Performance review templates
Annual performance review template, with three completed year-end reviews
A year-end review form that records each goal and competency against what was expected, the final rating, a summary, next year’s goals, the employee’s comments and sign-off, with tips on using it and three completed reviews.
By the CLEAR Talent team
The annual performance review is the record of the year: what was expected, what happened, the rating that resulted and what comes next. It is the document someone opens when a pay rise, a promotion or a dispute depends on it, sometimes years later, so it has to make sense to a reader who was not in the room.
This template is the last form in the cycle. It is completed after the self-assessment, any 360 feedback and the manager’s review, and after calibration if you calibrate, so the rating it records is final. Each goal and competency gets its own row showing what was expected, what happened and the rating; the overall rating, a short summary, next year’s goals, the employee’s comments and sign-off follow.
What it records
What belongs in an annual performance review
An annual review summarises evidence gathered during the year; it is not the place to gather it. If the form is the first time a goal, a concern or a rating has come up, the problem lies earlier in the year.
Five parts of the record
Every goal and competency, with what was expected
The measure or level agreed at the start of the year, so each rating can be checked against a standard rather than against memory.
What actually happened
Results and specific examples from the whole year, not the last month. Check-in notes and goal records are the best source.
The final rating
Decided by weighing the rows, after calibration if you calibrate, and labelled as final.
Next year’s goals and development
Two to four goals with a measure and a date, plus one development goal, so next year’s review has something to rate.
The employee’s comments and sign-off
Their response in their own words, and signatures confirming the conversation took place — not that they agree with every line.
The annual performance review template
Template
Annual performance review
Fill in the review details, then one row per goal and competency. The overall rating, summary and goals come next; the employee’s comments and sign-off are added after the meeting.
| Field | What to write |
|---|---|
| Review details | |
| Employee and role | Name, job title, team and the level the role is reviewed against. |
| Reviewer | The manager accountable for the review, and a second reviewer if your policy uses one. |
| Review period | The twelve months the review covers. |
| Inputs | The forms and records the review draws on: self-assessment, manager review, 360 summary, check-in notes. |
| Final overall rating | The rating after calibration, if you calibrate, weighed from the rows below rather than averaged. |
| Summary | Three or four sentences: the headline result, the strongest evidence and the main area to develop. |
| Goals for next year | Two to four goals, each with a measure and a date, plus one development goal. |
| Employee comments | The employee’s response in their own words, added after the meeting. |
| Sign-off | Names and dates for the employee, the manager and any second reviewer. Signing confirms the conversation took place. |
| For each review area (up to 8) | |
| Goal or competency | Each goal for the year, then each competency in the role profile. |
| What was expected | The measure, target or level agreed at the start of the year. |
| What happened | The result and two or three specific examples from across the year. |
| Rating | A point on your scale, for this row only. |
As a spreadsheet
One row per review area. Copy the grid below and paste it into the first cell of a spreadsheet, or download the CSV.
| # | Goal or competency | What was expected | What happened | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||
| 2 | ||||
| 3 | ||||
| 4 | ||||
| 5 | ||||
| 6 | ||||
| 7 | ||||
| 8 |
Show the plain-text template
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REVIEW Employee and role: Reviewer: Review period: Inputs: Final overall rating: Summary: Goals for next year: Employee comments: Sign-off: REVIEW AREA 1 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating: REVIEW AREA 2 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating: REVIEW AREA 3 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating: REVIEW AREA 4 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating: REVIEW AREA 5 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating: REVIEW AREA 6 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating: REVIEW AREA 7 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating: REVIEW AREA 8 Goal or competency: What was expected: What happened: Rating:
Nothing here is gated: the spreadsheet and the text file hold exactly the fields shown above, with eight blank review-area rows. Change the fields to suit your process — the form is a starting point, not a validated instrument.
How to complete the annual performance review
Most of the form can be written before the meeting; the comments and sign-off are added after it.
Start from the agreed goals and competencies
Copy each goal and competency into a row with the measure or level agreed at the start of the year. If a goal changed during the year, use the version in force and note the change.
Bring in the earlier forms
Take the results and evidence from the self-assessment, the manager review form and any 360 summary, rather than writing the year up from memory.
Record the final rating
Use the rating agreed after calibration, if you calibrate. If it changed from the manager’s proposal, the manager should be able to explain why in the meeting.
Write the summary and next year’s goals
Before the meeting, write three or four sentences the employee will recognise, then two to four goals with a measure and a date.
Add comments and sign-off afterwards
Give the employee a few days to add their comments in their own words, then collect signatures. Record disagreement; do not edit it out.
Three completed annual performance reviews
One review at each rating — exceeds, meets and needs improvement — for three hypothetical employees in different roles, each recorded on the same form.
These forms were filled in for this page to show a workable level of detail. They describe no real employee or CLEAR Talent customer, and every figure in them is an illustrative placeholder, not a benchmark.
Exceeds expectations
Example 1: exceeds — a project manager in a construction firm
Fifth year with the company and second as a project manager, running two mid-sized refurbishment projects.
