Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) - Using the Public Service Performance Management Application (PSPM App)

REMINDER

  • When changes are made to a performance agreement (PA) in the PSPM App, please SAVE then REFRESH.
  • To avoid loss or unsaved information, the employee and the manager should not be in the PA at the same time in the PSPM App making changes.

Registration and Enrolment

  • How do I register and enrol to the PSPM App?

    To register and enrol, you will need the following information:

    • Your myKEY filename and password
    • Your PRI
    • If you are a manager or supervisor, you will need the PRI of your direct reports.

    Once you have gathered the above-noted information, follow the instructions noted below:

  • Why am I unable to register to the PSPM App?

    Your existing personal information may be inaccurate in the Compensation Web Application (CWA). If it is the case, you have to contact CWA to make the appropriate amendments.

  • What is myKEY and where can I find additional information?

    “MyKEY” is an ID-based credential used to access secure applications such as Compensation Web Applications (CWA), and TBS’s Applications Portal (TAP). “myKEY” is acquired through the Online Registration and Credential Administration (ORCA), an online system that enables users to securely create and manage their identity based credential. Further information and other questions related to “myKEY” are available on the Shared Services Canada site.

  • What do I do if I get a “myKey” Error?

    All “myKEY” errors will generally contain the word “myKEY.” Contact the National Helpdesk for technical support.

  • What do I do if when saving, I get a message stating Error 403?

    Contact National Helpdesk for technical support as it is related to “MyKey”.

  • What do I do if I get a Java error message?

    PSPM application does not use Java, however “myKEY” authentication requires proper version of Java on your desktop. If you are encountering problems logging into the PSPM App, ensure that you have the appropriate version of Java installed on your computer. Please contact your IT Helpdesk for technical support.

  • What do I do if I get a Java update pop-up message on sign-in?

    Select the “update later” option. Make sure to restart your computer every night to enable network updates, including JAVA versions.

  • What do I do if I get a blank screen when logging in for the first time?

    Contact the National Helpdesk. The error can be resolved by reinstalling the latest version of Java on your computer.

  • As an executive, why do I have to register to the TAP and enrol in the PSPM App?

    As an executive you must register on the TBS Applications Portal (TAP), enrol in the PSPM App and claim all your direct reports. You must do this in order to be able to use the PSPM App to view the PAs for all employees in your reporting structure and related statistics for your teams. In addition, by registering to the TAP, you will have access to future applications supporting a range of enterprise-wide management and reporting functions in the Core Public Administration.

  • How do I change my TAP profile?

    Since the introduction of Explorer 11, making changes to my TAP profile requires extra steps. Open a session in the PSPM App, click on “My TAP Profile” to the right hand side of the screen, then select “Tools” on the top menu bar and uncheck “Enterprise Mode”. Click on save changes.

For Claiming and Being Claimed

  • Why am I unable to find and claim an employee in the PSPM App?

    There could be a number of reasons:

    • The employee may be new to the Public Service and therefore not yet in the pay system. It can take up to one month for new employees to be added to the system;
    • the employee has not yet registered in the PSPM App.;
    • the employee has already been claimed by another manager;
    • the employee may be on secondment from another department;
    • the employee has recently been transferred from another department and still showing under previous department;
    • the employee’s name and surname may be reversed;

    When searching for an employee under “Add Employee” in the PSPM App, click the button to the right of your department’s name and select “All Departments” from the drop-down menu, enter the employee’s PRI and click “Find”.

  • When I search for an employee in the PSPM App, why can I see the employee’s name in the list but I cannot select the record?

    The employee record cannot be selected because the employee hasn’t registered as yet. You should remind the employee to register into TAP (TBS Applications Portal). The employee will require their “myKEY”, PRI & date of birth to register into TAP.

  • How do I know which employee to select when two or more people have the same name?

    Look for the correct email address as listed or perform a new search and search by employee’s PRI. This will fetch only one record in the search results.

  • How can I have employees transferred to a new manager?

    The former manager should first release the employees. If this is not possible, the new manager should send an email to the PSPM App Administrator with the name of the former manager to request to release the employees (cc the employees concerned). The new manager will then be able to claim the employees in the PSPM App once they have been released.

  • How can I change my status in the PSPM App from an employee to a manager?

    Once you have logged into the PSPM App and are on the main page, select the “Settings” option at the top right and change your employment status.

  • How can I create a performance agreement for my employee if the “Add a PA” option is greyed out?

    The employee needs to change his employment status in the “Settings” to employee or manager to allow for the creation of performance agreement.

  • How long does it take to have my profile updated in the PSPM App?

    The information in the PSPM App is sent from the pay system approximately the 3rd week of each month. It can take a few months to be updated in the PSPM App. Once the information is received in the PSPM App, the performance agreement will be automatically updated. Also note that the performance agreement can be completed regardless.

