Totara Perform Open Discussions

T14 PERFORM active links/variables

Welcome to this forum!

Hi all,

I'm using T14 to build an annual performance review using a main perf review activity plus some reminder activities which are associated with it (the default notifications didn't cut it). These reminders happen throughout the year and are typically empty check-ins.

I also found the performance review - competency element nowhere near usable in T14. In fact the manager gets totally lost in the competencies section with no link back to the review. So I'd like to build a jump to the subject's competency profile screen, from their review, using a static content link URL.

Are there magic variables available within static content, to allow the building of context-dependent links? This would successfully link activities using the username as a key, to get around the deficiencies of T14 PERFORM.

Thank you

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Hi Andrew -

I'm a Product Manager here at Totara and have a couple of questions for you around the experience if it's OK.

1) I know we've updated the notifications in Perform to centralised notifications in T17. Do you know if the updated notification experience would work for your use case? Or; what doesn't work with the T14 notifications for you?

2) Could you describe how the performance review-competency element is expected to behave, and where you see it going wrong? In what ways does navigating to the competency profile help, that adding competencies to the review doesn't?

I do not see an easy way to link to the competency profile using either username or user ID, sorry, except possibly through the newer notification placeholders, but that doesn't help you on the performance activity itself. Please feel free to message me directly if you'd like to discuss the use case further.

Thank you,

Ashley

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Hi Ashley, thank you. I don't appear to be able to message you directly.

We have leaders with let's say 150 team members, which clearly requires work levelling for performance reviews. This can be done in PERFORM by creating review instances on work anniversaries, for example, levelling the load across the year. The issue with that is if the leader wants/needs to complete a review prior to that anniversary, the instance doesn't exist yet. This loss of freedom causes pain.

So, a 'create all instances at start of period' activity with only completion notifications, plus a check-in activity created on work anniversaries, as a prompt, will work well. If there's a way of creating instances up-front and issuing notifications on anniversaries, I'm all ears.

Am I making the use case clear? This would presumably be an issue with all large teams.

Thanks Ashley - regards, Andrew

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Hi Andrew,

Yes I think I get the use case now, thank you. So the due date of the activity should be/ may be related to the work anniversary (or other arbitrary, work levelling schedule) in order to prompt completion, however the activity should be available throughout the year, or at least available before the completion reminder.

Let me do a bit of digging for you on what is available for you.

I'm working on continuous discovery for Perform. If you would like to have a half-hour discovery call with me please book some time here. This is 100% optional and 100% appreciated!

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Hi Andrew, I've found something I think will work for you in T17 (I'm unsure if it will work the same in T14) using only a single performance activity with notifications. Please let me know if this is on track:

Create a new performance activity with the following configurations in instance creation:

1. Creation date is open-ended, date type is relative, frequency is repeating

2. Choose your reference date, in this case 'job assignment start date' and choose anniversary if users have existed for awhile before this activity

3. set your instance creation start date to be however earlier than your reference date

4. set a due date in reference to your start date (a bit odd you cannot reference your reference date here in my opinion).

5. Under content, choose whether the activity closure should be upon completion or on due date (if you're wanting reminders on the anniversary, then automatic closure on the due date might not work).

6. Then with notifications, you'll want to set up 'participant due date reminder' notifications relative to the due date that you want.

The gap with this approach to your use case is in having all instances created at one time during a period. However, with the above approach you can achieve work levelling, creating instances before a relative due date, and reminders on the due date (OK if activity is overdue, or, schedule the due date so that notifications occur on the reference date).

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