If you are involved in performance appraisals and salary reviews for academic staff, you will need to use the Progress online application.
Progress allows academic staff to submit documents and statements about their academic progress. The material is viewed and appraised by reviewers, who can add comments and record their assessments of performance. Where salary is also being reviewed, decisions are recorded in Progress.
Progress is designed to work alongside the regular review meetings that staff will have with their reviewers to discuss performance and plans for future development.
Progress frequently asked questions
The frequently asked questions on this page will help users of the Human Resources Progress application, which is used for all academic performance reviews.
If your question is not answered here, you can contact:
The Human Resources Promotions and Remuneration Team
Tel +64 3 479 8266
or
Email hr.academicreviews@otago.ac.nz
or
Read about different types of reviews on the academic performance reviews webpage
Progress FAQ for staff submitting a review
What is Progress?
Progress is the online system used for submitting, reviewing and recording the performance of academic staff. You can read more about the processes on the academic performance reviews web page.
What is the web link for Progress?
The link for Progress is https://corpapp.otago.ac.nz/progress. Log in using your University of Otago username and password.
When you log in you will see the Dashboard, which shows your current and previous reviews.
When can I submit my review?
Human Resources will send you an email when the current year's review is open – at that point you will be able to start adding your documents and drafting your review statement.
Does it matter which web browser I use?
It's best to use Firefox or Chrome.
What do I submit for my academic performance review?
You are required to submit a review statement that covers your recent achievements in teaching, research and service. (Some staff are teaching-only or research-only, so only two areas will apply in those cases.) You must also attach the required supporting documentation, for example:
- CV in Otago standard format
- Schedule of teaching responsibilities
- Evaluations of your teaching
You can find the guidelines specific to your academic performance review at the Academic Performance Reviews webpage.
You will also need to enter some key objectives for the coming review period.
Your Academic Head or Reviewer should arrange to meet with you to discuss your performance and your goals. They should give a date by which they need you to submit your documentation.
What is the character limit for the text boxes?
The character limit depends on the kind of review you have:
Biennial reviews
For Biennial reviews, the Teaching, Research, Service, Objectives and More Information sections have a total shared limit of 15,000 characters across the five text boxes. This is equivalent to about three pages of text. You will see the combined total of remaining characters for this group of sections as you type.
Academic Performance Appraisal and Senior Lecturer / Senior Research Fellow reviews
For Academic Performance Appraisal and Senior Lecturer/Senior Research Fellow reviews, the Teaching, Research, Service, Objectives and More Information sections have a total shared limit of 5,000 characters across the four text boxes. This is equivalent to about one page of text. You will see the combined total of remaining characters for this group of sections as you type.
While you are typing, the running total across all text boxes will show in each text section. A line break is two characters.
If you can't fit all the required text into the text fields, please attach a file with your text and refer to this in the text boxes.
The Leave section has a separate limit of 500 characters.
How do I save my draft review?
The Progress applicant statement will automatically save every minute while it is in draft format. Please avoid using Internet Explorer or Safari, as the autosave function may not work well in those browsers.
There is also a manual 'Save' button that you can use.
Is there a spellchecker?
There is a spellcheck feature available for Progress's text fields. It is browser-based, and works in Firefox and Chrome.
What file types can I upload?
You can upload documents in the following file formats: .pdf, .xls, .xlsx, .doc, .docx, .txt
I am having trouble uploading my documents, what should I do?
There are two reasons that you may not be able to see where to upload your supporting documents:
- Check for the CV and supporting documents section – you need to click on the heading to expand the section and see the 'upload documents' field. Please remember to give each of your documents a description if the filename is not descriptive.
- Check that you haven't accidentally submitted your review forward. If you have, you are not currently able to edit or upload documents – please see the answer below for the question “How do I unsubmit my review?”
What happens when I submit my Progress review forward?
When you submit your review forward it is visible to your reviewer, who will also be able to enter comments. Please note that there is no notification to the reviewer when a review is submitted forward. If you're running late with your review then it's a good idea to check in with your reviewer so they know you have completed the submission.
How do I unsubmit my Progress review?
If you have forgotten to attach a document or made a mistake in the text, the best way to get your submission back for editing is to ask your reviewer or their person with delegated access to select your review from their Dashboard list and click “Return to Previous.”
