How to run an appraisal cycle

A timeline for an April to March cycle

Publish the timeline in April so everyone knows the dates a year ahead. Most cycles slip because the review stage starts late and increments are then paid with arrears. A fixed calendar, owned by HR and backed by the business head, keeps managers honest about their deadlines.

• April: goals and weights agreed for the year
• October: mid-year check-in on every goal
• Early March: employees write a short self-assessment
• March: managers rate each goal and give an overall rating
• Late March: calibration meetings by department
• April: review meetings with every employee
• April or May: increment and promotion letters, effective 1 April

Self-assessment and manager rating

Keep the self-assessment short: a one-page form or document with three questions. What did you achieve against each goal, with evidence? What got in the way? What support do you need next year? The manager then rates each goal on the company scale, such as 1 to 5 with written anchors, and writes one or two lines of evidence per goal. The overall rating follows from the weighted goal ratings, adjusted only with a written reason.

Calibrate before you communicate

Ratings from different managers are rarely comparable as submitted. Before anyone hears their rating, the department head and HR review ratings across teams, question outliers and agree changes, with a reason recorded for each. Calibration after ratings have been shared forces managers to take back what they said, which damages trust more than a late cycle does.

Keeping the cycle fair

Fairness problems are usually predictable. Decide these rules before the cycle starts, write them in the performance policy and apply them the same way in every department. When a rule is invented mid-cycle for one person, everyone else notices, and the process loses credibility for the following year as well.

• No surprises: a year-end rating should match what the mid-year review said, unless something changed
• Joiners in the last quarter are reviewed on probation, not in the annual cycle
• Employees on long leave, including maternity leave, are rated only on the period worked
• The rating discussion comes before any number on pay
• Every rating change in calibration has a written reason

Step by step

1. Publish the cycle calendar in April. Share all dates for goal setting, mid-year, self-assessment, rating, calibration and letters. In ZeniaHR, post it on the Company Wall as an announcement that requires acknowledgement.
2. Set up the cycle and rating scale. Define the scale with written anchors for each point. In ZeniaHR, create an annual review cycle with its rating scale so every team uses the same one.
3. Agree goals with weights. Managers agree four to six goals per employee with weights adding to 100. In ZeniaHR, add them to the cycle typed as KRA, KPI, OKR, competency or task.
4. Hold the mid-year check-in. In October, managers review every goal with each employee, record progress in notes and adjust goals that no longer fit the business.
5. Collect self-assessments. In early March, send the three-question self-assessment as a simple shared form or document, with a deadline two weeks before ratings are due.
6. Managers rate and write evidence. Managers rate each goal, write evidence lines and propose an overall rating by the deadline. ZeniaHR's cycle summary shows reviews by status, so HR can chase the pending ones.
7. Calibrate by department. Department heads and HR compare ratings across managers, agree changes and record reasons before anything is communicated.
8. Hold review meetings and issue letters. Managers hold one-to-one review meetings in April, then HR issues increment and promotion letters with the effective date.

Frequently asked questions