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Performance Review Phrases by Competency and Rating
Behavior-based performance review phrases for 10 competencies at exceeds, meets and needs-improvement levels, plus vague-to-specific rewrites.
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What you get
- Phrase tables for 10 competencies, each at exceeds, meets and needs-improvement level, with [placeholders] for numbers, dates and projects
- A formula for building your own phrase: behavior + evidence + impact + next step
- A vague-to-specific rewrite table for the comments reviewers write most often
- Phrases to avoid: personality labels, age and other protected-characteristic proxies, gendered words and "culture fit"
- Self-review phrases and phrases for senior employees and people managers
Template preview
A preview of the structure. Download the PDF or CSV for the complete, ready-to-use version.
How to use this phrase bank
This is a phrase bank, not a review form. Paste the phrases into your performance review template or self-evaluation. Every phrase describes something a person did that others could see, with a slot for proof. If a sentence would fit any employee at any company, it is not ready.
The formula: behavior + evidence + impact + next step
| Part | Question it answers | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Behavior | What did they do? | Rewrote the returns intake checklist |
| Evidence | How do you know? Numbers, dates, names | in March, cutting steps from 14 to 8 |
| Impact | What changed for the team, customer or business? | Average processing time fell from 3.1 to 1.9 days |
| Next step | What should continue or change? | Next quarter: train the Reno site on the same checklist |
Communication
| Rating | Phrase |
|---|---|
| Exceeds | Wrote the [project] decision memo that let leadership approve [$X / scope] in one meeting instead of the usual [three]; it is now the team's template. |
| Exceeds | Flags risks early and in writing: raised the [vendor delay] on [date], [N] weeks before it would have hit the launch date. |
| Meets | Sends weekly status updates on [project] that list progress, blockers and next steps; stakeholders rarely need to ask follow-up questions. |
| Meets | Adjusts detail to the audience: gave [executive group] a one-page summary and [engineering] the full spec for [project]. |
Collaboration
| Rating | Phrase |
|---|---|
| Exceeds | Paired with [team] for [N] weeks to fix the [integration], without being asked, which unblocked [N] dependent tickets. |
| Exceeds | Peer feedback from [N] of [N] reviewers named [him/her/them] as the person they go to first for [topic]. |
| Meets | Answers cross-team requests within the agreed [24-hour] window and hands off work with clear notes. |
| Meets | Disagreed with the [proposal] in the [date] review, explained why with data, then committed fully once the decision was made. |
Quality of work
| Rating | Phrase |
|---|---|
| Exceeds | Shipped [N] releases with zero severity-1 defects; built the [test suite / checklist] that cut team defects from [X] to [Y] per release. |
| Exceeds | Audit of [N] [payroll files / claims] found a [0.2%] error rate against a [1%] target. |
| Meets | Work passes review with minor edits; [error rate / rework rate] was [X%], within the [Y%] standard. |
| Meets | Checks own work against the [checklist] before submitting; [N] of [N] submissions accepted first time. |
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How to use this template
- 1
Collect evidence first
Pull goals, metrics, project notes, 1:1 notes and peer feedback for the whole review period before you pick a phrase. A phrase without evidence is just an adjective.
- 2
Pick the competency and rating
Find the competency table, choose the row that matches the rating you are giving, and copy the phrase into your review form.
- 3
Replace every placeholder
Fill each [bracket] with a real number, date, project or customer. If you cannot fill a placeholder, pick a different phrase or go find the evidence.
- 4
Run the bias check
Before submitting, check the list of phrases to avoid and read your reviews for different team members side by side. The same behavior should get the same words.
Frequently asked questions
What are good performance review phrases?
Good phrases describe something the employee did that others could observe, with evidence and impact: "Closed 42 tickets a week against a 35 target for six months." Weak phrases are adjectives, such as "hard worker" or "great attitude", that fit anyone. Use a phrase bank for structure, then replace every placeholder with a real number, date or project.
How do you write a needs-improvement comment without being harsh?
State the behavior, the evidence and the expectation, and leave out judgments about character. For example: "Three of five reports in Q2 had calculation errors caught in review. Next: use the reconciliation step before sending, target zero errors by September 30." Specific and dated is fairer than vague and soft.
What words should you avoid in a performance review?
Avoid personality labels (abrasive, lazy, emotional), age proxies (energetic, young, set in their ways), "culture fit", absolutes like always and never, and any mention of health, pregnancy, family, religion or protected leave. These are hard to defend, invite argument and can create legal risk under discrimination laws.
What should I write in my self-review?
List two to four results with numbers, say what your part was, name one growth area with evidence and a plan, and ask for any support you need. Example: "I led the vendor switch, cutting shipping costs 12% by June. My part was the RFP and contract terms." Avoid ranking yourself against colleagues.
How many phrases should a performance review include?
Aim for two or three specific comments per competency you rate, plus a short summary. Five strong, evidence-backed comments are more useful than fifteen generic ones. Cover the whole review period, not just the most recent weeks, and make sure the comments match the rating.
How is this different from a performance review template?
The performance review template is the form: rating scale, goals, competency ratings and signatures. The self-evaluation template is the employee's version. This guide is the wording that goes inside those forms, organized by competency and rating level, with rewrites and a bias check.