Self-Appraisal

Name: Melissa Holmes Job Title: Student Date Appointed to this Position: Spring 2014 Managers Name and Title: Dr. Amanda Madden, Professor Date of Review: 4/29/14 Department: LCC 3403 Review Period: Spring 2014

Section IMajor Areas of Responsibility

Major Areas of Responsibility/Goals These typically relate to the major activities that you perform on your
job and/or the goals that have been established by your manager and discussed with you. This is also an opportunity to describe noteworthy accomplishments. Primary Performance Expectations: Responsibilities/Goals Alternative Job Packet - Achieves the same goals as traditional resumes and application letters - Serves as an introduction to human-centered technical communication -Introduces the process of prototyping, testing, and refining Notes/Comments on Achievements & Areas for Improvement

Brochure/Usability Report -Working collaboratively with other students -Prepare step-by-step how to brochure -Complete usability report of another groups brochure -Instruct class on specifics utilizing a Prezi presentation. NSF Grant -Work with a team to identify an opportunity on campus and a feasible solution -Complete NSF Ethics grant with group

Final Professional Portfolio -Present individual and collaborative work through one or more cycles of prototyping, testing, and refining in the context of a well-designed professional portfolio -Complete self-assessment

During the process of completing the alternative job Packet, I was able to successfully update my resume to professional standards. During my freshman year at Georgia Tech, my resume still included my accomplishments from high school, and during this project I was able to update my resume by including all of my achievements at Georgia Tech instead of in high school, which are much more relevant to the professional world. I also successfully completed my first cover letter, which was reviewed by the professor and updated with the given feedback which was to be more specific in connecting my accomplishments to how they would benefit the employer I was applying to work for. After updating my cover letter, I believe the letter as well as the lessons learned during the process will be beneficial in helping me obtain internships and jobs in the future. This project required the class to individually work on a collaborative assignment. At first, my group was unclear about this instructions and our brochures were very individualist and the only way that one could tell that they were related were by the topic and similar formatting. After review from the professor, we made our brochures into an easier to view and understand Tumblr, which improved the usability of our instructions. Completing the usability report for another group also allowed us to see errors in our own project and fix them. Our group worked well together and I believe the Prezi, although simple, achieved our goal of educating the class on how to brew hot beverages. I missed the first day of assigning groups for the NSF grant due to an excused absence, but our group quickly jumped in and began the report once the group was established. It was easy to divide and conquer the grant, and our group only had to meet once outside of classroom group work time. The scheduling was easy, and the group finished the grant during that time. I believe we made great use of our class work time, finishing most of the grant during allowed class time. After writing, reading and reviewing the grant, we successfully creating a plan for an updated ethics course at Georgia Tech. -This self-assessment allowed me to reflect on the semester and what I accomplished and what could be improved. I believe I worked hard in the class and this self-assessment reflects that. -My final portfolio is displayed at MHolmesProfessionalPortfolio.weebly.com. I am proud of all I have accomplished this semester and this portfolio showcases my work on a professions and well-designed website.

Section IIPerformance Competencies (Skills and behaviors)

