COPOL

International Ltd.
Performance
Management
Guide

Prepared by: Doug MacAulay, Jillian Marsh & Roman

Braun-Huettner
Table of Contents
Introduction...............................................................................................................................................1
What COPOL International Ltd. already does for the performance of the employees.......................3
The Performance Management Process..................................................................................................3
Step 1: Planning for Performance Management.........................................................................................3
Step 2: Setting performance standards and expectations for managers and employees............................5
Step 3: Having effective communication between individuals and teams...................................................5
The Informal Communication Process.....................................................................................................5
The Formal Communication Process.......................................................................................................6
Step 4: Evaluation Methods and Measures.................................................................................................7
Step 5: Recognizing performance and development opportunities for employees and managers -
Incentives.....................................................................................................................................................8
The importance of recognizing performance..........................................................................................8
What motivates performance in employees?..........................................................................................9
Motivators - Daniel Pink – Purpose, Mastery, Autonomy........................................................................9
How to recognize performance without monetary compensation........................................................10
Step 6: Developing a performance improvement plan...............................................................................12
Step 7: Implementing the Process/The Roll-Out Plan................................................................................13
Summary..................................................................................................................................................13
Appendix...................................................................................................................................................15
Checklist for Performance Meetings:....................................................................................................15
COPOL International Ltd. Values............................................................................................................16
References................................................................................................................................................17

1
Introduction
COPOL International Ltd. is a plastic foil producing Company based in North Sydney on Cape
Breton Island, NS. The Company has about 54 employees and produces thin plastic foils for
groceries and sells them mostly to the Canadian and US market.
COPOL International Ltd. Has no formal and structured performance management system and
was inviting the NSCC to offer ideas for developing and implementing a performance
management tool or system.
Additional, the company does not want to have just an annual review, performance
management should be more than a one time meeting with employees.
Our group tried to design a tool which can be helpful for the company and also wants to give
performance management ideas additional to the things COPOL International Ltd. already does.
The following pages describe our ideas, thoughts and considerations we want to offer and share
with COPOL International Ltd.

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What COPOL International Ltd. already does for the
performance of the employees
Meeting and getting introduces to the company and their values was the first action which was
taken. A lot of information were shared, and it was possible to get an overview about the
company and their business. Additional it was possible to make a tour through the company
and see the actual work and the machines.
Thinking of all the actions the management already takes, it is possible to name a few
performance management actions, the company already takes.
- Management by walking around: The managers are walking around every day and talk
with the employees about their work. From our point of view this action is a very
important process and management tool. It is informal, but perfect for the relationship
to the employees and keeps the management up to date of work, issues and
development. The following link gives an explanation about this management style
https://www.cleverism.com/management-by-walking-around-mbwa/
- Whiteboards at every machine: These boards show the necessary actions which have to
be done of different departments. These actions don’t have to be done immediately but
need to be done within a certain time.
- Weekly meetings, which are documented, and targets of the company are reviewed.
- Logbooks at every machine.
- Cross training of employees to guarantee the shift work and substitutes.

The Performance Management Process

The following steps detail the performance management process and roll-out plan for an
implementation at COPOL International Ltd.
It is important to mention that performance management is not a one stop shop, it is a
continuous process through the year.