If this is not possible, our team can do the same thing for you. Please contact:
HR Promotions and Remuneration
Tel +64 3 479 9263
I'm applying for promotion, do I have to submit a review?
Yes, you should still have a performance appraisal with your Head of Department or reviewer. It is often sufficient to upload the relevant parts of your promotion application in lieu of preparing a separate review statement – check with your reviewer about what they require.
Progress FAQ for reviewers
How do I attach an additional document to my staff member's Progress review?
There are two options:
- Ask the staff member to upload their document:
“unsubmit” the review back to the staff member so they can upload their additional document and re-submit the review. To do this, go to your Dashboard list view and select the checkbox beside the staff member's submission. Click on “Return to previous” under the Actions heading and you will see that the review returns to 'draft' status. You will need to remind the staff member to re-submit the review to you when they are ready. - Upload your own document:
you can upload a document into the “Reviewer-supplied material” section. First you will need to click on the heading of this section to expand it. This document can be viewed by the staff member at the end of the process.
What can staff members see in the portal?
Before the submission reaches Decision Notified status, the staff member who has submitted the review cannot see any reviewer comments or material that the reviewer has uploaded. During this time the staff member will see only that their submission is still To be reviewed.
When each reviewer has completed their comment and recommendation, the review is checked by Human Resources, and changed to Decision Notified status. At that point all comments become viewable.
Where is my review? Where are my staff members' reviews?
You should be able to select the review you're looking for in the Actions area at the foot of the Dashboard. Click on the title of the review to access it.
If you can't see the review you are looking for, there are three common solutions:
Change between 'Reviewer' and 'Submitter' mode
The view of your Dashboard depends on whether you are in 'Reviewer' or 'Submitter' mode (called User Type). You can toggle the User Type using the blue and yellow buttons in the Navigation area in your Dashboard.
Change to a different workflow
Your Dashboard shows three different lists (called Workflow Types) to choose from: 'Annual Performance Appraisal', 'Biennial Review' and 'Senior Lecturer Review' (that is, the Workflow Type). You can switch the Workflow Type using the blue and yellow buttons in the Navigation area in your Dashboard.
Check your filters
In your Dashboard you will see that the Submissions area has a range of dropdown menus and a search field that you can use to filter your Dashboard list by Year, Department etc.
If you still have trouble, please contact:
HR Promotions and Remuneration
Tel +64 3 479 9263
How do I delegate a review from the Head of Department to another senior staff member?
For the Annual Performance Appraisal only, Heads of Departments may delegate some reviews to another senior staff member. For example, you may wish that Assistant Research Fellows and Postdoctoral Fellows be reviewed by their direct supervisor.
To change the reviewer for a submission:
- Select the 'Edit Special Reviewers' button from within the staff member's Progress submission.
- In the 'Special Reviewers' area, enter the supervisor's username and reviewer position (likely to be First Reviewer in the drop-down menu), then press enter or click 'Save.'
- Check that the correct supervisor name has appeared in the Name column. You don't need to enter the email address.
- In the 'Assign Reviewers' section, you should now be able to select the newly-delegated supervisor as First Reviewer in the drop-down menu at the foot of the page.
- Click 'Save.'
- You will need to let the supervisor know that you require them to complete the review for this submission as delegated reviewer. The review will now show on their dashboard in the same way that it does for you. You will still have access as First Reviewer after you have made this delegation.
- Check with your division or school in case you are now required to be Second Reviewer. This change can be made in a similar way.
What happens when I submit my Progress reviewer comments forward?
When you submit your comments the review will go forward to the next reviewer in the list, or to Human Resources for checking if you are the final reviewer. Please note that there is no notification to the next reviewer when a review is submitted forward. If you're running late with your review comments then it's a good idea to check in with the next reviewer so they know you have completed your part.
How do I unsubmit my Progress reviewer comments?
If you have made a mistake in your comment text or in your recommendation checkboxes, you can get your comments back for editing if you contact the next reviewer. The next reviewer can go to the Dashboard list, select the review submission, and click 'Return to Previous.'
If this is not possible, please contact:
HR Promotions and Remuneration
Tel +64 3 479 8266