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These skills and behaviors have been identified as important for most employees. Other skills and behaviors may be added if needed. Please review and consider how you have demonstrated these in your job and how you might improve on these going forward. Competency Area Notes/Comments on Competency Areas and Suggestions for Improvement I completed all assignments in a through manner and worked hard to make sure each was up to standard. I could work on consistently checking TSquare to make sure I am turning assignments in on time, because I did turn in an assignment 2 hours late because the assigned due time was 5:00pm when it is typically 11:55pm, and I did not correctly check that to make sure it was turned in at the proper time. I made all other deadlines and used class time to work on LCC assignments when appropriate. The customers in our LCC class are my classmates, professor, and potential employers. I used this class to prepare not only physical work for future employers and to present to classmates, but to learn and perfect professional skills such as never talking while the instructor is talking, not coming in late, etc. I believe I accomplished this goal because I was only late to class one time and made being there before 1:35 a priority, never spoke when instructions were being given, and made sure to show focus when the instructor or a classmate was speaking by shutting my laptop when it was not necessary for class. Overall, I believe the class and professor did an exceptional job of being flexible through missing two weeks of school because of snow. We worked together to revise the syllabus and assignments and reallocate points. My specific team excelled in the problem solving area during the brochure and usability report project, because originally our brochures did not go together as well as we had planned so we came up with the creative solution to create a Tumblr, a medium not typically used for written classroom assignments. I effectively collaborated with both of the teams I was on. On my first team, I initiated a GroupMe, a group message communication app, to keep everyone in the group informed and give us a way to quickly communicate with each other about our projects. We worked positively together, even though we did have some frustration with being unable to quickly learn how to use Prezi, and shared our ideas and resources to complete the project. In my second group, for the NSF grant, we also had a group text message to communicate but more of our work was done in class. We did a good job of effectively delegating the work so that it was finished a day before the due date. Both groups I was a part of as well as all of the students in the general class demonstrated respect for individuals. I believe this skill was affectively approved upon in this class because we were taught technical communication. I attempted to perfect my email etiquette, as well as other professional communication skills that will be necessary to communicate with employers and coworkers in the future. I used my projects to effectively communicate and perfect my writing abilities.

Taking Responsibility: Completes

assignments in a thorough, accurate, and timely manner that achieves expected outcomes; handles multiple responsibilities in an effective manner; uses work time productively.

Customer Focus: Is dedicated to

meeting the expectations and requirements of classmates and professors; establishes and maintains effective relationships with peers and instructor and gains their trust and respect; goes above and beyond to anticipate needs and respond accordingly.

Problem Solving/Creativity: Identifies

and analyzes problems; formulates alternative solutions; takes or recommends appropriate actions; follows up to ensure problems are resolved.

Collaboration/Teamwork: Uses
diplomacy and tact to maintain harmonious and effective work relationships with coworkers and constituents; adapts to changing priorities and demands; shares information and resources with others to promote positive and collaborative work relationships; supports diversity initiatives by demonstrating respect for all individuals.

Communication/Interpersonal Skills:
Is able to effectively communicate and to influence others in order to meet organizational goals; shares information openly; relates well to all kinds of people; is able to speak well and write effectively.

Section IIIGrowth and Development Plan

Describe two or three of your top strengths and one or two growth/development opportunities.

Strengths:

Two of my top strengths are professional communication and taking responsibility. I have seen my professional communication strengths grow in this class through communication with the professor and with my classmates, and I believe I take responsibility for my work and my actions by always being on time, notifying if I will be absent, and completing my tasks both completely and on time. A growth opportunity for me is to obtain actual real world professional experience. I believe I have mastered professional communication when it comes to communicating with professors and classmates but it could be different when the customer becomes a boss or colleague so I could perfect those skills by gaining experience. If I need to find information on a specific type of job memo or any kind of task my future boss has asked me to complete, I plan on keeping my technical communication book and using that as a resource to use in the professional world. To improve, I will gather feedback from my peers and instructor on both my work completed in the classroom and my professional communication skills. Anything that needs improvement can be worked on and perfected. I will implement the development to close performance gaps method, which uses the instructor, in conjunction with the student, to identify development plans for any goals, skills or behaviors which are assessed at the Needs Improvement performance level. Development plans which address performance at the Needs Improvement performance level should be reviewed and discussed through ongoing performance discussions. The instructor can provide feedback on graded assignments and notify if anything needs improvement, not only with graded work but with technical communication or professional skills as well.

Growth/Development Opportunities:

What will you do? (This can

be as simple as reading a book, serving on a team, observing someone who does it well, asking for feedback on a behavior that youre trying to change, etc.)

What can the instructor do to support this?