Performance Management

Performance management at Virginia Tech is a year-round cycle of planning, conversations, and reflection — designed to support both individual growth and organizational success.

The Process

Performance unfolds across three connected phases:

• Plan — Employees and supervisors create clear goals, success metrics, and outcomes at the start of each cycle.
• Touchpoints — Regular big picture meetings track progress, address challenges, and keep development on course throughout the year.
• Evaluation / Assessment — At the cycle's end, employees and supervisors reflect on the year, assess outcomes, and recognize growth.

Virginia Tech's Approach to Performance

At Virginia Tech, we take a balanced, integrated approach to performance — one that recognizes growth and accountability as complementary, not competing.

This means bringing together a growth mindset — where challenges are opportunities and mistakes are part of learning — with a performance mindset that holds clear expectations and meaningful accountability.

In practice, this looks like:

• Development and results go hand in hand. Employees are supported in growing their capabilities while remaining accountable for outcomes that contribute to the university's mission.
• Psychological safety and accountability coexist. Employees are encouraged to take risks, experiment, and adapt — and those efforts are expected to connect to real, measurable goals.
• Feedback is ongoing and actionable. Progress is recognized; so is achievement. Neither replaces the other.

We also recognize that sustainable performance requires flexibility — to reassess strategies, communicate when pivots are needed, and attend to well-being alongside productivity.