Acme Co · People & Development

Performance Review Prep

Templates, word-for-word scripts, and step-by-step frameworks to help you walk into review season prepared — and walk out with the outcome you deserve.

Template · Annual & Mid-Year

Self-Evaluation Template

A strong self-evaluation is not a list of tasks — it is a story of impact. Use this structure for both mid-year check-ins and annual reviews. Complete each section before you write anything; the structure forces you to be specific.

Section 1: Your top 3 accomplishments this period

For each accomplishment, answer: What did I do? Why did it matter? What was the measurable result?

Format [Action verb] [what you did] → [outcome], which [why it mattered to the business/team/customers].

Example: "Redesigned the onboarding flow for the mobile app → reduced time-to-first-value by 34%, which directly contributed to a 12-point improvement in 7-day retention."

Section 2: Impact beyond your job description

List contributions that were not in your stated role: mentoring, process improvements, cross-team projects, hiring support.

Section 3: Growth areas — honest, not defensive

Name one or two genuine areas for growth and follow each with a concrete step you have already taken.

Format "I recognize I need to improve [area]. This period I [specific action taken]. Going forward, I am [specific plan]."

Section 4: Goals for next period

Two to three goals aligned to your level's promotion criteria (see career ladders). Each goal should have a measurable success signal.

  • Write accomplishments before reviewing your job description — this prevents you from only listing "expected" work
  • Every impact statement includes a number, percentage, or named outcome
  • Growth areas are genuine, not fishing for compliments
  • Goals reference your level's promotion signal explicitly
  • Total length: 400–700 words. Shorter is stronger if it is specific.
Script · Requesting & Giving

Peer Feedback Scripts

Good peer feedback is specific, actionable, and honest. Most people write generic praise because they were not asked the right questions. These scripts fix that.

Choosing who to ask

  • At least one person who has seen you struggle and navigate it — not just succeed
  • At least one cross-functional partner (PM asks an engineer; engineer asks a designer)
  • At least one person junior to you who you have mentored or worked alongside
  • Avoid asking people who have only worked with you for less than 4 weeks

Request script — Slack or email

Template "Hey [Name] — review season is coming up and I'd love your perspective. Would you be willing to give me feedback? I'll make it easy: I'm specifically curious about [1–2 specific things you worked on together]. Three or four sentences is plenty — I just want honest input, not a performance. Thanks in advance."

Guiding questions to include with your request

If your company's review form is freeform, send these with your request to guide specific responses:

Questions to share 1. What is one thing I did well on [project/time period] that I should keep doing?
2. What is one thing that, if I changed it, would make me significantly more effective?
3. Is there anything I do that creates unnecessary friction for you or the team?

Giving feedback to others — the SBI model

Situation → Behavior → Impact. The most useful peer feedback follows this format.

Example "During the Q3 launch (Situation), you flagged the API rate-limit issue two days before we shipped (Behavior), which gave the team time to implement a fallback — I think that saved us from a serious incident on launch day (Impact)."
Do say Specific behaviors you observed, effects you felt, what you would like more of.
Avoid Personality labels ("you're disorganized"), vague praise ("great team player"), or second-hand observations you didn't witness.
Builder · Step-by-Step

Promotion Narrative Builder

A promotion narrative is a document you build over the review period — not something you write the weekend before reviews close. It should make your manager's job easy: they should be able to copy-paste sentences from it into the promotion committee packet.

Step 1: Anchor to your level's promotion signal

Open your career ladder (Engineering, PM, or Design). Copy the promotion signal for your current level. Your narrative must directly address every criterion in that signal — if it doesn't, the committee will assume you haven't met it.

Step 2: The evidence table

For each promotion criterion, provide one concrete piece of evidence. Evidence must be verifiable — a shipped project, a doc you wrote, a metric you moved.

Evidence table format Criterion: "Impact consistently exceeds the team boundary"
Evidence: "Authored the RFC for the new jobs API schema, adopted by 3 teams in Q3. Linked: [RFC doc]"

Criterion: "Developing L3s into strong engineers"
Evidence: "Mentored [Name], who shipped their first solo feature in 6 weeks. [Name] can speak to this."

Step 3: The one-paragraph executive summary

Write a 3–5 sentence summary of why you are ready. This is what gets read first in a committee review — make every word count.

Template "[Name] has been operating at [next level] scope since [date]. Over the past [period], they [key accomplishment 1] and [key accomplishment 2], both of which demonstrate [promotion criterion]. [Supporting evidence]. They are ready for the [next title] role and I am confident they will continue to grow from there."

Step 4: Align with your manager early

  • Share your draft narrative with your manager at least 6 weeks before the review cycle closes
  • Ask explicitly: "Is there anything missing that the committee will ask about?"
  • Ask: "Are there specific people whose endorsement would strengthen this?"
  • If your manager says "not yet this cycle" — ask what specifically needs to change, with a timeline
Guide · Before, During & After

Manager 1-on-1 Prep: Review Season

What you say — and ask — in the 1-on-1s around review season matters as much as what you write. These talking points and questions help you align with your manager, surface surprises early, and close the cycle with clear next steps.

6 weeks before reviews close — calibration check

What to say "I want to make sure we're aligned heading into reviews. Can I share my self-assessment and promotion narrative draft, and get your candid read on where I stand?"
  • Ask: "What performance rating are you expecting to recommend for me?"
  • Ask: "Is my promotion narrative complete enough for committee, or are there gaps?"
  • Ask: "Are there other stakeholders whose input matters to my review that I should be aware of?"

During your review meeting — getting more than a rating

Questions to ask "What is one specific thing I did this year that had the most positive impact on the team or company?"

"What is one thing that, if I had done it differently, would have changed my rating?"

"What does success look like for me in the next 12 months, in your view?"

After your review — if the outcome was disappointing

What to say "Thank you for the feedback. I want to make sure I fully understand it so I can act on it. Can you help me understand: what specifically needs to be different by [date] for me to reach [next level / higher rating]? Can we document that so we're aligned?"

If you disagree with the outcome, request the specific feedback in writing, give yourself 48 hours before responding, and follow Acme's formal review appeals process if needed — do not escalate in the meeting.