Part of the hr checklists cluster. This is educational, operational guidance that connects to the wider site — the employee lifecycle, employer operations, metrics and templates.
Adapt it to your cadence and roles.
Why it matters
Unprepared or inconsistent reviews are unfair and demotivating. A checklist keeps reviews structured, evidence-based and comparable.
It supports development and engagement.
Key concepts
- Preparation with evidence.
- Two-way conversation.
- Consistent structure.
- Agreed next steps and follow-up.
Operational framework
- Prepare with examples and last period’s goals.
- Hold a two-way conversation.
- Cover role-relevant areas with evidence.
- Agree strengths, development and next goals.
- Record outcomes and a follow-up date.
Common challenges
- Surprises in the review.
- Vague, example-free comments.
- One-way reviews.
- No follow-up.
Best practices
- Give feedback year-round, not just at review.
- Use the same structure for all.
- Back points with examples.
- Follow up on next steps.
Common mistakes
- No preparation.
- No examples.
- No employee voice.
- No follow-through.
Measure this with the employee development metrics metric, put it into practice with the performance review template, and run it as a system via running performance reviews as an operating cadence.
Export, edit and share documents
The documents, policies and templates this involves can be exported, edited, signed, stored and shared as PDFs with the HELPERG PDF Editor.
Free, printable HR resources
Practical, ungated resources to put this into action — no signup.