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Step 1: Planning for Performance Management
The first step in the process is to set and define goals for the performance management
process. These goals should link individual performance objectives with COPOL International
Ltd.’s organizational goals and business objectives. To begin, planning for performance
management you should look at the things COPOL International Ltd. was built on.
Such as the values COPOL International Ltd. is committed to as an organization; teamwork, a
customer-focus, safety, quality, commitment, responsibility, and continuous improvement in
the work that they do. These values are the core competencies that every employee must have
to be successful in this organization.
Another area COPOL International Ltd. should focus on is task performance; the knowledge,
skills, and abilities related to do the jobs in the organization effectively. We suggest reviewing
job descriptions for each job and conducting job analysis to determine the specific
requirements, and qualifications needed for each job. Such as the essential education level,
years of experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities. As well as any asset qualifications that
would be applicable to the job. It’s important to have well defined job descriptions because
they give a clear description of what the duties and responsibilities are for each job, they
provide a consistent understanding for each department about the role, they create boundaries
in responsibilities, and ensure the organization is legally defensible for example, when selecting
a candidate for a position over other candidates.
Furthermore, another area which is just as important as task performance is contextual
performance. The behaviours and activities employees engage in which contribute to the
organization effectiveness. Such as an employee’s attitude, and the effort they have towards
the work environment. It is shown by an employee going the extra mile and making a
commitment. COPOL International Ltd. can define specifically what these attitudes and
behaviors are, and they can be used as a benchmark in performance management evaluation,
as well as in selection when hiring individuals, they see fit for the job. In the response given to
us some of these mentioned were willingness to help, attention to detail, honesty, and
initiative.
Lastly, it’s important for the COPOL International Ltd. to identify any areas that may be barriers
to an employee’s performance, and if there’s anything you can do to help. Although sometimes
performance issues occur because of human error such as lack of knowledge, or skills for
example, many can also be beyond an employees’ control because of lack of resources or
equipment, the organizations political environment, lack of structure, lack of flexibility, lack of

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performance measures, etc. So, it is key to identify the root cause problems early and address
them using a problem-solving approach.

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Step 2: Setting performance standards and expectations for managers
and employees.
It’s essential to set clear expectations for managers and employees, by having clear
expectations allows individuals to understand their responsibilities and duties. Its key to explain
to them what these standards are and how these performance standards will help the
organization achieve the business objectives. It also allows individuals to understand what
acceptable and not acceptable performance is.
Performance standards for individuals should be measurable, observable, fair and attainable
based on the individual’s job. Consider questions such when determining performance
standards such as: How long should this take? What does a good job look like? Which safety
requirements are there? What would be considered poor performance for this job?

Step 3: Having effective communication between individuals and teams.

When discussing performance with individuals it’s important to be aware of mistakes often
made by managers in organizations. Such as exerting power over others, implying that
employees are less than because they don’t have the same knowledge, skills or abilities, and
lack of listening and understanding employees. To have effective communication on
performance, a relationship must be built between employees and managers together, it isn’t a
one-sided conversation. An employee must understand why measuring performance is
important which can be done though educating the employee.
It might also be helpful to have a look at the managers communication skills, which are
important for the performance management process. Feedback to the employees is essential
but talking about performance issues is not easy and giving feedback needs to be practiced. The
following YouTube link is a humorous video about the importance of giving feedback to
employees.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28N2p3smEsw

COPOL International Ltd. communicates a lot with their employees, giving feedback is just one
part and it should be a reminder, how important it is in the performance management process.

The Informal Communication Process

We have observed that COPOL International Ltd. does an exceptional job when it comes to
having informal communication and checking in with their employees on an ongoing basis. We
would suggest that COPOL International Ltd. continues to do this with their employees on a

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regular basis. As poor communication is often the cause for many performance issues. Effective
communication can identify and solve many issues and/or concerns employees may have
quickly.

The Formal Communication Process

Besides the informal conversations and check in’s with employees and managers, we suggest
meeting with individual employees and teams separately to discuss performance. This can take
place as frequent as you like. It’s important to meet with individuals separately because it
should be a review of their own performance, the KSA’s they have, and their own behaviours, it
should not be based on anyone else’s performance but their own. This can help identify what
an employee should be recognized for and/or improve in specifically.

Preparing for the performance meeting

When preparing for performance meetings with employees, make sure you inform them of the
meeting at least one week in advance. This allows the employee to get thinking about their
performance and prepare any questions they may want to ask in the meeting.
Next, the manager conducting the review should compile any performance data they have on
the employee, such as ratings, observations, past performance reviews and schedule the
meeting at a time that works for both manager and employee. The employee should
understand the purpose of the meeting, as you’re both there for the same reason to improve
performance.

