PERFORMANCE GUIDE
How to Conduct a Performance Evaluation: Agenda, Examples and Template
Bring the whole review period into the conversation, hear the employee’s perspective, and leave with a short, owned development plan.
Important: This guide provides general operational information, not legal advice. Employment requirements vary by location, industry, workforce, and situation. Confirm current requirements with qualified HR or legal professionals.
THE REVIEW IN SIX PARTS
How do you conduct a useful performance evaluation?
Confirm the review period and expectations, gather relevant examples, ask for the employee’s perspective, discuss results and support needs, agree on a short development plan, and schedule follow-up. Keep the review focused on work the employee could reasonably understand and influence.
Download the editable performance evaluation template (Word). Customize the blank form to your role expectations and approved review process; its fictional example illustrates how to complete it.
A periodic evaluation summarizes a defined period. Ongoing performance documentation records specific observations and conversations as work happens. Use those notes as evidence rather than trying to reconstruct the whole period the evening before the meeting.
- Define the period, role expectations, and review method.
- Gather a balanced set of relevant work examples.
- Invite the employee’s reflection and questions.
- Discuss results, context, strengths, and gaps.
- Agree on actions, support, owners, and dates.
- Record the conversation and check progress.
BEFORE THE MEETING
Prepare evidence across the whole period
Begin with the expectations already communicated. The EEOC’s evaluation guidance emphasizes clear standards, consistent application, and factual details. If expectations changed, identify when that happened instead of evaluating earlier work against a later rule.
Review work outputs, agreed goals, previous check-ins, training, and support commitments. Ask what evidence is missing. A recent incident should not silently replace the rest of the review period, and a strong result should not erase unrelated gaps.
| Prepare | Question to answer | Useful record |
|---|---|---|
| Role expectations | What did the employee know was expected? | Role description, goals, dated updates |
| Work examples | What supports each conclusion? | Specific outputs, dates, or verified observations |
| Previous commitments | Did the manager provide agreed support? | Training, tools, coaching, access or workload decisions |
| Employee perspective | What achievements or obstacles should be discussed? | Brief self-reflection or agenda items |
| Review method | What do ratings mean, if ratings are used? | Approved definitions and examples |
Send the purpose and agenda in advance. Invite the employee to bring examples of work they are proud of, areas where they need support, and priorities for the next period. Make clear how the review relates to compensation or promotion if that is part of your organization’s process.
AN ADAPTABLE 45-MINUTE AGENDA
Make room for a conversation
This timing is an example, not a rule. Allow more time when the role or review is complex, and arrange follow-up rather than rushing an unresolved question.
Minutes 0–5: establish the purpose
Confirm the period and agenda. Explain that the meeting will cover achievements, expectations, challenges, and the next steps.
Minutes 5–15: hear the employee
Ask what went well, where the work was difficult, and what support would help. Clarify details without dismissing disagreement.
Minutes 15–30: discuss the evidence
Connect each conclusion to a communicated expectation and specific work. Recognize strengths and discuss gaps in concrete terms.
Minutes 30–40: agree on a plan
Choose a small number of priorities. Identify the employee’s action, the manager’s support, the evidence of progress, and a review date.
Minutes 40–45: confirm the record
Summarize what was agreed and what remains unresolved. Explain the record-sharing process and put follow-up on the calendar.
Use questions that uncover work details: “Which part of the handoff takes the most time?” or “What would help you flag a delay earlier?” Avoid guessing at motivation or personality.
If the discussion raises a discrimination complaint, accommodation request, medical issue, or other sensitive matter, use the appropriate HR process. Do not diagnose the issue or place unnecessary sensitive details in a routine review form.
FICTIONAL REVIEW EXAMPLE
Connect a finding to a workable development plan
Sam Rivera is a fictional coordinator whose team expects a complete weekly supply summary by Thursday at noon. During an eight-week review period, six summaries met the agreed standard. Two were late while Sam waited for another location’s numbers.
“Sam needs to be more proactive and communicate better.”
“Six of eight summaries were complete by the Thursday noon deadline. The September 3 and September 17 summaries arrived Friday morning. Sam reported that both were waiting on the West location.”
The manager checks the submission record and confirms the missing inputs. The discussion identifies a process gap: there is no agreed time for escalating a late location response. Sam and the manager record these next steps:
- Employee action: identify missing location inputs by Wednesday at 3 p.m. and send the agreed escalation note.
- Manager support: confirm a backup contact at each location and resolve escalated blockers.
- Progress evidence: review the next four weekly summaries and the escalation record.
- Follow-up: discuss results after the fourth summary, including whether the new process is workable.
This example illustrates a discussion and support plan. It is not a rating recommendation, a disciplinary template, or a reported customer outcome.
AFTER THE MEETING
Record the outcome and provide the promised support
Complete the review while the conversation is fresh. Distinguish the manager’s assessment, the employee’s response, agreed actions, and unresolved questions. If acknowledgment is part of the process, explain its meaning; receipt of a review should not be confused with agreement with every conclusion.
- Share the completed record using the approved process.
- Correct factual errors through a documented update.
- Assign the manager’s support actions as well as the employee’s goals.
- Keep review access appropriate to the record and the person’s role.
- At follow-up, record what changed, what remains blocked, and the next decision.
See OdyHR’s performance-evaluation workflow for connecting reviews and follow-up to an employee record. New managers can use the new supervisor checklist to build a regular conversation rhythm between formal reviews.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Practical decisions before your next review
Does every review need a numerical rating?
No single format suits every team. Use the organization’s approved method. If you use ratings, define them before reviewing employees and support them with relevant examples. Do not calculate a seemingly precise score from vague categories.
What if the employee disagrees?
Record their perspective accurately, check disputed facts, and follow the approved review or complaint process. Agree on what can proceed and who will resolve the open question. Avoid treating disagreement by itself as a performance failure.
Can this replace ordinary feedback?
A formal review should bring together an ongoing conversation. Use brief check-ins to clarify work and address obstacles while they can still be resolved. The documentation log and evaluation form serve different parts of that routine.
AUTHORITATIVE REFERENCES
