The Instrument
Brainstorming
As a first step in the development of the feedback tool, brainstorming sessions were held to discuss the characteristics of a good supervisor. Four sessions were open to all employees of the Division; 70 employees attended. See notes from these sessions 
. Three departments were underrepresented at these sessions. So, 29 employees from these three departments were randomly selected and invited to attend two additional brainstorming sessions. Approximately 20 attended these sessions, which were facilitated by Dr. Kirkpatrick.
A Division-wide focus group was appointed to carry out the next phase of the project - the development of the pilot instrument. Based on the results of these brainstorming groups and other resources and discussions, the focus group developed a set of competencies/skills that fairly answers the question: "What are the characteristics of a good supervisor?" Guided by the Competing Values Framework , a pilot instrument for assessing supervisory behaviors was then designed based on this unique set of competencies/skills. This instrument was first tested in April, 2000.