Elise Smart must decide on a performance rating for Darlene Ketchum. Key factors Smart should consider include Ketchum's background, skills, family situation, and work behavior managing her team. While Ketchum showed enthusiasm and knowledge, she became distracted by personal projects and did not complete her major assignment. An "excellent" rating could motivate Ketchum, while a "needs improvement" rating may demotivate her. Given Ketchum's previous success and the challenges of her assignment, Smart would likely assign an "excellent" rating.

1. Smart Elise
Special Group
# Pier Paolo Bosco
# Arianna Calabretta
# Giacomo Carozza
# Michela Cipollone
# Gian Marco D’Urso
# Elio Giannitelli
# Hesham Mahmoud
# Michele Massacesi

2. Main Characters
# ELISE SMART: 32, senior manager in the development group of the IT. High
perfomer with a strong 10-year track record in the IT field. Assigned to lead the
End-User Education & Support Team.
# DARLENE KETCHUM: 28, works under Smart. Computer science graduate
from a local university. Extremely knowledgeable, seemed to like helping end-
users and seeks for promotion. She is going to take a maternity leave from
February to October.
# JOHN CHENG: Smart’s vice-president. Probably doesn’t want to deal with
possible conflicts deriving from Smart’s appraisal of Ketchum.

3. New IT Support Design
BusinessIT Division
Development Dept.
- PC R & D - 8 people
- Knowledge
Management - 8
people
Operation Dept.
- IT Helpine -
preexisting
End User Edu & Support
Smart & Ketchum + 10 people
Project
Works
Help Desk
2h shift
Tech Gentre
0900-1700

4. Performance Managm. Process
Smart gives a
performance
assesment
Smart and
Ketchum discuss
the rating
Ketchum
refuses the
rating
Appraisal
submission to
Cheng
Chen retifys Smart’
s decision
Chen overpasses
Smart’s
decisiondge
Ketchum
accepts it and
sign it
Chen reunite
Senior Board

5. What factors should elise smart take into account in deciding what
performance rating she should give to darlene ketchum? 1...
# Ketchum’s backgrouns and experiences: she is fluent in kinds of problem
users, and she is aware of the importance of managing the expactation among
the helpline and PCs support group. But Ketchum privious experience was just
with a small team that worked closely with the document’s supplier
management system;
# Ketchum work behaviour in managing the work of PC support/ tech center
team: she scheduled team meetings but she used them to find help for her
personal task about the development of new software packages to track and log
calls. Also after Smart encouragment, Ketchum did not produce a position paper
or set of recomendations, but she continued try to solecit people for her call-
logging system;

6. What factors should elise smart take into account in deciding what
performance rating she should give to darlene ketchum? ...2
# Ketchum’s skills: extremely knowledgeable about PCs and related
software, and seems to be happy to help no-users;
# Ketchum (family) situation: she is a neo-mum;
#Ketchum work behaviour in managing the work of PC support/ tech center
team: she scheduled team meetings but she used them to find help for her
personal task about the development of new software packages to track and log
calls. Also after Smart encouragment, Ketchum did not produce a position paper
or set of recomendations, but she continued try to solecit people for her call-
logging system;
# Complex and quite unstructured assignment
# The achievement of the goals (Ketchum assignment)

7. Do you think that the decision about the performance rating is likely to
have a positive or negative impact on Ketchum’s subsequent
performances and development as an IT professional?
It depends whether Smart will qualify Ketchum with “Excellent” or “Needs
Improvement” rating.
In the case Ketchum receives an “Excellent” rating, this will have a positive
impact on her subsequent performance and development as an IT professional
for two main reasons:
# Ketchum’s satisfaction for the appraisal will bring more motivation for the
future;
# The extra bonus money for “Excellent” rating will bring to Ketchum more
responsibilities, increasing her motivation for higher performance.
In the case Ketchum receives a “Needs Improvement” rating, this will have a
negative impact on her subsequent performance and development as an IT
professional because she will feel unsatisfied and unmotivated.

8. If you were in Smart’s position, what rating would
you assign? Why?
We would assign an excellent assessment to Ketchum.
Ketchum had ever received an excellent rating and She was very enthusiastic and
confident when She accepted the task in January before leaving. Ketchum didn't
complete her major assignment but it was a difficult goal and quite
unstructurated, quite a "stretch" for Ketchum given her background and
experience moreover her maternity leave played an important role in her
performance . In spite of ketchum's drop in performance level her efforts didn't
change during time.