Re: performance measurements

["John Fleming" <johntwrl -at- hotmail -dot- com>]

After reading your question, reading TechComm Dood's response, and thinking 
about the performance measures I calculate results for on a regular basis, I 
think we need to all be on the same page as to exactly what we mean by 
performance measures.

The one's I work with, though not tech comm department-ish, fall along the 
lines of per diem costs and staff to offender ratios.  These are a very 
different kind of performance measurement than what TechComm Dood is talking 
about.

In her's (his?), we're talking about assessing the performance of individual 
writers, perhaps with the intent of assisting with the completion of the 
annual employee performance appraisal.

In mine, were talking more about measures used to assess the overall 
performance of the entire department or the performance of one of our 
branches.

So we have two very different measurement goals.

So the question I have is this.  Are you interested in determining if the 
employees in your technical communication department are meeting company 
expections--wtih possible future promotions and pay raises as a reward?  Or 
are you interested in determining if your technical communications 
department is supporting a corporate objective, perhaps reducing the average 
daily number of phone calls to the help desk or producing more cost 
effective documentation?

Subject: performance measurements
From: lyndsey -dot- amott -at- docsymmetry -dot- com
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2005 12:58:12 -0500