April 20, 1998

Dear First Lutheran Staff,

It’s springtime!   That’s the good news.  The “bad” news is that this is the time of year we do staff evaluations.  The enclosed “Staff Evaluation” form is to serve as a simple, concise instrument to assess job-related performance.

Your immediate supervisor will be doing your evaluation with you.  You, your supervisor, and myself as head of staff, will be the only ones who see the evaluations.  If the evaluations are to be shared with others, it would only be with your consent.  This understanding of confidentiality should permit you to speak freely during your evaluation.

It is important to remember the purpose of the evaluation and how it will be used:
•	The evaluation will allow us to intentionally evaluate our job performance,
•	determine areas of strength, and define areas where we need to grow.
•	The evaluation will guide us in setting goals for the coming year which will
•	enhance our work and review how we did on goals set last year.
•	The evaluation is intended to help us grow in our jobs, to give direction to our
•	conversations with our immediate supervisor, and make us as effective as possible
•	as employees of First Lutheran Church.
•	The evaluation may provide input for salary considerations.  However, many other factors are also considered (length of service, congregation’s ability to provide raises, current level of compensation, special circumstances, etc.).

Between now and June 1, your immediate supervisor will make an appointment with you.  In preparation for that appointment, you should evaluate yourself, using the enclosed “Staff Evaluation” form.  Your supervisor will do the same on a separate sheet.  The two forms will serve as the groundwork for your conversation; the supervisor’s evaluation becomes part of your personnel record.

Do not be intimidated by this task!  I am confident you will find the evaluation very valuable as you talk with your immediate supervisor.   Please speak with me if you have questions about the evaluation process.

						Blessings,

Pastor Duane Pederson, Pastor