Creating and Updating Performance Agreements over the Performance Cycle

Please contact your coordinator for any change or reopening requests.

  • Can a performance agreement be reopened at any time during the performance cycle? On hold until further notice

    No. Only the year-end version of a performance agreement can be reopened by the PSPM Administrators. Only TBS can reopen the beginning of the year and mid-year cycles.

  • Can I make changes to a signed performance agreement?

    Changes cannot be made in a performance agreement that is signed by the manager and the employee. You can edit any information in the unsigned “in progress” version of the performance agreement.

  • What can I do if the changes that I made in the PSPM App were not recorded?

    You will have to either click on the “refresh” button several times or log out and then log back in the PSPM App.

  • Why can’t the employee modify his or her personal information in Section A?

    It is the responsibility of the manager/supervisor to create and maintain their direct reports’ performance agreements. They must be aware of all the information in Section A in order to fulfill their people management responsibilities, consequently only managers/supervisors can input and modify information in Section A.

  • Can I recover an objective once it has been accidentally deleted?

    No, however, if it appeared in a previous completed version of the employee’s performance agreement, you can open that version, copy the objective and then paste it into the current “in-progress” version.

  • How can I change my employee’s rating once it has been provided and signed? On hold until further notice

    To change the overall rating you will need to discuss with your employee the need to re-open the performance agreement and then send an email to the PSPM Administrator requesting to reopen the performance agreement (copy employee). The rating must be changed in the competencies (Section C) and in the work objectives (Section B). Subsequently, the overall rating will be changed automatically in Section E. To ensure that the overall rating in Section E reflects the changes made in sections B and C, return to the index page and click “Refresh”.

  • Can managers start the beginning of year section of the next performance agreement if the previous year-end section has not been signed?

    No, the year-end section of the performance agreement must be closed-off/signed first.

  • There is not enough space to write all of my comments in the App. What to do?

    Abbreviate as much as possible, indicate initials beside your comments and the period under supervision. TBS monitors the need to increase the space in the various boxes.

  • Is it possible to format text in the PSPA App?

    Note that the PSPM App does not have its own integrated text formatting. Any formatting done is based on each individual’s web browser settings. Only simple text can be used in the PSPM App, therefore such formatting as Italic, Bold, etc., is not saved within the PSPM App.

For Employees Who Join During the Performance Cycle

  • What happens to employees who arrive or return part of the way through the period of assessment?

    Performance agreements in the PSPM App follow employees who move from one position to another. When employees arrive in a new position, they will have been “released” on the PSPM App by their previous manager. New managers “claim” the employees to add them to their “My Employees List”. They then have access to employees’ current “in progress” performance agreements (and all previous completed versions).

  • How do I proceed when an employee is leaving the team?

    When leaving one’s position, either for an assignment, a secondment or a deployment, it is important to update the reporting relationships in the PSPM App to ensure appropriate feedback and recognition of one’s performance.

    As an employee, ask your manager/supervisor to give you feedback for the period he supervised you and make sure his comments and yours are added in the “Comments” section of your performance agreement.

    As a manager/supervisor, you should meet your departing employee to provide verbal feedback for the period that you supervised him/her and enter a summary of the feedback in the “Comments” section of their performance agreement. Release your employee in the PSPM App by clicking the “Release Employee” button.

  • How do I proceed to update my email address in the PSPM App?

    Follow the step-by-step instructions on how to modify your email address in the PSPM App

  • How do I proceed when an employee is on extended sick leave and has a performance agreement showing as outstanding in the PSPM App?

    If it is known that the employee is returning to work soon, the performance agreement should be left open. If the employee already had a performance agreement, the manager should:

    • Include his last comments and sign it;
    • Send an email request to the Branch/Region PSPM Administrator to close the agreement specifying the appropriate reason: “extended leave”.

    If the employee returns within the same fiscal year, the PSPM Administrator has to contact the HRSB-Office of Primary Interest who will then contact TBS to exceptionally reopen the performance agreement.

  • Can a manager/supervisor start a mid-year review section when an employee comes back from leave mid-way through the year?

    The manager/supervisor would need to create a “beginning of year” version if the employee returning from leave does not have a performance agreement in the PSPM App. Once that version is signed and completed, a new mid-year version is automatically generated. Then, in this version, the manager/supervisor (and the employee) can indicate in the applicable fields and text boxes that the employee has been on leave.

  • What can I do when an employee already retired or left and did not sign the performance agreement?

    Ensure that all sections of the performance agreement are completed, then sign the performance agreement in Section E. Send an email to the PSPM Administrator to close the agreement and specify the reason.

  • How do I proceed when a manager has left without signing his employees’ performance agreements?

