What You Need to Know
The performance engagement process at Sandia is designed to engage you in actively enhancing your performance, whether it is to improve current performance or prepare for future positions. The process enables an ongoing conversation about performance and development between you and your manager.
Your annual performance assessment also influences your compensation results.
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Performance Engagement System
The goal of our Performance Engagement system is to better enable high performing employees and teams by providing clear expectations and accountability, more frequent recognition clearly tied to achievements and ongoing feedback, coaching and development.
The system is designed to:
- Foster consistency and transparency.
- Provide clear delineation of success and opportunities for enhanced performance.
- Reduce complexity.
- Improve the value of performance conversations.
- Enable more collaboration for growth and success.
How Your Performance is Assessed: Dimensions of Performance
You and your manager will evaluate your performance against Dimensions of Performance. The dimensions are consistent drivers of organizational success and employee development. Each dimension has a description of top performance; this level of excellence is the high bar to which each employee is measured consistently.
Only the highest performers will achieve the Dimensions of Performance to the fullest degree. Most employees will fall along a continuum—demonstrating some of the dimensions to a high degree of variability and others to a lower degree. Managers will differentiate performance by describing the degree to which an employee demonstrates each dimension. This system allows managers to lead clear conversations on what each employee is doing well and areas in which they can improve.
- Contributes by identifying future opportunities for self and others
- Brings others along to surpass goal achievement
- Makes significant contributions for annual or multi-year goals within or above the typical sphere of influence for job and level
- Act courageously to discover and convey the truth to achieve the mission today and into the future
- Connect to succeed with others leveraging diverse perspectives guided by shared purpose to succeed collaboratively
- Serves the Nation with purpose, passion, tenacity, and creativity
- Inherent in the way employee approaches their work
- Demonstrates an active search for innovation, taking intelligent risks and learning from failure, that leads to enhanced solutions, better practices, or deepened domain knowledge
- Challenges the status quo by engaging, where appropriate, when improvements can be made
- Engages with others to develop and support the solutions
- Is sought out by others for collaboration and subject matter expertise
- Consistently enhances the performance of those around them
- Brings diverse perspectives together to solve problems, integrate ideas, or improve and workstreams
- Demonstrates commitment to developing trust and transparency across teams
- Influences productive outcomes by working across organizational boundaries
- Does not hesitate to step into ambiguous, complex, or high-profile projects or roles
- Takes ownership of decisions made in ambiguity
- Prioritizes the development of self and others
- Serves as a trusted source for organizational change through community-building, championing, and providing support
Key Dates
The dates below align to the corporate performance management calendar. Your Division’s dates may vary; talk to your manager and HRBP about specific deadlines.
Goal Generation and Alignment
- Oct. 1-Nov. 25: Enter performance goals into ePerformance
- Nov. 29: Managers must approve employee goals in ePerformance
Performance Check-ins
- Jan. 2-March 31: Q2 Performance Check-ins
- April 1-June 30: Q3 Performance Check-ins
Annual Summations (July 1 – Oct. 10)
- July 1-11: Employees make final updates to goals prior to the Annual Summation phase.
- July 11: Managers formally “complete” Q3 check-ins in ePerformance.
- July 11-Aug. 15: Employees complete self assessment.
- Aug. 1: Last day to request feedback in ePerformance.
- Aug. 15: Last day to respond to feedback in ePerformance.
- Aug. 18-Oct 10: Managers create and save annual summations in ePerformance
- Oct. 20-Nov. 19: Managers complete annual summation discussions and “share” with employees in ePerformance. Begin FY26 goal alignment conversations.
- Nov 30: All performance documents to be acknowledged and in completed status.
New employees hired or LTEs moving to FTE positions after Sept 1 will not receive a performance document for the current FY.
Employees promoted to a manager after Sept 1 will not receive a new manager performance document for the current FY. Nor will managers stepping into individual contributor roles receive the individual contributor performance template. These individuals should complete the originally assigned document.
For managers: FY25 Non-Represented Performance Timeline
See Compensation Review for key dates related to this process.
Goal Generation and Alignment
We start the performance engagement process by generating goals for the year. Having well defined goals helps you understand your purpose and how you can make a positive impact in your role. Your goals will help you and your manager establish expectations and think ahead about how your work will contribute to Sandia’s results and to your team’s contributions.
We encourage you to consider what you’ll focus on, how you’ll work, and where you might stretch, develop, and grow. With manager approval, your goals can be continuously updated and/or closed as you progress through the year.
Using the SMART format, you are required to develop at least one essential goal and one team goal. We also encourage you to create a stretch goal.
Your goals should directly or indirectly link to Labs Strategy and Objectives and your organization’s specific programs, milestones, and priorities.
Four types of goals:
1. Essential goals illustrate direct or indirect linkage to Organizational Goals, establish key priorities, and define expectations.
2. Team goals are performance objectives that require the collaboration of team members to accomplish.
3. Stretch goals are encouraged, but not required. They are purposefully ambitious goals that challenge employees to step outside of their comfort zones.
4. Manager Goals are flowed down from Senior leadership to managers.
Goals can be added or revised throughout the year in the ePerformance Tool, into the quarter that is currently active. For more information, please see the ePerformance Guide: Goal Generation and Alignment.
