Performance Reviews & Feedback Best Practices

Whether you conduct reviews quarterly or annually, evaluating your employees’ performance and giving them feedback is critical to their success at your company.

To help you revamp your performance review process and take it to the next level, we asked the experts from Namely and Culture Amp for their best practices.

Here’s what Namely’s HR Business Partner, Sandra Velez, and Culture Amp’s Senior People Scientist, Thaddeus Rada-Bayne, shared.

Hold Calibration Sessions

To make sure that performance reviews are equitable and create an even playing field, Velez suggests holding rating calibration sessions with team and department leaders. These sessions help set standards for performance by teaching managers how to evaluate employees based on their team, role, and level. Rada-Bayne says that while there is no one-size-fits-all solution to performance reviews, making sure that managers are on the same page about the behaviors they’re assessing, and the ratings they’re providing, will help ensure fairness across employees.

Allow Employees to Choose Their Peer Reviewers

During the 360-review process, Rada-Bayne recommends that organizations allow employees to nominate their own peer reviewers. Of course, these nominations have to be approved by managers, but allowing employees to choose what coworker is reviewing them helps create a more “two-sided” process. Employees have the best idea of who they work with most frequently and who would be best able to speak to their abilities, success, and hardships.

Remember That Ongoing Feedback is Key

When it comes to feedback, both experts say that performance reviews should not be the first time an employee is hearing any specific piece of feedback. Feedback given during performance reviews should never blindside an employee or come as a surprise. If anything, Rada-Bayne explains that performance reviews are just a space to formalize the discussions that managers have with their direct reports. To create a culture of constant feedback, Velez suggests that managers discuss employees’ performance openly during their weekly one-on-one meetings.

How else can managers strengthen their relationship with employees? Find out in our eBook.