Performance review template for small teams
At a 5 to 30 person startup, the first performance review cycle usually happens because someone asks about a raise, or because the founder realises nobody has had formal feedback in a year. There's no HR team, no process, and no time to build one.
You don't need a heavy process. You need a short, fair template that everyone fills in the same way, and a clear plan for the conversation afterwards. This page gives you both.
If this is the first review you have run, start with this first performance review guide for a lightweight process, then copy the forms below.
The template
There are two parts: a self-review the employee fills in first, and a manager review that uses the same headings. Keeping the headings the same makes it easy to see where you agree and where you don't.
Part 1: Self-review (employee)
Performance review — Self-review
Name:
Role:
Review period: [start] to [end]
1. What I worked on
List the 3–5 most important things you worked on this period.
For each: what was the goal, what did you do, and what happened?
2. What went well
Where did you have the most impact? Give specific examples.
3. What was hard
What didn't go as planned? What would you do differently?
4. Goals from last period
For each goal: met / partly met / not met, with one line on why.
5. How I work with others
One example of collaborating well. One thing you'd like to improve.
6. Growth
What do you want to get better at in the next period?
What support do you need from your manager or the company?
7. Anything else
Anything you want your manager to know before the conversation.Part 2: Manager review
Performance review — Manager review
Name:
Reviewer:
Review period:
1. Key contributions
The 2–4 most valuable things this person did, with examples.
2. Strengths
What should they keep doing? Be specific.
3. Areas to grow
1–2 things that would make the biggest difference next period.
For each, describe what "good" looks like.
4. Goals from last period
Met / partly met / not met, with context.
5. Overall rating (optional)
[ ] Below expectations
[ ] Meets expectations
[ ] Exceeds expectations
Reason for rating, in 2–3 sentences:
6. Goals for next period
2–4 goals, each with how you'll both know it's done.
7. Support
What you as the manager will do to help.Copy the self-review and manager forms, or create a free workspace for 1:1s and goals. Review cycles are on Team.
Rating guide
If you use ratings, write down what each level means before anyone fills in a form:
- Below expectations: regularly missing what the role needs, even with support. This should never be the first time they hear it.
- Meets expectations: reliably doing the job well. Most people on a healthy team land here, and that's a good result.
- Exceeds expectations: consistently doing more than the role asks, in ways others notice and rely on.
Three levels are easier to apply consistently in a small team than five. Many teams skip ratings entirely for their first cycle, which is a reasonable choice.
How to run a review cycle
1. Set the dates and tell people early
Give at least two weeks' notice. Share the template, the timeline and whether there are ratings or pay decisions attached. Uncertainty is what makes reviews stressful.
A simple timeline for a small team:
- Week 1: self-reviews due
- Week 2: manager reviews written
- Week 3: review conversations
- Week 4: goals for next period agreed
2. Collect evidence before you write
Go back through 1:1 notes, goals, shipped work, incident write-ups and any recognition or praise from teammates. Reviews written from memory tend to over-weight the last few weeks. A running notes doc per person makes this much easier.
3. Read the self-review first
Then write your review. Where you agree, say so. Where you see it differently, explain why with examples. Don't copy their answers back, but don't ignore them either.
4. Have the conversation, not just the document
Send the written review a day before the meeting so the person has time to read it. In the meeting, spend most of the time on growth and next-period goals rather than defending the rating. Ask what they think is fair and what they'd change.
5. Agree on goals and follow up
End with 2 to 4 goals for the next period and put them somewhere both of you will see them. Check in on them in 1:1s. A review that ends in a document nobody opens again doesn't change much.
Separating pay from performance
If you can, have pay conversations separately from the review conversation, even a week apart. When pay is in the room, people tend to stop listening to feedback and start negotiating. Whatever you do, be clear about how the two are connected.
Common mistakes
Surprises. Anything serious in a review should already have come up in a 1:1. If it hasn't, raise it now, but treat it as a starting point, not a verdict.
Vague feedback. "Needs to communicate better" is hard to act on. "In the last two launches, the support team found out about changes on launch day. Next time, post a summary in their channel two days before" is easy to act on.
Recency bias. Reviewing only the last month because that's what you remember. Use your notes.
Skipping self-reviews. They take the person 30 to 60 minutes and often surface work you didn't know about.
Different standards for different people. In small teams, founders often review some people more strictly than others without noticing. Read all your reviews side by side before sharing them.
Too many goals. Ten goals means none of them get done. Pick the few that matter most.
Never doing the next cycle. One review a year is better than none, but twice a year with lighter forms is often easier for small teams to keep up.
FAQ
How often should a startup do performance reviews?
Once or twice a year is common for small teams, with regular 1:1s in between. Twice a year with a short form tends to be easier to sustain than one long annual review.
Should a small team use performance ratings?
It's optional. Ratings help when you need to make consistent pay or promotion decisions. If you don't, written feedback and goals may be enough for your first cycle. If you use ratings, define each level in writing first.
How long should a performance review take to write?
For a manager, plan around an hour per person if you have good notes, more if you don't. Self-reviews usually take the employee 30 to 60 minutes.
What should be in a self-review?
What you worked on, what went well, what was hard, progress on past goals, how you work with others, and what you want to grow in next. The self-review template above covers all of these.
How do I give a negative performance review?
Be specific, use examples, describe what good looks like, and agree on a plan with clear check-ins. It should never be the first time the person hears the concern; if it is, acknowledge that and give them a fair chance to respond.
Can I use this template for year-end reviews?
Yes. Set the review period to the full year and give more weight to the goals and growth sections.
Use this template in your own documents
The employee and manager forms above are the main thing to copy and use. Copy them into Google Docs, Word or Notion. Share the self-review first, then have the manager draft, then hold the conversation.
For more help writing either half, see the self-review examples and these manager review phrases. If you are looking back over a full year, use the year-end review examples.
For product information, see Prixie's performance-review overview.