Ask HN: How does your company do performance reviews?

All the managers in the org get into days long meetings where they duke it out over who gets what ratings because everyone is stack ranked.

Then a chosen few are told their top tier and can continue to get stocks (assuming the stock hasn't grown since the last time the got stocks, we're owners so growth is all we need. Or assuming the stock hasn't fallen, we're owners so we need to help the trillion dollar company. Or assuming they've not been top tier too many years in a row), and the unlucky few, get put into the pipeline for "unregretted attrition" and are a feather in the managers hat when they're forced out.

My company uses a soft skills matrix to evaluate everyone, including but not limited to leadership skills, teamwork, communication, problem-solving, and time management skills. The skills matrix outlines general expectations for employees at each seniority level (e.g., Junior, Mid-level, Senior). Above the senior level, the matrix diverges into a technical specialist career and a managerial career path. Managers are responsible for conducting performance reviews (PR) for their teams twice a year according to the company's calendar. They can include specific hard skills to customize the review based on their direct reports' roles (e.g., mobile, frontend, backend). Managers review all of their direct reports, and direct reports review their managers and peers. All assessments are aided by an online platform that consolidates results and allows us to rank each employee as below, meeting, or exceeding expectations for their role, which helps determine next steps. The process consists of two main stages: first, everyone completes forms on the platform; second, the manager and direct report hold a one-on-one meeting to resolve any discrepancies in the review before final consolidation. In my experience, the PR process demands significant time and energy, and if not conducted objectively and fairly, it can lead to team frustration. It's crucial for managers to exercise empathy and maintain balanced communication. Our PR process is far from perfect, but reasonably good, and it helps guide the team in the right direction and recognizes and promotes high-achieving employees.

"How does your company do performance reviews?"

Like most do them - poorly.

Managers just pick out some sample behaviors from your year and fit them to whatever rating they feel you deserve. Pretty much the same everywhere, but just dressed up differently from one place tl the next.

There's a fake ass "goals" system. I was supposed to save my company $500k off of our massive cloud budget. I ended up cutting $1,000,000 by optimizing services and deleting old junk, also wrote some automation that saved us ~$250k. Still ended up receiving a "meets expectations". We aren't supposed to know but managers are told that nobody is allowed an "exceeds expectations" review otherwise it would disrupt the bonus / incentive situation which is tilting toward rock-bottom.

Before I was a consultant, I had a performance review that included 'leadership skills' as 'not meeting expectations'. I was a junior developer at the time and my manager admit to me that he never gave me an opportunity to be in a leadership position, but had to put something in the review.

I quit a few months later.

They hire an engineering manager that has never or hardly has done any serious coding. Alternative is that they hire an engineering manager experienced in coding but strongly opinionated and highly biased. Middle ground is an endemic occurrence.

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