualitative appraisal, and sends it to the jobholder, who has five working days in which to respond. Any comments by the jobholder are sent back to the countersigning officer.

    3.2.5 The countersigning officer proposes a performance level, and the Director proposes promotion points

    On the basis of the suggestions of reporting officers and the content of the qualitative appraisals, the countersigning officer proposes a performance level for each official and member of the temporary staff.

    The Director proposes promotion points for each official on the basis of the performance level indicated by the countersigning officers.

    3.2.6 Coordination

    The Director-General, acting in consultation with senior management, identifies the officials in each grade whose performance corresponds to levels IA and IB, and draws up his provisional formal intentions for the promotion points to be awarded. These are entered in the Sysper2 module. This coordination stage identifies any grades where the quota of points available for a performance level does not allow the highest number of promotion points laid down for that performance level to be awarded to at least one official. A request for exemption may be submitted to the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee to allow the quotas of promotion points to be increased in the problem grades.

    3.2.7 Consultation of the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee

    The Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committees will meet within five working days of the transmission by DG HR of a statistical analysis of the proposals made by the DGs. The Committees have eight working days in which to send any recommendations they wish to make to the DGs. These recommendations are brought to the notice of staff by means of an administrative notice.

    The Joint Committees will also consider any requests for exemption submitted by the DGs. If the Committee agrees, the quotas of promotion points are adjusted accordingly in Sysper2.

    3.2.8 Appraisal reports and promotion points finalised

    Following the recommendations of the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee, the Director-General may confirm or amend the list of officials in performance levels IA and IB, and confirm or amend his formal intentions for the award of promotion points.

    DG HR will then check that the maximum percentages laid down for levels IA and IB and the quotas of promotion points available have been complied with.

    Once DG HR has given its agreement, the countersigning officers countersign all the appraisal reports by function group. This sends the reports to the jobholders.

    The Director-General countersigns the promotion lists at the same time, and makes them accessible to the jobholders.

    3.2.9 The jobholder accepts or refuses the report and the promotion points

    The jobholder has eight working days to accept his appraisal report, with or without comments, and the promotion points, or to refuse either or both. Acceptance closes the report; refusal moves the report to appeal.

    3.2.10 Specific provisions for the External Service

    Each jobholder has two countersigning officers who jointly assume this role. In cases of disagreement between the first and the second countersigning officer, the final decision shall rest with the second countersigning officer.

    The External Service Steering Committee shall, upon proposal by the Director-General for External Relations on the basis of the individual qualitative appraisals, identify for all jobholders those whose performance during the reporting period corresponds to performance level IA and IB. It equally approves the provisional formal intentions regarding the allocation of promotion points.

    3.3 Timetable for the general exercise

    Actors

    Action

    Deadline

    Timetable 2010

    HR

    Launches exercise by means of an administrative notice

     

    15 January

    Director-General +
    management

    Discussion of performances within the DG, in each grade, over the reference period

     

    no later than 18 January

    Director-General

    Publishes common appraisal standards and any standards specific to the DG for the following year

     

    no later than end of  February

    Announces the criteria for awarding promotion points

    Reporting officer or human resources manager

    Creates reports in Sysper2

     

    from 15 January

    Jobholder

    Self-assessment

    8 working days

    no later than 31 January

    Jobholder + reporting officer

    Dialogue: assessment of the jobholder’s performance over the reference period; setting of objectives for the year; updating of training needs

     

    no later than 19 February

    Reporting officer

    Drafts report on quality of performance (no indication of performance level); reviews and validates objectives

    Dialogue + 10 working days

    no later than
    5 March

    Countersigning officer

    Checks that common standards have been applied; compares merits; confirms or amends comments; sends the qualitative report to the jobholder, with no indication of the performance level

     

    no later than 12 March

    Jobholder

    Sends any comments to the countersigning officer, or returns the report to the countersigning officer without comment

    5 working days

    no later than 19 March

    Countersigning officer

    Following comments from the jobholder, confirms, makes additions to or corrects the report

    Proposes performance levels via a list in Sysper2

     

    no later than 24 March

    Directors + Deputy Directors‑General

    Propose formal intentions for the award of promotion points

     

    no later than 24 March

    Coordination -Director-General + countersigning officers

    Grade‑by‑grade identification of performance levels IA (8%) and IB (22%)

     

    no later than 31 March 

    Director-General + Directors

    Provisional formal intentions for the award of promotion points in the promotion files, via a list in Sysper2

     

    no later than 31 March 

    Directors‑General

    Submission of proposals for levels and points in Sysper2

     

    7 April

    HR

    Sends statistics to the Joint Committees

     

    no later than 14 April

    AD Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee

    Checks that the exercise has been properly conducted in respect of AD officials; may make recommendations to the Director-General and to DG HR; sends its analysis to the staff

    8 working days

    22 April

    AST Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee

    Checks that the exercise has been properly conducted in respect of AST officials; may make recommendations to the Director-General and to DG HR; sends its analysis to the staff

    23 April

    Director-General + countersigning officers

    If required, further coordination on the basis of the recommendations from the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee

     

    26 – 29 April

    Director-General

    Confirms or modifies performance levels IA and IB
    Confirms or modifies lists of promotion points in the promotion files, via a list in Sysper2

     

    no later than 4 May

    HR

    Checks compliance of percentages and points with the points available by grade and by performance level; gives approval for the finalisation of reports by countersigning officers, and of lists of points by Directors‑General

     

    no later than 7 May

    Countersigning officer

    Validates reports and performance levels, and sends the report to the jobholder

     

    no later than 12 May

    Director-General

    Validates lists of points in promotion files, and sends the promotion file to the jobholder

     

    no later than 12 May

    Jobholder

    Accepts the report, with or without comments = report closed

    Rejects the report and lodges an appeal with the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee

    8 working days

    no later than 28 May

    Accepts the promotion points awarded

    Rejects the number of points and lodges an appeal with the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee

    3.4 Possibility to appeal to the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee

    The jobholder may contest the appraisal report, the performance level, or the promotion points awarded to him. In this case, he must lodge an appeal to the Joint Appraisal and Promotion Committee which analyses the appeal and delivers an opinion. The appeal is closed by the final decision of the Appointing Authority (Appraisal and/or Promotion).

    Further details on the appeal phase will be published in an additional Administrative Notice in May 2010.

_________
Footnotes
 
(1) Periods of sick leave, maternity leave, family or parental leave or military service are regarded as periods of active employment.

(2) The term “appraisal report” replaces the former term “career development report” (CDR).

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   Author: HR.B.4