Following the commitment of His Excellency Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi in rejigging the State Public Service standard, the office of the Head of Service constituted a committee to review the existing Public Service Annual Performance Evaluation Report System (APERS).
The APERS review Committee was set up on the 12th day of November, 2020 by the Head of Service of the State , Mr. Ken Chukwuegbo with the following terms of reference :
1. To review the present Appraisal Form and make it more concise.
2. To determine whether the Appraisal process should be bi-annual or an annual exercise.
3. To review the present methodology of scoring to reflect Officers output, conduct and promotability.
4. Any other inclusion (s) as the Committee may deem necessary.
The members of the committee are as follows:
1. Mr. Ogbonna Idike – Permanent Secretary , Ministry of Transport ( Chairman)
2. Mr. Henry Agbo – HOD ( Admin/Supply) GA, office of the Head of Service
( Secretary)
3. Dr. Mrs. Oby Okafor – D(F&A) – ministry of science and technology
(Member)
4. Mr. Chijioke Ngwu – D ( Admin/Supply ) Ministry of Local Government matters
(Member)
5. Barr. Henry Okeke – Assistant to the Executive Governor (Member)
6. Mrs. Nkechi B Ewoh – Representative of the Civil Service Commission (Member)
7. Mr. Michael Ugwu – D ( Admin & Supply ) – Ministry of Health
(Member).
The timeline of the committee was one month. And it is imperative to note that the committee has delivered this onerous assignment within this timeline and on December 14, 2020 the Committee presented its Report to the Head of Service.
The Report is a product of extensive research and brainstorming by the members who displayed passion for service and unflinching resolve for standardization of the public service of the State.
The Importance of Appraisal in Enugu State Public Service
Appraisal systems exist to improve organisational efficiency by ensuring that individuals perform to the best of their ability, develop their potential, and earn appropriate reward. This in turn leads to improved organisational performance – Productivity. In reality however,
Appraisees sometimes perceive their annual appraisal as a threat. Nevertheless, this can be overcome if the appraisal system is well-constructed, and seen to be fair to the individual and consistent across the State. The Enugu State Government is determined to rejig the workers Appraisal system to make it more Productivity oriented.
Most times, Employees often question the value and usefulness of the time and effort taken up by an appraisal. However, it establishes key results that an individual needs to achieve within a time period while also comparing the individual’s performance against a set and established standard.
Basically, the employee is not the only beneficiary – the State Government benefits through identifying employees for promotion, noting areas for individual improvement, and by using the system as a basis for human resource planning.
In all, Appraisal is the best way to encourage productivity and excellence in service delivery in Enugu State Public Service.
Purpose and Components of Appraisal system
Appraisals have three main purposes. These are often misunderstood. The first is to measure the extent to which an individual may be awarded a salary increase compared with his or her peers. This is the reward review component.
The second purpose of an appraisal is to identify any training needs and, if appropriate, to provide training and development to enable an individual to help the organisation to achieve its objectives. This is the performance review component.
Finally, appraisals are also important to aid an individual’s career development by attempting to predict work that the individual may be capable of in the future. This is the potential review component.
Conclusion
Careful preparation and understanding is required if the appraisal process is to be successful, worthwhile and relevant.
Indeed, It is commendable that Enugu State Government is proactive as the Federal Government have also within the timeline of Enugu State Appraisal Committee proposed a review of the existing Public Service Annual Performance Evaluation Report System (APERS).
Enugu State is in the hands of God
Written by:
Barr. Henry Nnanna Okeke
Special Assistant to the Executive Governor of Enugu State
