Employee performance review policy template

Employee performance review policy template

Policy brief & purpose

Our employee performance review policy describes how we coach, evaluate and reward employees. We base our performance management systems on constructive feedback and open communication between managers and team members.

Scope

This policy applies to all employees. We will clarify our performance appraisal process and provide guidelines for managers on how to lead their teams and assess employee performance.

We have built our performance management practices to:

• Ensure you understand your job responsibilities and have specific goals to meet.
• Provide you with actionable and timely work feedback.
• Invest in development opportunities that help you grow professionally.
• Recognize and reward your work in financial or non-financial ways (e.g. awards.)

Policy elements

What is good performance?

Our company has a general definition of what good performance looks like. To achieve a good performance evaluation, you should:

• Meet your targets consistently.
• Complete your job duties as expected.
• Show a willingness to learn and develop.
• Follow our Code of Conduct and other company policies.
• Have a good attitude and collaborate well with your colleagues.

Each employee may excel in one aspect and need improvement in another. But, to remain employed with our company, you should meet a minimum standard for all of these aspects and show a willingness to improve where appropriate.

Periodical reviews

We conduct [annual/ bi-annual/ quarterly] performance reviews. During these reviews, your manager will fill out your performance evaluation report through our [performance review platform] and arrange a meeting with you to discuss your review. Through these discussions, managers aim to:

• Recognize employees who are good at their jobs.
• Talk about career moves and employee motivations.
• Identify areas of improvement.

Periodical reviews apply to employees who have completed their onboarding period.

Rewards

Pay increases or bonuses aren’t guaranteed. But, we encourage managers to recommend rewards for their team members when they deserve them. There won’t be any forced ranking or other comparison between employees, as our goal is to help all employees improve and develop their careers.

Training

Training and development opportunities are available for all employees year long. But, if managers identify a team member’s training needs in a specific area, they can discuss this with their team member during performance reviews. That way, they can set up an improvement plan.

On-the-job training, job shadowing and other training methods are also appropriate when managers intend to promote an employee in the near future. We encourage managers to discuss future career moves with their team members, so they can determine what type of training is appropriate.

Frequent communication

Managers should meet with their team members once per [week] to provide feedback and talk about their work and motivations. This way, team members can receive feedback in a timely manner and avoid surprises during their [annual/ bi-annual/ quarterly] performance review.

During performance meetings, both parties should feel free to discuss any concerns they have. If you need to talk to your manager about a particular issue, reach out as soon as possible.

Managers’ responsibilities

If you manage a team, you are responsible for your team members’ performance. To conduct effective regular meetings and performance evaluations, we expect you to:

• Set clear objectives. Your team members should know what you expect of them. When you first hire someone to your team, ensure they understand their job duties. Set specific goals for each team member (and team-wide if applicable.) Renew those goals during [annual/ bi-annual/ quarterly] performance reviews.
• Provide useful feedback. During scheduled meetings with your team members, give them guidance and praise, as appropriate. Be fair and specific to help them understand and implement your feedback.
• Keep your team members involved. There should be two-way communication between you and your team. Make your expectations clear, but always take your team members’ motivations and aspirations into account. Discuss training and development opportunities that may interest your team members.
• Keep logs with important incidents about each one of your team members. These logs help you evaluate your team, but they may also prove useful if you want to terminate, reward or promote your team members.