Resources/Training for Goal Generation and Alignment
Performance Engagement Learning Journey
- Goal Generation and Alignment Quick Guide for Employees
- Goal Generation and Alignment Quick Guide for Managers
- ePerformance Guide: Goal Generation and Alignment
- Career Development in Action Quick Guide
- Manager Guide: Career Discussion with your Employee
- Labs Strategy
- Five Dimensions of Performance infographic
- Managing Performance for Employees on Offsite Extended Duty Assignments
- SMART Goal Template
- Using AI for Performance Documentation for Employees
- Using AI for Performance Documentation for Managers
- Goal Generation and Alignment for Employees (video of PERFENG101)
- Improve Competency in Coaching for High Performance (PERF202)
- Locke’s Goal Setting Theory
Feedback
At any time after goal setting phase, employees can submit or request feedback for the purposes of continuous improvement. We recommend requesting feedback during the year as you finish projects so your beneficiaries’ memory is fresh.
There are multiple ways to request feedback, see this guidance to consider how to obtain meaningful information.
Prepare for check-ins by requesting feedback beforehand. Feedback received by the manager will be shared during check-in conversations with the focus on celebrating positive feedback or “unpacking” constructive feedback.
Performance Check-ins
You and your manager will have a performance check-in during Q2 (January-March) and Q3 (April-June) to discuss progress to date and performance expectations leading up to the next check-in or annual summation. These conversations should focus on development, not assessment. Discussion should concentrate on how you are working toward your goals and priorities and what can be enhanced.
Check-in conversations should include a two-way GOOD conversation on progress towards Goals and Obstacles faced and Opportunities to enhance performance, build skills or gain new experiences. Your manager will document Decisions made and key points discussed in ePerformance.
You and your manager will review and reevaulate your goals to determine if they should be added to, revised or marked complete.
Resources/Training for Performance Check-ins
Performance Engagement Learning Journey
- Quick Guide on Performance Check-ins
- Guidance on Soliciting Performance Feedback
- Career Development in Action Quick Guide
- Getting Started: Individual Development Plan
- Career Discussion with your Employee – Manager Guide
- Five Dimensions of Performance infographic
- Performance Check-in Manager Checklist
- Goal Change Triggers
- Documenting Performance Check-ins (for managers)
- Managing Performance for Employees on Offsite Extended Duty Assignments
- Reinforcing Digital Thread During Performance Check-Ins
- Using AI for Performance Documentation for Employees
- Using AI for Performance Documentation for Managers
Visit the Career Development Office for more career development information, tools and resources.
ePerformance guides
- ePerformance: Requesting Feedback
- ePerformance: Responding to Feedback Requests
- ePerformance: Reviewing Feedback (Managers)
- ePerformance: Using Performance Notes
- ePerformance: Quarterly Check-ins
- ePerformance: Skip Level Access to Review Documents
Precipio courses
- Receiving Feedback with an Open Mind
- Delivering Feedback that Encourages Growth
- Polishing Your Feedback Skills
- Establishing Team Goals and Responsibilities, and Using Feedback Effectively
See course descriptions here>>
Books & Articles
- Conducting Performance Check-ins (video recording)
- GROW Coaching for Leaders (PERF202)
- Leveraging Feedback for Personal Growth (video recording)
- Crucial Conversations (COMM407)
- Crucial Accountability (COMM408)
- Influencer (COMM410)
- Five Conflict Styles and How to Use Them (COMM420)
- Breakthroughs (PERF201)
Annual Summations
At year-end, you will write a summary highlighting your performance for the year and how you demonstrated the Dimensions of Performance. Thought questions can be useful in helping you reflect on your performance and write your performance summary.
Your manager will write a summation in response to your self-assessment providing additional content, context and an assessment. This summation of your performance will include a description of what changed as a result of your goal achievements and the degree to which you demonstrated the dimensions of performance. The degree to which you demonstrate the dimensions is determined via variabilities of performance related to consistency, quality of work, decision making, problem solving, and communication.
Beneficiaries of your progress towards goals will provide feeback that will be factored into your manager’s summation of your performance.
Annual Summations are employee-centric, transparent, non-competitive, both backward and forward-looking and a dialogue between the manager and employee.
Resources/Training for Annual Summations
Performance Engagement Learning Journey
- Improve Competency in Coaching for High Performance (PERF202)
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Questions or Feedback?
If you have questions or feedback about the new performance engagement process, please reach out to the performance team at perfmngt@sandia.gov.
We’re adding to the FAQ as we receive questions.
Using SMART Methodology to Create Goals
The acronym “SMART” represents the following areas of focus for a performance goal:
- Specific – The goal is clearly stated, targets a single key result, and answers the what, why, and how.
- Measurable – The goal should include specific metrics for quantity, quality, timeliness, and/or cost that can be objectively measured.
- Attainable – The goal should stretch you slightly so you feel challenged, but it is defined well enough to be achievable.
- Relevant – The goal should link to Sandia’s vision, mission, and values.
- Time-Specific – The goal should include a realistic completion date.