    A request should be sent to the PSPM Administrator to release the employees under the former manager and provide the reason. Then the new manager can claim the employees. He also can communicate with the previous manager to discuss and obtain comments in order to use them to evaluate the employees and provide the overall rating and performance assessment at the end of year.

  • What is the retention period of Performance Agreements in the PSPM App?

    Treasury Board’s file retention guidelines for Human Resources Performance and Talent Management data state that the information will be kept for five (5) years from the date of the last administrative action, after which it will be removed.

For Managing Learning and Development Plans

  • Can additional learning objectives be added during the year, even though the section is completed?

    Yes, after the manager/supervisor and the employee sign the performance agreement and it’s completed, a new version of the performance agreement is automatically created. New learning objectives can be added to this version at any time until it is completed at signing.

For Managing Talent Management Plans

  • What has changed in the application since the Directive on Performance Management came into effect?

    In accordance with the Directive on Performance Management - Canada.ca (tbs-sct.gc.ca) effective April 2020, Talent Management Plans (TMP) are no longer linked to performance management ratings. The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) has updated the PSPM App and the TMP is no longer automatically generated upon achieving an overall rating of "Surpassed," as required by the previous directive.

  • When can a TMP be initiated in the PSPM App?

    The manager can initiate a TMP at any time during the performance management annual cycle. A TMP template will appear in Section G of the performance agreement by checking one of the options in the Talent Management Plan subsection in Section A: Personal Information.

  • What information can the manager include in the TMP?

    In the PSPM App, many of the fields will be automatically populated with the information already entered in Section A: Personal Information. For an overview of the other fields to be completed in the TMP, please refer to the Form - Performance Agreement (Standard) available on our iService performance management page – Reference Tools tab.

  • Can the developmental activities identified in the TMP be modified during the performance management annual cycle?

    The TMP is an evergreen document. Therefore, it can be modified, changed and updated during each period of the performance management annual cycle as long as the agreement is not closed.

  • What should be the duration of a TMP, and will it automatically close after that time?

    All relevant sections of the TMP in the PSPM App must be completed and signed off by both the manager and employee at the end of the performance management cycle, in order to close the TMP. The TMP will automatically carry forward into the next year if it is not closed in the system, even if the performance agreement has been signed off. Normally, a TMP is established for one year and must include activities that can be completed in that year. A new TMP can be established for the following year, if necessary.

  • Who do I contact if I have more questions?

    If you have any questions regarding the PSPM App, please contact your branch or regional PSPM App Administrator.

For Managing Performance Improvement Plans

  • Does the system “block” end-dates for action items longer than 18 months from the start date?

    No, it is the manager/supervisor’s responsibility to monitor closely whether the employee is achieving the required improvement(s) and to complete the “Status at Deadline” field in the performance improvement plan at or before the end date. The end-date is determined at the manager/supervisor’s discretion.

  • Does the PSPM App send reminders in advance to employee and manager for a performance improvement plan deadline?

    No, it is the manager/supervisor’s responsibility to monitor closely whether the employee is achieving the required improvement(s) and to be aware that the deadline is approaching.

  • What happens if the employee refuses to check the box to acknowledge that the performance improvement plan item was discussed?

    There is no functionality in the PSPM App dependent on whether the employee acknowledges that the item was discussed. The manager/supervisor should document in the comments box at the end of the action plan that it was discussed and when it was done.

  • What happens with the status of the performance improvement plan if the employee goes on assignment? Will the new manager know that the employee has a performance improvement plan in progress?

    Yes the new manager will know. When a performance improvement plan is created in the PSPM App, it stays with the employee even if the employee goes on assignment or is transferred from one manager to another.

Role of PSPM App Administrators

PSPM App Administrators have privileged access to the application. Their role is to:

  • Conduct three exceptional actions, release employees, close a performance agreement and re-open a performance agreement, only when the manager/supervisor explicitly request to do so;
  • Troubleshoot issues with the PSPM application;
  • Support to Branch/Region for the PSPM application reporting relationship tree.
  • Can EXs or managers/supervisors delegate the task of claiming their direct reports to the PSPM App Administrator?

    No, establishing a performance agreement for direct reports is a fundamental people management responsibility of all managers/supervisors at every level.

  • Do PSPM App Administrators need the employee’s PRI when they conduct the exceptional actions?

    No, the responsible manager/supervisor has to provide the employee’s full name when requesting the exceptional actions. Note that the employee must be copied on the request.

  • Will the PSPM App Administrator have an additional tab with which to execute their exceptional actions?

    Yes, this tab will only appear on the PSPM App home page of employees identified as PSPM App Administrator. Each department/agency is required to have at least two individuals to act as PSPM App Administrators.