The performance meeting

The performance meeting should begin by making the employee feel comfortable and allowing
the employee to address and concerns or problems they may have first. Together you should
work through each concern using a problem-solving approach to come up with solutions.
Effective performance meetings occur when the manager takes the approach as the problem
helper or solver and when employees understand what is expected of them beforehand, so
there’s no surprises.
Sometimes there will be a difference in opinions, in these situations you shouldn’t argue with
the employee allow them to collect their thoughts and stay calm. Sometimes that could include
coming back to the topic later to give them time to cool down. Know what is in your capabilities
to resolve the issues and what might be out of your control, whether you should seek guidance
from others such as HR.
In the Appendix we have created a checklist for performance meetings.

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8
Documentation
It is important and necessary to document the performance management process. The first
step is to start to document the informal communication with the employees. A notebook, or a
digitalized version on the computer helps to remember in the future all the important
information and also for preparing for the review meetings during the year.
The second step is to document the formal process, to get a basis for the every following talks
with the employees. Documentation is also necessary and essential of there are any disciplinary
actions necessary. But, just as a reminder, performance management is not about disciplinary
actions in the first place, it is about the development and potential of employees.

Step 4: Evaluation Methods and Measures

Performance evaluations should be objective based on measurable and observable information
and behaviours. Furthermore, subjective ratings should only be used as one competent because
they’re not based on factual evidence rather, they are based on a person’s perception which
can lead to negative judgement and bias.
For employees, the method we suggest is a mixture of evaluation methods. Such as critical
incidents – observing behaviors of employees and the actions they took in a situation, a rating
method based on competencies– to see where employees fit in comparison to others in the
organization, and a goal setting approach – setting SMART goals for the employee.
For managers, the method we suggest is management by objectives – setting SMART goals for
the manager to accomplish. It is important to involve the employees in developing goals.
Developing them together is essential for the commitment and Buy-in of the employees.
Based on some of the core competencies COPOL International Ltd. has, we have created an
Excel file that will assist you in measuring the performance of your employees and teams.
Please watch the instructional video we provided on how to use this document.
The performance management tool was created ready-to-use after some customization from
you based its desired purpose. We recommend you start using the goal setting element of the
tool initially. Once employees are comfortable with goal setting you can begin to roll out other
aspects of the performance tool as needed. You will have to introduce the tool slowly and train
supervisors on how to use it and why they are using it, before you implement it.
Aside from the goal setting sheet, before you roll out the performance management tool, you
will need to customize it to your specific needs. We recommend you start with a full job
analysis to pinpoint key competencies required by the jobs and align them to your company

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values. For this process, you will need to have subject matter experts (the employees that
actually do the work) represented in a focus group with management to identify and define the
core values, competencies, and job tasks. Without this process the tool will be less accurate
and there may be defensibility issues if used improperly.
The performance management tool is not designed to determine pay grade or job status, but to
recognize areas of accomplishment and development opportunities. If used for purposes other
than this, it will not be effective and could be harmful to the employees and their work
environment. Before using any element of the performance management tool, your reasoning
and the tool you are using should be fully explained and communicated to the supervisors and
then the employees. Supervisor buy-in will be key to its effectiveness.
Once your customization is complete and a majority of your employees are accustomed to goal
setting and are trained to log critical incidents, you can begin using the tool to its full potential.
We recommend a roll out time, from goal-planning to full-use, of 6 months to 1 year depending
on training and employee buy-in. It’s imperative that a majority of employees understand that
it’s in their best interest so that they can be onboard with the program. There will be pushback,
but as long as those employees are the minority there’s no major barrier. There is no
performance management strategy that can be effective for unmotivated and disengaged
employees; this is the main reason you must include them, as much as possible, in helping
decide their own metrics.

