This article focuses on the following:

• What a Performance Review Cycle is
• How to create a performance review cycle using the Performance Review Cycle Builder in Personio
• How to edit and delete a draft performance review cycle that has not yet been launched
• What happens when a review cycle is launched

What is a Performance Review Cycle?

A performance review cycle is a framework that helps to structure your organization's performance management.

The Performance Review Cycle Builder in Personio allows you to create and trigger performance review cycles across your organization. It enables employees and supervisors to create and send feedback and reviews, and keep track of due dates. All feedback is consolidated in one centralized area.

Tip To read more about Performance Management and how it can support the retention of talent, visit our website and read our Attraction Plus Whitepaper or take a look at our Performance Management Guide.

Prerequisite to Set up Performance Review Cycles – Feedback Form Templates

Before you can create a Performance Review Cycle, you will need to set up Feedback Form Templates to collect standardized feedback from employees, peers, and supervisors across the organization. 

Note
Only employees in the Administrator role can create Feedback Form Templates.

To create a Feedback Form Template, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to Settings > Performance > Performance > Form templates.
2. Click Create a new form, give the template a name, and click on Create.
3. Then add questions to the form by clicking Add question. 
4. Type in your question and select which type of answer should be used from the drop-down menu. Learn more about the different types of questions and answersin your form templates.
   
   
   
   
5. Depending on the Type of answer, you can select whether you would like to Allow evaluators to provide a comment on the option they chose. Also, select if you want this question to be mandatory.

Tip
To reuse the settings of a question, you can duplicate it by clicking . You can only duplicate your questions within the same form.

Once you have added all your questions to the template, you can reorder them via drag and drop. When you are done, click Save.

How to Create a Performance Review Cycle

To create a review cycle, you need to complete six steps which are detailed below.

Note Review cycles can only be created by a Personio Administrator, or by employees with edit rights in the Performance & Development area.

Tip
▶︎ To make a change to a previous step, click on Back at any time and make the required change.
▶︎ If you wish to leave the configuration wizard before creating and launching a review cycle, click on Save and close at any time.
▶︎ To resume the setup, go to Performance & Development > Cycles and click on the name of the relevant review cycle.

Step 1: Name the Review Cycle

To name a review cycle, follow these steps.

1. Go to Performance & Development > Cycles.
2. Click on Start a new cycle (or if you have already created at least one review cycle, click on Create a new cycle).
3. In the Name of review cycle field, enter a name for the review cycle.
4. Optional: In the Add your description field, enter a description for the review cycle.
5. Click on Next.

Step 2: Choose the Employees

You can choose to add all active employees to this cycle, select specific employees from a list, or select employees by condition.

▶︎ Add all active employees to this cycle: Select the Add all active employees to this cycle option. To see the complete list of employees that can be added to a review cycle, click on View all. The Employees you've added dialog will display, showing all the active employees who have been added to the review cycle.

▶︎ Select specific employees from a list: Select the Select employees from a list option, and then click on each of the relevant employees that you wish to add to the cycle. To remove an employee from a review cycle, click on the X next to their name.

▶︎ Select employees by condition: To add employees grouped by one or more conditions to a review cycle, you first need to select the Select employees by condition option and then select the relevant condition from the available options.

Tip To see the complete list of employees that have been added to a review cycle, click on View all. To clear all the selections that you have made for a condition, click on Clear all.

Step 3: Add Review Types

Choose the types of reviews that will be used in the review cycle from the available options by selecting the checkbox beside the relevant review:

1. • Manager Review: Supervisors provide written feedback to their direct reports.
   • Self Review: Individual employees assess their own performance by completing a written reflection.
   • Peer Review: Individual employees assess the performance of their peers by providing written feedback.
   • Upward Review: Individual employees assess the performance of their supervisors by providing written feedback.
     
     

Step 4: Select Forms

Add the Performance Form templates that you want the reviewers to use for each review type during the review cycle. To do so, click Select form and selecting the relevant form from the dropdown menu.

Note To edit a Performance Form or to create a new Performance Form for a review cycle, go to Settings > Performance & Development > Performance & Development > Form templates.

Step 5 (Optional):  Set Due Dates 

Set due dates for the configured review forms. Configure how many days, weeks, or months after the review cycle has been launched, the review form should be submitted.

Tip The reviewer can see the due date for the submission on the review. The reviewer will also receive a reminder via email one day before the review is due for submission.

Step 6: Preview and Launch

1. Check that the configuration of your review cycle is correct in the preview.
2. If you need to make a change, click on Back and make the required change.
3. Click on Launch review cycle.
4. The Launch this review cycle? dialog displays to:
   ▶︎ remind you that emails will be sent to all those who need to write reviews.
   ▶︎  prompt you to confirm that you are ready to launch the review cycle.
5. If you are ready to launch the review cycle, click on Launch review cycle. If not, click on Cancel.

Edit a Draft Review Cycle

If you haven't yet launched the review cycle, you can keep editing it by simply clicking on the name of the review cycle. You can then follow the instructions on how to create a review cycle.

Note After you launch a review cycle, you can no longer edit it.

What Happens When a Review Cycle is Launched?

1. A feedback form is automatically assigned to each reviewer.
   As soon as a review cycle is launched, each reviewer who has been assigned to complete a Peer Review, a Manager Review, a Self Review or an Upward Review for that review cycle, will be able to access the relevant form for the relevant review type under Performance & Development > Feedback. The reviewer can see at a glance the name of the review cycle and the name of the recipient for whom the form is to be submitted.
   
   
2. Reviewers receive an email notification.
   All those who have been assigned to complete a review will receive an email notification requesting feedback.
   
   
3. Reviewers can fill in, edit and publish the feedback form.
   Only a reviewer can access, fill in, edit or publish a feedback form. 

More Information

How to Manage a Performance Review Cycle