Supervisory Notes – Jon Jones
Community Worker II (1040 hours probationary period)
[PROBATIONARY EXTENSION DUE TO PERFORMANCE]
8/6/10 (Monday, 9 a.m.) – I met with Jon Jones who started his County employment today. We went over the list of written expectations provided which include department-specific expectations as well as generic expectations as a County employee. We then reviewed the resource materials including the reference manual and his training schedule. I encouraged him to take notes during our meetings and to keep them in the resource binder which includes additional reference materials. We reviewed his work schedule that we had already discussed (7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. with lunch from 12:00 p.m.-1:00 pm). He provided me his home phone, cell phone, and emergency contact information for our departmental personnel files. I explained that we’d meet biweekly for supervision. If he had any questions or needed any clarification, I advised him to come see me at any time. I then introduced his to his coworkers Anne and Bob who have been in the department for many years and can provide him assistance in my absence.
8/21/10 (Tuesday, 11 a.m.) – I reviewed the work Jon had completed and discussed the outreach client visits he did with Anne and Bob (two visits with each.) Anne let me know that Jon was very quiet during their two visits and he only observed her interaction with the clients. Jon didn’t offer to help her and/or engage in any conversation with the clients. Bob provided me with very different feedback regarding his experiences with Bob on his client visits. Jon was helpful with his clients in getting them in/out of the car and to their respective appointments. He was very pleasant with the clients as well as professional and courteous. When I asked Jon about these client interactions, he explained he felt more comfortable with Bob rather than Anne. When I asked him to explain further, he said that he thought Anne didn’t seem to want him there and was bothered, almost annoyed, in having to train him. Jon thought it was better if he stayed quiet and remained as inconspicuous as possible. I thanked him for sharing this information with me and said that I would speak with Anne. He said he would prefer to handle it himself. I told him I would respect his request and would check with him in our next supervision to find out the status between him and Anne.
9/5/10 (Wednesday, 11 a.m.) – Jon attended the County Ergonomics course last week and said he found it useful and will incorporate what he learned into his work. He said his interaction with Anne has improved and feels he can work well with her. However, he did say he still feels more comfortable with Bob. He says that Bob seems more receptive to having him around and explains what he’s doing and why. He really appreciates Bob’s time in training him and hopes he can continues to work with Bob. I said I would speak with Bob about being his mentor for the next three months and Jon was very appreciative of this suggestion.
9/20/10 (Thursday, 2 p.m.) – Bob has agreed to be Jon’s mentor for the next three months. He’s let me know that Jon’s been helpful to him and his clients. However, he’s observed that Jon’s relationship with Anne is rather strained, which he personally witnessed before our unit meeting this morning. Prior to my arrival into the conference room, Bob observed Jon and Anne discussing transportation tomorrow for one of Anne’s clients. Anne asked Jon if he could transport one of her clients tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. for a doctor’s appointment at 9:30 a.m. She explained to Jon that she had checked the schedule and it appeared that he was available. Jon told Anne that he couldn’t help her because he was busy and then walked away from her. Bob said that Anne seemed surprised and somewhat offended by Jon’s behavior. She knew that Bob was his mentor and told him after the unit meeting that she didn’t appreciate Jon speaking to her in that manner. When I met with Jon for supervision, I told him that the incident had been reported to me and asked him what had happened with Anne this morning. He said he misread the schedule and could in fact take Anne’s client to the doctor’s appointment. Jon said he didn’t mean to offend Anne in any way and would apologize to her immediately following our meeting. I told him that I expected him to treat everyone including coworkers, supervisors, managers, and clients in a professional and courteous manner at all times and can expect the same from others. He assured me that this incident wouldn’t happen again.
10/3/10 (Wednesday, 10:30 a.m.) – Anne told me that Jon met with her on 9/20 regarding the incident that morning prior to the unit meeting. She said that he had apologized for offending her and promised it wouldn’t happen again. He explained to her that he had misread the schedule and would transport her client to his appointment. She felt his apology was sincere and there have not been any further incidents. Anne said Jon’s been available when she’s requested his assistance. However, two of her clients have reported that he’s late in picking them up and/or getting them to their appointments. I met with Jon and explained that two clients had complained about his tardiness. He said he’s not familiar with the area and has tried to do his best. I told him he needs to review area maps, possibly using Google Maps or MapQuest. I advised him that he needs to allow sufficient time to get clients to/from their appointments so our clients don’t have to wait, which is discourteous, and/or arrive for appointments late, which reflects poorly on the department. He was assigned two new cases and needs to schedule initial appointments with each of them in the next two weeks.
