Benefits of the Portfolio Process
The portfolio process offers benefits to both the employee who is being assessed and the organization in which the portfolio is being developed. For the individual employee there are at least six significant benefits.
1. the employee is given a chance to examine her professional performance with the assistance of a review committee composed of people with diverse perspectives; this provides a venue for constructive feedback that is rarely available in most organizational settings;
2. the employee can obtain valuable advice from members of the review committee concerning areas which need improvement; these individuals are not only knowledgeable about her professional performance but are also committed to supporting her improvement efforts;
3. the employee is given an opportunity to devise methods that are particularly sensitive to her areas of responsibility; she can use these methods again when asked to document her achievements or when planning for her own ongoing development;
4. the employee is assured of an equitable, documented review by a committee; she doesn’t have to submit to an arbitrary, undocumented review by her supervisor nor does she have to stand before a review committee that has made no commitment to her own welfare;
5. the employee can use the documents that have been produced for her own career advancement; they provide her with a distinct advantage over other employees who do not have access to an extensive and well-organized portfolio;
6. the employee can integrate her portfolio with the comprehensive professional development or career ladder program of her organization (see previous essay) .
