Monitoring and assessing principal performance

As part of your board’s role as the principal's employer, it has a responsibility to monitor and assess the principal’s job performance.

Doing so will also help your board understand the principal’s workload, assist them with their personal and professional goals, and identify ways your board can assist them as they lead the school.

A good working relationshipopen_in_new between your board and principal must be the foundation of this process.

Many schools used performance agreements and appraisals to assess their principal’s performance.

However, due to the Teaching Council’s introduction of the Professional Growth Cycle (PGC) and collective bargaining outcomes between 2022 and 2024, these mechanisms have been removed and can no longer be used.

Instead, boards can utilise the Professional Standards for principals as set out in your principal’s Collective Agreement.

What are the Professional Standards?

The Professional Standards of the collective agreements clarify the day-to-day professional expectations for principals.

They also establish a framework to monitor and assess against the standards.

The standards can form part of the principal’s job description and sit alongside your school’s strategic plans and other policy directions.

The standards are the same across the three types of principals, and can be found in:

• Schedule 2 of both the NZEI and PPCBU Primary Principals’ Collective Agreementsopen_in_new.

• Page 104 of the Secondary Principals’ Collective Agreementopen_in_new.

• While not explicitly included in the Area School Principals’ Collective Agreement (ASPCA), they are considered to apply to Area school principals.

The standards often use adjectives such as “effective” to set the expected performance level.

They often use terms such as “in conjunction with the board” to describe a state of work that should exist.

These descriptors guide the performance expectations of principals as well as boards.

An example of some of the professional standard expectations are:

• In conjunction with the board, develop and implement a school vision and shared goals. 

• Work with the board to facilitate strategic decision-making.

• Exhibit leadership that results in the effective day-to-day operation of the school.

• Actively foster relationships with the school’s community and local iwi.

• Effectively manage and administer finance, property, and health and safety systems.

• Effectively manage personnel with a focus on maximising the effectiveness of all staff members.

How do you monitor and assess principal performance?

The relationship between your board and principal works best when both are on the same page and strive to remain on it.

When it comes to performance management, it helps to be upfront, consistent, and proactive about what your board expects.

For example, one of the standards is to “effectively manage the day-to-day health and safety of those at school”.

Your board and principal must understand what “effective” looks like.

It also helps to work with the principal as an equal partner, fostering a positive relationship based on open, productive communication with both parties being proactive in recognising and supporting each other.

Your board should take time to understand the professional standards and work with the principal to ensure your existing processes give assurance and work in your local context.

Make sure to consider things such as regularity, levels of detail, and areas to be reported on.  

Usually, you will not need to create new reporting methods or documentation. The assurance required can be obtained through naturally occurring evidence that is generated by your principal and the board in their day-to-day work.

For example:

• The principal’s usual board reporting

• Assurances made by the principal

• Day-to-day conversations between the presiding member and principal

• Regularly scheduled surveys

• Regular policy review and monitoring. 

This will provide the necessary supportive evidence that the principal is meeting the required professional standard/s and that they are performing well in the school.

These discussions help ensure that your board fully understands the work of your principal.

It may also identify areas for your board to offer more support to the principal.

Remember, the purpose of performance management is to support your principal in doing their job, not to “catch the principal out” or to have a go at them.

What is the difference between school performance and principal performance? 

While the principal’s performance can sometimes influence school performance indicators, the indicators cannot (in and of themselves) be directly used as evidence of the principal’s job performance.

The exception to this rule is where:

• An indicator is clearly delegated and tied to the work of the principal only, and

• Falls within one of the areas of the professional standards, or an area where it has been mutually agreed between the board and their principal that it will be used as a performance indicator of the principal.

Examples are the provision of information to the board and operational outcomes under the principal’s control, such as personnel, finance, property, and health and safety systems.

How does this relate to the Professional Growth Cycle (PGC)?

The PGC process was not designed for managing performance and addressing concerns, should they arise.

The PGC’s focus is the professional development and leadership of principals and their Teaching Council registration.

For more information, please read our article on Professional Growth Cycle (PGC) for principals.

The Collective Agreements are the source of expected standards that boards can monitor and assess job performance against.

How does a board address performance concerns?

In the rare situation when a board has a concern regarding the principal’s performance in respect to principal professional standards, they are to be guided by section 103A of the Employment Relations Act 2000open_in_new and the applicable sections of the relevant Collective Agreement:

• Part 8 of both the NZEI and PPCBU Primary Principals’ Collective Agreementsopen_in_new.

• Part 6 of the Secondary Principals’ Collective Agreementopen_in_new.

• Part 6 of the Area School Principals’ Collective Agreementopen_in_new.

The mechanism begins with concerns being raised with the principal informally to resolve the matter at the lowest level possible.

This is a requirement of the principal Collective Agreements.

Before your board takes any action related to concerns, please contact our Advisory and Support Centre.  

Questions your board could ask:

• Have we defined clear expectations and limitations for the principal?

• Do we take the time to recognise achievement and the work of the principal and say thank you?

• Are we assured that any issues or concerns raised by the principal relating to/ or potentially affecting their working conditions are reported to our board promptly and appropriately?

• Are we confident that the principal seeks appropriate advice, support, expertise, and professional development? How do we support this?

• What support/resources does the principal need?

Templates, resources, and references

Click on the link(s) below to access this topic’s templates, resources, and references.

Depending on your device, these may download or open in a separate browser.

Links from us

• Board and principal employment relationship
• Professional Growth Cycle (PGC) for principals

Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand

• Principal Professional Growth Cycleopen_in_new

Employment Relations Act 2000

• Section 103A – Test of Justificationopen_in_new

Collective Agreements

• NZEI and PPCBU Primary Principals’open_in_new

• Schedule 2 – Professional Standards
• Part 8 – Complaints/Discipline/Competency

• Secondary Principals’open_in_new

• Page 104 – Professional Standards
• Part 6 – Disciplinary Provisions

• Area School Principals’open_in_new

• Part 6 – Complaints/Discipline/Competency