Step 5: Recognizing performance and development opportunities for

employees and managers - Incentives.
COPOL INTERNATIONAL LTD. already does a lot of small things for their employees. It was
mentioned that they are offering birthday cakes when an employee is celebrating his/her
birthday; offering a golf weekend, offering up to 4 weeks of paid holiday, which is more than
the requested paid holiday by law; etc. The climate in the company was described as welcoming
and carried by the team. You could feel when you entered the company that employees are
really engaged. The employees felt proud of working in a solid business on Cape Breton Island.

The importance of recognizing performance

The typical way, which is usually practiced by managers and organizations, is linking rewards to
the performance of employees. However, there are issues in linking rewards to performance.
In chapter 10 0f his book, Manager’s Guide to Performance Reviews, Robert Bacal describes this
topic as the “Rewards and Punishment Dilemma.”

10
Some of the issues that can arise when rewards are linked to performance are:
• It creates a situation with the potential for conflict (competition between employees).
• Withholding an increase, or offering less than expected, is often perceived as
“punishing”
• If the review lacks objective measures, conflict is even more likely
• Employees find ways to game the system

The problem is if you don’t tie pay to performance, there is no obvious way of rewarding good
and exceptional performance. Yet, if you do tie them, the potential of conflicts rises. So, it is
necessary to think of decoupling pay and performance to remove possible conflicts and put the
focus squarely on performance development.

What motivates performance in employees?

It’s important to reduce negativity when you think of rewarding performance. Here are some
factors which are very important and helpful to consider when motivating employees:
• Trust between the employees and the managers. Trust is the key to strong relationships
and a good cooperative way of working. Some essential qualities that increase
employee-manager trust are:
– Honesty
– Autonomy
– Openness and transparency
– Consistency in action and words
– Demonstrated commitment through actions, listening, understanding, and
helping employees succeed
• Focus on agreements
– Shared agreement of performance expectations is crucial
• Focus on future performance and not on past performance
• Offer rewards other than compensation and try to link them to the strategic goals of the
company (recognition, awards, skill development opportunities, new job assignments,
etc.)

Motivators - Daniel Pink – Purpose, Mastery, Autonomy

We also want to mention Daniel Pink, an author who explains the topics of motivation and
rewarding performance in a humorous and interesting way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrkrvAUbU9Y
The above video describes factors of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of people as well as the
connection to businesses and the differences. It also describes how to take a traditional path of
businesses in the past and aligns it with the scientific approach to motivation. The video offers a
different point of view when thinking of employee motivation.

11
As already mentioned, COPOL INTERNATIONAL LTD. Int. used to reward employees with gift
cards or small incentives, but this is not possible anymore. During the appointment, we also
discovered that there is no individual compensation plan for the employees, which is not always
helpful for engagement. Every employee gets the same amount of money and there is no
interest from the business owners to change that culture from above.
We realize, this situation is not ideal. However, it offers opportunities to develop new ways of
thinking about performance management and rewarding performance. This situation forces an
out-of-the-box perspective about compensating employees for performance.

How to recognize performance without monetary compensation

Thinking of COPOL International Ltd. brings up interesting viewpoints and important topics
which we would suggest as strategic goals. The following two points turned out as very
important:
- Innovation
o The company wants to become more innovative and is currently working with
CBU on developing new products
- Efficiency
o The processes within the company, should be optimized and developed. (E.g.
there is a chance of making money with reducing the production of waste
plastic)
o The production processes should become more efficient in the future

Additionally, there are the core values we put together based on what we know of COPOL
International Ltd.:
- Teamwork
- customer-focus
- safety
- quality
- commitment
- responsibility
- continuous improvement

One of the first topics we discussed was the importance to give employees the possibility of
education and training. Aligned to the core values and strategic goals of the company, there are
a few opportunities COPOL International Ltd. would have. The following opportunities are ideas
of offering incentives to employees.

