Having a performance management process in place can help your organization guide employees’ behavior and support their professional development. Some organizations only conduct performance reviews on an annual basis, while others have a series of performance review templates for specific timeframes or circumstances.
By creating performance review templates, you can ensure that this process is applied consistently and fairly. Here are six employee performance review templates covering peer reviews, 360-degree feedback, corrective action plans, and more.
What Is a Performance Review Template?
A performance review is a type of evaluation that usually takes the form of one-on-one feedback from a manager, but it could also include a self-evaluation or an appraisal by
peers. A performance review template, then, is a standardized form or document that your HR team can use to streamline the performance review process.
A performance review template could be a simple employee evaluation form, or it could be a piece of software that you use to collect 360-degree feedback from multiple team members or stakeholders in a project.
A simple performance review template should start by asking for basic details about the employee’s job description and overall performance, while leaving space for detailed feedback or a rating system, depending on the type of performance review.
Why Performance Review Templates Matter
If you don’t use the same performance management process across your organization, then it’s up to individual managers and team leaders to develop their own performance review forms, with their own rating scales and review periods.
This can create inconsistencies across teams and departments, and lead to confusion over how performance reviews impact career development and compensation.
Here are three reasons for your human resources department to create standardized performance review templates for your organization:
They Increase Participation
When employees undergo performance evaluations on a regular basis, they know what to expect and are less likely to be taken by surprise or offended by them. By using the same performance review templates each time, employees can get used to receiving constructive feedback from their managers or other team members.
Performance reviews become more of a two-way conversation rather than an abstract assessment, leading to increased employee engagement with them.
Plus, a standardized employee review template is easier to fill out and employees don’t have to get used to a new rating system with each performance assessment.
They’re Easier to Digitize
When you use the same performance review templates year after year, it’s easy for your organization to build up a data repository and assess performance metrics.
By digitalizing the performance review process, you can easily compare an employee’s job performance from one year to the next, or even compare their performance across departments that use the same rating system.
Standardized forms spare you from having to navigate Excel spreadsheets to review an employee’s past performance or update their performance improvement plan.
They Can Reduce Bias
Performance reviews can introduce or increase bias in your workplace if they’re applied inconsistently to different employees. Although gender bias is one of the biggest issues with performance reviews, other types of bias can be a concern too.
Recency bias occurs when recent events or interactions stick around in our short-term memory longer than past interactions. New hires, remote employees, and employees with disabilities may interact with their team with different levels of frequency so that some performance issues receive more attention than others.
A good performance review template can reduce the impact of bias when identifying employee strengths and areas of improvement.
6 Examples of Performance Review Templates
It’s important to customize your performance review templates to meet your needs and ensure that they’re compatible with your existing workflows. Here are six performance review templates you can use to get started:
1. Annual Performance Review Template
An annual performance review template is a great starting point because you can easily use it for a quarterly performance review or a mid-year-performance review. Managers can simply update the header to match the relevant review period.
Employee name:
Department:
Job title:
Reviewer’s name:
Review period:
Review date:
Overall performance:
How would I rate the employee’s overall job performance?
Core competencies:
What are the employee’s strengths in regards to their key job responsibilities?
Areas for improvement:
How could the employee improve their performance in their current role?
Goal-setting:
What career development opportunities would enhance the employee’s performance?
2. Self-Evaluation Template
A self-review or self-assessment is a type of performance appraisal that an employee undertakes themselves. This is a good opportunity for the employee to consider what steps they can take to perform their job more effectively.
Employee name:
Department:
Job title:
Review period:
Review date:
Overall assessment:
How would I assess my recent performance in regards to my core responsibilities?
Accomplishments:
What accomplishments or milestones have I achieved during this review period?
Areas for improvement:
What tools or resources do I need to improve my performance? Are there any obstacles preventing me from completing my core responsibilities?
Goal setting:
How well do my current responsibilities align with my career goals? What would I like to achieve during the upcoming review period?
3. Peer Review Template
A peer review is an opportunity for multiple team members to provide each other with actionable feedback and weigh in on how they work together as part of a team. This could take the form of individual peer reviews or a team performance review.
Since employees may have to fill out the same form for multiple coworkers, using a rating system can increase the response rate.
Employee name:
Department:
Job title:
Reviewer’s name:
Review period:
Review date:
How would you rate the employee in each of the following areas?
Collaboration 1 2 3 4 5
Communication 1 2 3 4 5
Productivity 1 2 3 4 5
Knowledge 1 2 3 4 5
Competency 1 2 3 4 5
4. 360-Degree Feedback Template
The 360-degree feedback process goes beyond a team performance review to solicit feedback from additional stakeholders, including direct reports and even customers. Like the peer review, it’s best to keep this simple and straightforward.
Employee name:
Department:
Job title:
Reviewer’s name:
Reviewer’s role:
Review period:
Review date:
How would I rate my interactions with the employee in each of the following areas?
Communication 1 2 3 4 5
Timeliness 1 2 3 4 5
Productivity 1 2 3 4 5
Knowledge 1 2 3 4 5
Approachability 1 2 3 4 5
5. Corrective Action Review
This type of review is similar to a performance review, but it takes place in response to a specific problem or incident, rather than on a recurring basis. A corrective action review should be part of a broader corrective action management strategy.
Employee name:
Department:
Job title:
Reviewer’s name:
Review period:
Review date:
Area of improvement:
What is the main area of improvement that needs to be addressed?
Cause of the problem:
What potential causes of the problem have been identified?
Solutions:
List any potential solutions that could improve the employee’s performance.
Follow-up:
How will performance improvements be measured, and how often?
6. Compensation Check-In
This type of performance review is designed to assess promotional opportunities, and whether or not the employee is deserving of a raise or bonus.
Employee name:
Department:
Job title:
Reviewer’s name:
Review period:
Review date:
Compensation:
How has the employee been compensated during this review period? List any salary, commissions, bonuses, etc.
Comparison:
How does the employee’s compensation compare to their peers in the organization or their industry as a whole?
Cost of living:
Has the cost of living increased during this review period?
Merit-based considerations:
Has the employee exceeded expectations in terms of performance (e.g., sales metrics or other KPIs)? Are there any opportunities for career advancement in the organization?
Standardize Employee Reviews With HR Automation
Employee performance review templates should be consistent across your organization, but they shouldn’t be set in stone. Leave room for flexibility, and be sure to revisit your performance review templates from time to time. A good performance review process will help to foster employee engagement and shape company culture.
By digitizing your performance management process, you’ll be able to store employee performance reviews in a central location and track progress over time. Plus, you can use automation to send out performance reviews automatically and make it easy for employees to provide their responses online.
Pulpstream enables you to streamline the performance management process with HR tools that integrate with your existing platforms.
Contact the team today to request a demo and learn more!