- Employee and role
- Project manager, refurbishment division
- Review period
- January to December
- Inputs
- Self-assessment, manager review, a 360 summary from the site team and the commercial manager, quarterly check-in notes
- Final overall rating
- Exceeds expectations (unchanged at calibration)
- Summary
- Delivered both projects on time and within budget, and the subcontractor handover checklist they introduced is now used across the division. The area to develop is commercial negotiation, which they still hand to the commercial manager.
- Goals for next year
- Hand over the school refurbishment by its August date within the agreed budget; lead two subcontractor negotiations with the commercial manager reviewing; mentor the new assistant project manager.
- Employee comments
- I agree with the review, and would like the negotiation goal to include a short course in the first quarter.
| Goal or competency | What was expected | What happened | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deliver projects on time and on budget | Both projects handed over by the contract date, within the approved budget | The office refurbishment was handed over a week early and the retail fit-out on its contract date, both within budget after two approved variations. | Exceeds |
| Health and safety on site | No reportable incidents; every weekly inspection recorded | No reportable incidents on either site and every weekly inspection recorded; two near misses investigated and closed within a week. | Meets |
| Planning and organisation | Proficient | Introduced a subcontractor handover checklist in May that the division adopted in September; the second project had no handover delays. | Exceeds |
| Stakeholder communication | Proficient | Fortnightly client updates on both projects; the 360 summary describes them as the first person the site team goes to with a problem. | Exceeds |
Meets expectations
Example 2: meets — a learning and development coordinator
Two years in role at a 400-person insurer, running the training calendar and the compliance training records.
- Employee and role
- Learning and development coordinator, HR
- Review period
- January to December
- Inputs
- Self-assessment, manager review, training records, quarterly check-in notes
- Final overall rating
- Meets expectations (unchanged at calibration)
- Summary
- A reliable year: the compliance training deadline was met and the calendar ran without avoidable cancellations. Course evaluations are collected but rarely acted on, and turning them into changes is the focus for next year.
- Goals for next year
- Keep compliance training completion on track for the November deadline; review the three lowest-rated courses with their trainers and agree one change to each by June.
- Employee comments
- Agreed. I would like time in the first quarter to set up the course reviews before the busy period.
| Goal or competency | What was expected | What happened | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compliance training completion | Every employee completes annual compliance training by 30 November | All but four employees completed by the deadline; the four were on long-term leave and have dates booked. | Meets |
| Training calendar | Run the agreed calendar with no avoidable cancellations | Forty-two sessions delivered; one cancelled when the trainer was ill and rebooked within three weeks. | Meets |
| Using evaluation results | Proficient: evaluation results lead to changes in courses | Collects an evaluation after every session but has not yet used the results to change a course. | Needs improvement |
| Service to managers | Proficient | Booking requests answered within two working days; two departments asked for the same support next year. | Meets |
Needs improvement
Example 3: needs improvement — a procurement officer
Eighteen months in role at a public-sector agency. Supplier relationships are good, but contract records and purchase-order turnaround fell below the standard, and both were raised at check-ins during the year.
- Employee and role
- Procurement officer, corporate services
- Review period
- January to December
- Inputs
- Self-assessment, manager review, the contract register audit, purchase-order turnaround reports and check-in notes from April, July and October
- Final overall rating
- Needs improvement (unchanged at calibration)
- Summary
- Supplier relationships are a strength. But the contract register audit found missing records, and purchase orders took too long to raise for much of the year. Both were raised at check-ins, and the goals below come with fortnightly support.
- Goals for next year
- Every new contract on the register with all required documents within five working days of signature; purchase orders raised within three working days from June; fortnightly check-ins with the procurement manager until both goals are met.
- Employee comments
- I accept the register findings. Turnaround was affected by covering a vacant post from March to July, which I would like noted.
| Goal or competency | What was expected | What happened | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contract register accuracy | Every contract recorded with all required documents | The October audit found 11 of 64 contracts missing a signed copy or an end date. | Needs improvement |
| Purchase-order turnaround | Purchase orders raised within three working days | An average of six working days from March to July, while covering a vacant post, and four from August. | Needs improvement |
| Supplier relationships | Proficient | Renegotiated the cleaning and print contracts at renewal on better terms; suppliers describe them as responsive. | Meets |
From form to review cycle
Annual reviews in CLEAR Talent
In CLEAR Talent the four review forms become the stages of one review cycle: self-review, 360° feedback, manager review, calibration and the final rating, ending in a signed-off report. Every stage opens and closes on the dates you set and automated reminders keep it moving, so HR is not chasing forms by email. You can run mid-year, year-end or quarterly cycles, each with its own configurable template.
The overall rating combines three streams — goal achievement rolled up from the goals set during the year, evidence-based competency ratings and structured 360° feedback — weighted the way your policy sets. Before ratings go final, calibration shows live heatmaps of ratings across managers and teams and flags outliers, so a rating that is out of line is discussed while it can still change.
Once the manager releases the review, the employee sees every competency rating and narrative section, every change made during the cycle is recorded in the audit log, and the finished review can be exported as a PDF.