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Team building workshops
The Excel-Tool gives you the chance to figure out a rating score of individuals or teams.
Teamwork is one of the core values of COPOL International Ltd., so it would be possible to offer
Team-building workshops for the teams. These external moderated workshops can have fun-
activities but also be linked to a strategic goal the team must work on (e.g. Efficiency, optimize
working processes, etc.). It would also be possible to bring the teams together, involve less
motivated employees in the process and help to work on invisible conflicts. It also makes sense
in the beginning to involve the management. This would also strengthen the relationship and
build up trust and open communication. These workshops could be an incentive for good
performing teams and help the company to let the employees work on strategic goals too.
Some examples for workshops
- Better performance through a better team
- Outdoor team building activities
- Strategy workshop with employees
https://www.outbackteambuilding.com/ca/locations/nova-scotia

Innovation
Involvement of employees in the innovation process. It is necessary to think of this topic in the
talks with employees. On one hand side, it is necessary to make it to a point in the reviews and
additionally it is necessary to think of it in the daily talks with the employees. Innovation is
necessary for the company and the employees have to be part of it.

Educational Incentives
It might be possible to think of offering employees’ educational days as incentive. If it is
financially possible, two or three days of training/education during the year for each employee
would be a perfect incentive. As an offer from the company side, it makes sense to decide the
topics for one or two days of training and let the employee choose one day of training he/she
wants to complete. This would help to align the training to the company strategy and values.

Process management / Change management

Education in process management. The industrial sector relies on processes which can be
optimized. It helps efficiency if managers and employees are trained in process management.
This offers different and new views on processes and helps to optimize them in the company.

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Offer an employee suggestion box
A helpful tool to improve performance is to give employees and teams the chance to bring in
new ideas themselves.

Awards
Communicate excellent work and innovative ideas of teams (e.g. Newsletter). It is necessary to
honour excellent work. It can strengthen the relationship and engagement and motivate other
teams, too.

Fitness training in the gym for employees

It helps to stay fit and healthy since the company already offers a gym on site.
Summarized, education is the key for changes. Training helps to educate the employees and
also helps to develop the organization. This can help to involve difficult employees and break
up some of the pattern routines.
Thinking of incentive which are not related to money are not always easy to find and need a
change of the way of thinking. It is necessary to start to think differently and out of the box.
A change management theory which can help and we want to introduce is the ‘Theory U’ by
Otto Scharmer from MIT. This theory is more a change management than a performance
management tool, but can help you start to think differently in developing the organization and
the environment for the future.
The following links should give an idea about Theory U and inspire you.
https://www.presencing.org/aboutus/theory-u
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvNlfu4263Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuwBXaKA3tw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtpztsl96tM

Step 6: Developing a performance improvement plan.

In most cases, performance issues often happen because of miscommunication and needed
clarification. However, there are sometimes when performance improvement plans may be
needed for an individual. These plans are formally documented and are developed together
with the manager and employee. It might be used to meet specific goals or behaviors, and

14
outlines the issues, expectations, actions needed, a timeframe, and what can happen in the
future if acceptable performance is not met. Follow up is needed through informal check ins
and formal meetings every 30, 60, or 90 days. Employees should also sign off on performance
improvement plans to acknowledge that the meeting took place and they understand the
consequences. Therefore, if it ever came to a point where the manager decided to terminate an
employee for poor performance, they have the steps taken by the organization to help the
employee improve their performance documented and it protects the organization against
claims of wrongful dismissal and/or discrimination.
Examples of performance improvement plan templates can be found at:
http://templatelab.com/performance-improvement-plan/

Step 7: Implementing the Process/The Roll-Out Plan

First it is important to understand why performance management often fails. Performance
management often fails because employees recognize it as discipline. This is because
employees are not involved, they don’t know what their expectations are and/or don’t
understand the process. However, performance management is about improving the
organization and working together to achieve common goals. Another reason performance
management often fails is because it isn’t connected to anything such as job success,
development, and recognition. So, it is key to tie in these aspects into the process.
Additionally, the next step should be understanding what COPOL International Ltd. is currently
doing regarding performance management and review standards and expectations. Such as
taking a step back and asking questions: How do we currently measure performance of
employees? Is it thoroughly documented? Is the process, based on our values and business
objectives? How do we want our employees to behave? What knowledge, skills, and abilities do
employees need to have for each job? What development opportunities are available? Are
there any current barriers to performance?
Lastly, COPOL International Ltd. would need to have support from all levels (managers and
employees) on performance management. This can be done through having effective
communication, educating employees on the purpose, and training employees on what they
can expect. Everyone needs to understand why performance management is important, as
understanding the expectations of performance management will benefit everyone in the
organization as it’s in both managers and employees’ best interests.

