Employee Performance Review Workflow

Why should we automate performance reviews instead of managing them manually?

Manual review cycles typically rely on emails, spreadsheets and reminders that are easy to lose track of, especially across many employees at once. This workflow moves the self-assessment, manager review and acknowledgement steps into a single tracked record with a reference number and status, so nothing depends on someone remembering to follow up. Managers and HR can see exactly where each review stands without chasing status updates manually.

What is the ROI of using this workflow compared to spreadsheets and email threads?

The workflow removes the administrative overhead of manually tracking submissions, sending reminder emails and compiling review outcomes into a filing system. Time saved on chasing managers for assessments and employees for acknowledgements can be redirected to actual performance conversations. Because the template is ready to use, a workspace can be running live reviews within minutes rather than investing in a custom build.

Who is involved in this workflow and what do they do?

Employees submit a self-assessment via the request form and later respond to an emailed acknowledgement form to accept or dispute their manager's proposed rating. Managers complete a blocking assessment task with their notes, proposed rating and agreed goals, and if a rating is disputed, hold a follow-up discussion task to record final notes and rating. HR completes a filing task once the review is marked Completed.

What happens if an employee disputes the manager's proposed rating?

When the employee selects Dispute on the acknowledgement form, the workflow routes into a Follow-up Discussion status and creates a blocking task for the manager to hold that discussion. The manager records discussion notes and a final rating on this task, which the workflow waits for before saving the outcome to the record and moving to Completed. If the employee instead selects Accept, the proposed rating is saved directly as the final rating and the review proceeds straight to completion.

Can we customise the fields collected on the self-assessment or acknowledgement forms?

Yes, the workflow can be changed by describing the desired change in plain English or by editing the steps directly in the workflow editor. This applies to the request form fields, the manager assessment task, and the employee acknowledgement form. Earlier versions of the workflow are kept, so changes can be reviewed against prior configurations.

How does HR know when a review is ready to be filed?

Once the final rating is saved, whether through direct acceptance or after a follow-up discussion, the workflow sets the status to Completed and creates a fire-and-forget task for HR due in 5 days. This task is shown in the record's task list with a Filed field for HR to complete, and it does not block the employee's completion notification, which is sent separately by email.

Do employees need an account to take part in the review process?

No, employees take part entirely through the public request form for their self-assessment and through forms emailed to them for the acknowledgement step. They receive an acknowledgement email with their reference number after submitting the self-assessment and a final email when the review is marked Completed.

What information gets saved to the record versus staying with a task?

Anything entered on a blocking task, such as the manager's assessment notes, proposed rating, agreed goals, or follow-up discussion notes and final rating, is saved to the review record because the workflow waits for those tasks. The HR filing task is fire-and-forget, so the Filed value entered there stays with that task and appears in the record's task list rather than as a record-level field.

How can we track the status of reviews across the whole team?

Each performance review is a record with its own reference number, current status, and full timeline of what happened at each step. Table views and dashboards show all records grouped by status, such as Self-Assessment Submitted, Manager Assessment, Awaiting Acknowledgement, Follow-up Discussion or Completed, giving HR a live view of the whole review cycle across employees.