Performance Review Template
A performance review form with goals, competencies, a 5-point rating scale and a filled-in example, plus mid-year, 90-day and quick-review versions.
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What you get
- A complete annual review form: goals, competencies, overall rating, development plan and sign-off
- A filled-in example review for a customer support team lead
- A 5-point rating scale with a written definition for every level
- Sample comments for each rating level, written as evidence rather than adjectives
- Shorter versions for mid-year check-ins, 90-day reviews and a one-page quick review
- A manager prep checklist and a team review tracker
Template preview
The structure, not the finished file. The PDF and CSV carry the complete version.
Review details
- Employee name and job title
- Manager name
- Review type— annual / mid-year / 90-day / project
- Review period— e.g. Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2026
Rating scale
| Rating | Label | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Exceptional | Consistently exceeded every goal and expectation; results had impact well beyond the role. Rare: expect a small share of the team. |
| 4 | Exceeds expectations | Met all goals and exceeded several; needed little direction; raised the standard for others. |
| 3 | Meets expectations | Delivered what the role requires, reliably and to standard. This is a good rating, not an average one. |
| 2 | Partially meets | Met some goals or met them inconsistently; needs specific improvement in named areas. |
Worked example: annual review for a support team lead
Employee: Lena Fischer, Support Team Lead (6 direct reports). Review period: Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2026. Manager: Omar Haddad. Goal 1: Bring first-response time under 2 hours. Result: averaged 1 hour 40 minutes from April onward, down from 3 hours 10 minutes in Q1, after Lena rebuilt the shift rota and triage rules. Rating: 4. Goal 2: Keep CSAT at or above 90%. Result: 91% for the year; dipped to 86% in August during the billing migration and recovered by October. Rating: 3. Goal 3: Publish 20 help-center articles. Result: 12 published; Lena deprioritized this during the migration, which we agreed in June. Rating: 2 (agreed change in priority noted). Competency: People leadership. Ran weekly 1:1s with all six reports and promoted one agent to senior. Two reports said in feedback that they'd like clearer feedback on escalations. Rating: 3. Overall rating: 3, Meets expectations, with strong delivery on the team's main metric. Development plan for 2027: complete the internal coaching course by March; shadow the Support Ops manager on capacity planning in Q2. Employee comment: "I agree with the ratings. I'd like to own the help-center goal again in 2027 with protected time each week."
Section 1: Goals and results
| Goal (as set at the start of the period) | Measure | Result and evidence | Self-rating (1–5) | Manager rating (1–5) |
|---|
Section 2: Competencies
Use your company's competency framework if you have one. These five work for most roles.
| Competency | What good looks like | Examples from the period | Self-rating | Manager rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quality of work | Accurate, complete work that rarely needs rework | |||
| Ownership and reliability | Meets commitments; flags risks early; follows through | |||
| Collaboration | Shares information, helps colleagues, handles disagreement constructively | |||
| Communication | Clear, timely updates in writing and in meetings |
The preview stops here; the template continues in the download.
How to use this template
- Gather evidence for the whole period. Pull goal results, 1:1 notes, project outcomes and peer feedback from the full review period, not just the last few weeks.
- Ask for the self-assessment first. Send the employee the same form a week before the meeting and ask them to complete the self-assessment columns.
- Rate each goal and competency against the scale. Use the written level definitions, and write one or two sentences of evidence for every rating.
- Calibrate before you share ratings. If several managers rate similar roles, compare ratings in a calibration meeting so a 4 means the same thing across teams.
- Hold the conversation and agree next steps. Walk through the review, listen to the employee's view, agree goals and a development plan, and get both signatures.
Frequently asked questions
What should be included in a performance review?
The goals set for the period and the results against them, ratings on a few core competencies with evidence, the employee's self-assessment, an overall rating and summary, goals and development actions for the next period, and comments and signatures from both sides.
How do you write a performance review?
Gather evidence from the whole period, rate each goal and competency against a defined scale, and write one or two specific sentences for each rating. Start the summary with the biggest contribution, name one or two areas to improve with examples, and agree next steps in the meeting.
What is a good performance review rating scale?
A 5-point scale with written definitions for each level is the most common. The important part is the definitions: make clear that "meets expectations" is a good result, and calibrate across managers so ratings mean the same thing.
What is the difference between a self-evaluation and a performance review?
A self-evaluation is the employee's own assessment, completed before the meeting. The performance review is the manager's documented assessment, which takes the self-evaluation into account. This template includes both side by side.
Should employees sign their performance review?
Yes. The signature confirms that the review was shared and discussed, not that the employee agrees. Give the employee space to add comments, and keep the signed copy in the personnel file.
How often should performance reviews happen?
Most companies run a formal annual review with a mid-year check-in, plus a 90-day review for new hires. Teams with fast-changing goals often use quarterly check-ins. Regular 1:1s between reviews mean nothing in the formal review comes as a surprise.