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Summary
There are some ideas which came up when we were analysing the company and there were
also a few things we wanted to mention. We think there are important and necessary things
which are missing, like documentation of the formal and informal communication or not
monetary incentives like training and education, which can be aligned to the strategy and
development of the company. We also wanted to offer a tool which can help to measure the
performance of individuals or teams.
Summarized we have to say, that COPOL International Ltd. has high values and it was possible
to see that the employees are proud to work for the company. COPOL is doing a perfect job in
treating their employees and managing by walking around, the frame work for the employees is
great, but there are still a few spot which can be developed and changed.

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Appendix
Checklist for Performance Meetings:

Checklist for Performance Meetings

Preparation:
Inform employee of upcoming performance review meeting, at least one
week in advance

Prepare performance data to take to the meeting, documentation,

observations, results

Review past performance reviews

Determine goals and objectives, talking points you want to discuss
during the meeting
Schedule meeting and let the employee know the agenda for the
meeting
During the meeting:
Make the employee feel comfortable
Give recognition to employee for good performance
Discuss strength and weaknesses of employee
Allow employee to address concerns, use problem solving approach
Review past reviews
Discuss future goals with employee
Discuss future development opportunities and/or training
Make a plan, determine actions items
Make a commitment to resolve any barriers to performance (equipment,
flexibility, etc)
Document the meeting details
Have employee sign off on the meeting, acknowledging that it occurred

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Ensure to follow up with employee

COPOL International Ltd. Values

Teamwork

Responsibility Safety

Values
Continuous Customer
Improvement Focus

Committment Quality

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References
Bacal, R. (2004). Manager's guide to performance reviews. New York, N.Y: McGraw-Hill
Education LLC.
Define Performance Standards | Performance Management | Employee and Organizational
Development | IU HR | IU. Retrieved 8 April 2020, from
https://hr.iu.edu/training/performance_management/define.htm
Human Resources Management in Canada, Fourteenth Canadian Edition, 14th edition (2019) |
9780134882758, 9780134856193 | VitalSource. Retrieved 8 April 2020, from
https://www.vitalsource.com/en-ca/products/human-resources-management-in-
canada-fourteenth-gary-dessler-nita-chhinzer-v9780134856193
Job performance: Why task and contextual performance matter from an Evidence-based
Management perspective | CQ Net - Management skills for everyone. (2020). Retrieved
8 April 2020, from https://www.ckju.net/en/dossier/Job-Performance-Evidence-based-
Management-Perspective-Why-Task-and-Contextual-Performance-Matters/1258
The Importance of Job Descriptions - Astron Solutions. (2020). Retrieved 8 April 2020, from
https://astronsolutions.net/the-importance-of-job-descriptions/
5 Major Objectives Of Performance Management. (2020). Retrieved 8 April 2020, from
https://blog.vantagecircle.com/objectives-of-performance-management/
40+ Performance Improvement Plan Templates & Examples. (2020). Retrieved 8 April 2020,
from http://templatelab.com/performance-improvement-plan/
Online sources:
Theory U. Retrieved 10 April 2020,
https://www.presencing.org/aboutus/theory-u
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvNlfu4263Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuwBXaKA3tw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtpztsl96tM
Giving Feedback - 3 Funny Examples of Giving Employee Feedback. Retrieved 10 April 2020,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28N2p3smEsw

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Dan Pink über die überraschende Wissenschaft der Motivation (English). Retrieved 10 April
2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrkrvAUbU9Y
Management by walking around. Retrieved 10 April 2020,
https://www.cleverism.com/management-by-walking-around-mbwa/

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