The third of three volumes, this report summarizes the findings of, first, a review and analysis of published literature on performance appraisal in general and particularly on the use of appraisals in public education systems, and, second, a series of field-site investigations of performance appraisal systems in action. The field site studies of performance appraisal in action at 10 professional service organizations in Ontario and 7 public school systems in the United States mirror many of the results from the literature review. Three general conclusions are derived from the results of this study: (1) different approaches and priorities in appraisal systems are used for relevance to the local situation of a particular organization or school jurisdiction; (2) appraisal systems can be expected to go through stages of evolution as all participants have to go through a learning curve of experience with a system, and therefore, no one design can be expected to be correct at the outset or remain in force indefinitely; (3) an appraisal system developed jointly between supervisors and subordinates has a better chance of incorporating diverse but relevant points of view than a system developed centrally by top management alone. The greater the opportunity for participation by parties affected by a decision, the greater the potential quality and acceptability of the decisions. Because no system of appraisals is workable unless it is acceptable and legitimate to all staff, an appraisal system should be centrally developed with universal standards that are adaptable to change based on local operational specifics and requisites. (JAM)