Performance review phrases for coaching and mentoring

Exceeds expectations

• Brought a struggling new joiner up to standard in a month with short daily check-ins, not a lecture.
• Built a second-line who now runs the counter during leave, so the desk never stalls.
• Gives feedback in the moment on the floor, so juniors correct a habit before it sets.
• Turned own hard-won shortcuts into a simple guide the whole team learns from.
• Coaches by asking questions, so the junior reaches the answer and remembers it.
• Spotted a quiet performer's potential and gave stretch work that grew them into a lead.
• Adjusts the teaching to each person, patient with one and direct with another.
• Debriefs a junior after a tough customer call, turning the incident into a lasting lesson.

Meets expectations

• Onboards new joiners patiently and checks their understanding rather than assuming it.
• Shares knowledge with the team instead of keeping it as a personal edge.
• Gives juniors honest feedback, both what worked and what to fix.
• Answers questions willingly and points people to the right resource.
• Delegates a learning task and stays available if the person gets stuck.
• Recognises a junior's progress, so effort to improve is noticed.
• Makes time for a mentee even during a busy week.

Needs improvement

• Does the task for the junior rather than teaching them to do it.
• Gives feedback only at appraisal time, so habits set before anyone corrects them.
• Keeps useful knowledge to self, so the team depends on one person.
• Shows impatience when a learner is slow, which makes them stop asking.
• Delegates a task but not the understanding, so the same help is needed each time.
• Praises or criticises vaguely, so the junior cannot tell what to change.
• Skips mentoring in busy weeks, so juniors are left to sink or swim.

Self-review phrases

• I coach by asking questions now, so juniors reach and remember the answer.
• I built a second-line who runs the counter when I am on leave.
• I want to give feedback in the moment rather than saving it for appraisal.
• I turned my shortcuts into a simple guide the whole team can use.

Tips for writing this feedback

• Judge coaching by how the mentees grew, not by how much the person knows themselves.
• Look for a second-line being built, since a manager who cannot be spared has not developed the team.
• Value teaching the understanding, not just doing the task, which leaves the learner dependent.
• Check that feedback is given in the moment, since problems fixed early beat a list saved for appraisal.
• Credit patience and tailoring, because the same approach rarely suits every learner on the team.

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