10/12/10 (Friday, 8:30 a.m.) – I checked with Anne and Bob prior to my meeting with Jon and both report no complaints from their clients regarding Jon’s tardiness. When I met with Jon for supervision today, he says he’s getting more familiar with the area and prints online directions whenever he’s making visits and/or transporting clients. I told him to keep up the good work. I did tell him that I recently noticed a change in his progress notes, where he’s not including all information and/or has fallen behind on updating his case files. He told me he doesn’t have enough time to complete the paperwork with the addition of the two new cases. I reviewed with him the requisite information that must be included in progress notes. I explained that should it be necessary for someone else to review the case file, current information and comprehensive information is needed in the case file. I told him that I did not feel that the two additional cases would cause him to fall behind, especially since it only resulted in one meeting with each client. I said I would enroll him in the County “Time Management” training course through the Learning Management System and he should expect to receive an email regarding his enrollment. Upon completion of that course, we will meet to discuss what he learned and how he could incorporate the information into his work.
10/26/10 (Friday, 11 a.m.) – Prior to our supervision meeting, I reviewed Jon’s case files and have found some improvement. He’s approximately one week behind on his progress notes. We reviewed each case and set up a schedule for completing his progress notes. I also told him I was preparing his three-month probationary performance evaluation and he’ll be rating improvement needed overall. I told him I would provide him a draft evaluation in our next supervision which he will have the opportunity to review, provide me comments either verbally and/or in writing, and I will then finalize the draft for his review and signature which will be retained in his Civil Service and departmental personnel files.
10/31/10 (Wednesday, 9 a.m.) – I met with Jon for supervision. He’s very worried about his three-month probationary evaluation and whether he’s going to be dismissed. I told him I did have concerns regarding his performance but feel with more time, he can perform competently in all aspects of his job. I told him that we’ll meet on a weekly basis to review his case files and progress notes. We created an action plan to address what he needs to complete and due dates for all assignments given.
11/13/10 (Tuesday, 10:30 p.m.) – I met with Jon regarding his pending assignments and provided him with a draft Performance Improvement Plan (PIP.) I explained that I had drafted this document to assist him in improving in specific areas specifically quality of work, quantity of work, and adaptability. He initially was not receptive to the constructive feedback I provided and became upset, slightly argumentative. I explained that it’s being provided to assist him in meeting all aspects of his job. He apologized for his behavior and told me he’s afraid he’s letting me down and doesn’t want to disappoint me. I told me I believe he’s capable of being successful in this position. I explained again that I believe he needs more time and this document should be a helpful reference for him. The PIP was revised incorporating information from our discussion; Jon signed and dated it today.
11/28/10 (Wednesday, 10 a.m.) – I met with Jon for supervision and explained that while I had seen some improvement, he was still behind on his progress notes. He explained he had underestimated a particular assignment which took him much longer than he expected. He admitted he has a difficult time with prioritizing his assignments and with his time management. He had three assignments due this week which he assured me he would complete. He told me he didn’t know what to do so he decided to work on each of them but wasn’t able to finish any. When I asked him why he hadn’t told me earlier, especially since he missed the deadline for distributing the revised educational materials, he didn’t know what to say. I explained that I expect him to keep me well informed regarding his pending projects. If he is uncertain about which projects to work on, he’s expected to address it with me as soon as possible. Regarding the three pending projects, we could have adjusted the due dates for two of those assignments so he could have worked on the educational materials and met that deadline since it impacted others within the division. I also told him I would be enrolling him through LMS in the next County “Time Management” training course. Upon completion of the course, I expect him to review the handouts with me at the next supervision and discuss what he learned and how he could apply it the information to his work.
12/12/10 (Wednesday, 3 p.m.) – I met with Jon for supervision and provided him a copy of his draft performance evaluation, including the rating sheet and narrative citing specific examples. I explained that I had seen recent improvement in several areas but he still needs to improve in meeting deadlines. In order to give him more time to improve his overall performance and for me to assess his performance, I advised him I requested that his probationary period be extended 520 hours (equivalent to three months of full-time service). I told him he would receive a letter from Employee Relations confirming that probation extension. We reviewed his case files for the past week and progress notes prepared. They were comprehensive and concise. I told him he was on the right track and to continue what he was doing. He was receptive to the feedback provided and said he would keep me posted if he needed further guidance. He said he would review the draft evaluation and provide written comment prior to our supervision next week so we could discuss it further.
[SEE SECTION 3 FOR MORE INFORMATION REGARDING PROBATIONARY PERIODS]