2002 Checkpoint and Upward Appraisal surveys to be distributed next week

Employees will receive the surveys at their mail stops the week of June 24. The deadline for returning surveys is July 12.

This year's Checkpoint survey has 50 questions addressing issues such as career development, communication, diversity, job satisfaction, management, pay, performance management, productivity, and safety/security. Also included is a comment page for employees to make comments about any topic of concern. According to Workforce Data and Analysis (HR-WDA), in the past, employees used the included comment page to bring management's attention to specific issues.

The Upward Appraisal Survey has 20 questions per tier of management and asks employees to rate their supervisor, and their supervisor's manager, in areas such as communication skills, trustworthiness, accountability, decision-making ability and fairness toward employees.

Managers have found the Checkpoint survey useful in identifying and addressing areas of concern to employees, said Heidi Hahn of HR-WDA. For example, last year one division used the Checkpoint findings as a baseline metric for a professional development initiative. Hahn noted that HR-WDA is available to work with managers one-on-one to interpret their survey results and to develop strategies to address issues identified through the survey results.

Results from either survey are released only at the level at which the confidentiality and anonymity of the respondents is assured. HR-WDA provides findings and comments to teams or groups that have five respondents or more. Division tallies will include results regardless of whether they are reported at the team or at the group level.

HR-WDA will distribute reports detailing survey results by group, division and directorate in early August. Division-wide data will be available in division offices for employees to review.

Human Resources administered the surveys eight of the last nine years (all but year 2000) and the response rate has been around 46 percent, said Hahn. HR-WDA will compare findings from this year's surveys to those from past years. HR-WDA also will compare results from the Checkpoint survey to results from other national research and development organizations.

UC Lab employees should complete the surveys with a number two pencil or in black or blue ink and should not bend or staple the surveys because they will be scored electronically.

For questions about the surveys write to Checkpoint@lanl.gov by electronic mail, or call the survey team at 5-1423.

--Shelley Thompson

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