ANU Focus performance and development

2026 annual Focus documents have been created in early December 2025. Focus is accessed via your HORUS account.

Summary of the annual Focus process timing for each step:

Goal Setting: early December-31 March
Checkpoint: early June-31 July
*Review Set Goals: early October-15 November
Reflection and Evaluation: early October-31 December

*Review Set Goals is an ancillary step to the Reflection and Evaluation step - it is the final opportunity to add any goals that may have occurred since the mid-year checkpoint, before the final evaluation is completed and the Focus document completed overall by the staff member, then supervisor.

Input from prior ANU supervisor within same calendar year (shows as 'Step 4' on annual Focus) is opt-in only, and automatically skips over where not applicable i.e. if not opted into.
The November due dates (showing as steps 3 and 5 on the Focus document) are for timing guidance only, and do not need to be followed exactly. Step 3 (as noted on annual Focus) and onwards just need to be completed during Oct-Dec overall, and by 31 December.

Final evaluation performance ratings: these are defined within the relevant procedure policy documents, linked on this website in the 'Related links' section to the right.

If you are currently on probation, you will be on a probationary Focus document, aligned to the duration of your probation period. The process remains the same, but the due date for each Focus step differs to the annual timing. Refer to your Focus document to check when each step is due.

Focus user guides are available here, to the right in 'Reference documents'. The Focus SharePoint site also has a wealth of relevant information and guidance resources, including short user guidance videos for each step of Focus.
For supervisors: ensure you only complete each step within the ANU Focus timing for that step. Once a step is completed and any changes made (by staff or supervisor) it can not be reverted back to the previous step. If no changes have been made try ‘Reopen prior step’ in the three dot menu at the top right of Focus.
Save your work frequently by clicking on the save icon at the top right of the screen, and ensure you click save before exiting the Focus document.
Goals can be edited or deleted during the Goal Setting step only. Once the Goal Setting step is completed, existing goals can not be edited or deleted, only new goals can be added up to and including the Review Set Goals step.
Commentary can be made in the free text comment boxes if a goal has changed or ceased since it was created in the Goal Setting step.

The ANU Focus performance cycle was developed to replace the Performance Development Review (PDR) system. Focus is housed within HORUS, and was launched in early December 2024, for the inaugural 2025 annual cycle.

The annual Focus cycle applies to both professional and academic employees (non-casual). All eligible employees, those that are continuing or fixed-term of 12 months or more, need to use the Focus system from December 2024 onwards.

Any existing PDRs that were to be completed should have been completed by 31 December 2024, for whatever stage the PDR was in at December 2024.

For those who used the interim Focus Word document during 2024 you’ll notice that the Focus online tool in HORUS is similar – we’ve recreated wherever possible the concept of documenting ongoing discussion between employee and supervisor, as well as the cadence of ‘Goal Setting’, ‘Checkpoint’ and ‘Final Evaluation’, over the course of 12 months during the calendar year.

For existing academic employees, moving to an annual Focus cycle was a shift in the overall timing, relative to previous academic PDR documents.

The overarching principle for the annual Focus cycle for everyone is that all employees (except for casual employees) are to have an equal experience of role, performance and career discussions, and frequency of how these are recorded. Focus is a tool to record discussions and progress at least every 6 months, with emphasis on regular discussions outside of the tool.

Career goals and deliverables are often in the making over several years, which is the case for both academic and professional employees. An annual cycle for everyone will help drive a culture of meaningful conversations, development and accountability.

This decision is informed by results from employee engagement surveys (more on this further below), other avenues of employee feedback on the performance evaluation process, as well as benchmarking against other Australian universities.

The ANU Focus performance cycle has been designed around the following principles, informed by current best practice in performance development and evaluation:

Emphasis on regular feedback rather than once or twice-yearly performance and development discussions.
Forward-looking with a focus on future development, in addition to reflecting on progress against goals.
Emphasis on goal-setting with support for how to do this effectively.

The aim is to keep the process as simple as possible, and emphasise equipping supervisors and employees to have effective feedback and development conversations. Training and other resources are provided to support employees to effectively manage their Focus discussions and process.

The March 2023 ANYOU survey highlighted opportunities to improve the ANU performance development and evaluation approach. In the survey:

65% of respondents agreed that their job performance is evaluated fairly;
58% of respondents indicated that they receive appropriate recognition for good work; and
Only 28% of respondents agreed with the statement ‘When it is clear someone is not delivering in their role we do something about it’.

Survey respondents also provided relevant written comments, highlighting issues such as never having completed a PDR at ANU (or not for several years) and supervisors not being equipped to provide useful feedback. This feedback is consistent with findings and recommendations from an external review of the Performance and Development Review (PDR) undertaken in 2019.

Additionally, the PDR platform was discontinued at ANU from January 2025 onwards.

Probationary employees are on a probationary Focus document, aligned to the duration of the probation period. The Focus process remains conceptually the same, but the due date for each Focus step differs to the annual timing. If you are a probationary employee refer to your Focus document in HORUS to check when each step is due.

Employees that have commenced at ANU (not an internal transfer) will be on probation, and in the onboarding process are allocated the relevant probation template (created in their HORUS account) for their type of employment. This probation template is the same content and approach for the annual Focus document, with the main difference being that the duration of the employee's template is aligned to their specific start date until the end of their probation period.
Once the employee has their probation confirmed, during December-August, they would have an annual Focus template created on or around the 1st of the month following their probation date, to then be populated through the initial steps (can copy goals/content from completed probationary Focus), and then completed by end December in line with the annual timing. If the probation end date falls within September-November the employee would join the next calendar year annual Focus cycle, created in early December.

We would love to hear what you think is great about Focus, and what could be improved. Responses provided are anonymous, unless you choose to identify yourself.

Provide your feedback

Questions can be directed to HRD.Development@anu.edu.au or your local HR Business Partner.