(Sent to all NIU employees and supervisors via email on 06/22/2026)
Colleagues,
Beginning in late July, Human Resource Services will launch the ePerformance Portal, a single online home for the annual performance evaluation process. I want to be clear about what this is and what it is not.
This step responds to a request we have heard consistently. Our employee shared leadership groups, senior leadership, and campus stakeholders have all asked for alignment on the performance evaluation process, so that everyone is evaluated on the same cycle rather than in scattered, inconsistent windows. The portal delivers that alignment: one process, one cadence, applied across the university.
The evaluation tool you use is not changing. The portal is a way to collect evaluations, not a new form imposed on you. You may keep using the templates you have always used, or adopt a new one if it fits the role better. The templates, the factors, and the standards remain yours to choose. What is changing is how we collect evaluations and keep the process on track. The portal gives us an automated way to collect evaluation documents, send reminders, and simplify each step, while giving employees and supervisors more transparency into where things stand. Performance evaluation is a critical institutional requirement, and this establishes a consistent, reliable process for meeting it.
A few things to know now:
- Training comes first. Live online sessions are scheduled for July 14 at 10:00 a.m. and again on July 17 at 1:30 p.m., both via Microsoft Teams. Attend whichever works for your schedule; the second session repeats the first. Both sessions are recorded and posted to the HRS Training website for anyone who cannot attend live.
- Supervisors: a dedicated training on effective performance management is set for July 23 at 10:00 a.m., offered in a hybrid format and recorded for the HRS Training website. Details and registration will follow in a separate message.
- The portal goes live in late July, and a new website with materials, guides, and links opens ahead of time.
Action needed for SPS supervisors:
The normal collection of SPS evaluations through Kuali will be discontinued. If you supervise SPS employees, please do not begin evaluations in Kuali. Wait for the new release in late July and use the ePerformance Portal instead. This avoids duplicate work and lost entries during the transition.
If you have or are planning on conducting your evaluation before the portal opens, it is fine to do so; however, you will be required to upload the finalized document for this evaluation cycle and the employee will need to record acknowledgement in the portal.
A note on who is included this first year:
All SPS employees are part of this first cycle. For Civil Service, the first year phases in by a cutoff sequence: it includes employees with July through December entry months who hold certified status and completed probation by March 31, 2026, with certain leave exclusions. Civil Service employees outside that window will phase in on the next cycles. If you supervise Civil Service staff, expect that not everyone will appear in your queue this first year. That is by design, and the rest follow on schedule
One competency for everyone:
Every evaluation will include a shared competency: how each employee supported student success in the context of their own role. Supporting Student Success is a University Goal, established through our shared governance process, and it belongs to all of us, whether we serve students directly or through the work that keeps the university running. You will see more about how this appears on your evaluation during training.
Watch for a training reminder in early July. Thank you for helping us make this process clearer and easier for everyone.
Take good care,
John
John Acardo
Senior AVP and Chief Human Resources Officer
Human Resource Service
