Welcome to your guide to managing performance reviews in Culture Amp! This guide will walk you through the key tasks you'll be responsible for during the performance cycle, from requesting feedback to sharing reviews with your direct reports.
Accessing Your Performance Cycle
When you log into Culture Amp, you’ll land on your Home page, where your outstanding tasks will be clearly listed. Tasks are grouped by category, and we’ll show you the due dates to help you stay on track. You can also access everything related to your performance cycle by selecting Performance > Reviews.
Managing the Review Cycle
Once the performance cycle is live, you may be asked to complete several tasks depending on how the cycle is configured by your People team. These include:
Requesting Feedback: Asking others for feedback about your direct reports.
Reviewing Feedback: Reviewing feedback that has been given about your direct reports.
Writing Reviews: Writing reviews for your direct reports based on their performance.
Sharing Feedback: Sharing feedback given about your direct reports from their peers or teams.
Sharing Your Reviews: Sharing the reviews you’ve written with your direct reports.
You can manage all these tasks directly from your Home page task list or by going to Performance > Reviews and selecting the relevant review cycle.
Navigating the Performance Cycle
Once you open the review cycle, you’ll see two main sections:
Your Team: This section is where you’ll manage tasks related to your direct reports. Here you can:
View your direct reports' self-reflections
Track feedback requests
View and complete manager reviews
Share reviews and feedback with your direct reports
You: This section is where you can complete your own self-reflection for the review period.
Self-Reflections
If you’ve accessed the cycle from the Performance > Reviews section, you'll find your team’s self-reflections under the Your Team section. Here's how to manage them:
Tracking Completion: Get an overview of your team’s self-reflection completion status through the dashboard, helping you track overall progress. The percentage bar shows the number of users who have completed their self-reflection compared to those who haven't.
Filters: Use filters to easily track completion status and review by submission status, demographic information, and more. The Group Filter allows you to view both direct and indirect reports.
Reviewing Self-Reflections: Click on an employee’s name to review their self-reflection.
Manager Prompts: Performance Administrators may include manager prompts in the self-reflection setup to help you craft specific and actionable comments for your direct reports.
Commenting on Self-Reflections: As a manager, it's encouraged to comment on your direct reports' self-reflections to offer feedback or ask clarifying questions. Both you and your direct report can add context to responses. Comments can be deleted by either party using the trash can icon.
Feedback: Overview and Dashboard
If the performance cycle includes Peer and/or Upward feedback, when you click into a cycle, you’ll see a Feedback section under Your Team. Here’s how to manage feedback tasks:
Viewing Feedback: Click View Feedback to open the peer and/or upward feedback component of the cycle.
Feedback Dashboard: The dashboard gives you a quick snapshot overview of:
Completion rates
Feedback requests sent
Feedback received
Shared feedback (if enabled)
Track Requests: The dashboard helps you easily track the progress of feedback requests. You’ll see which requests have been sent and how much feedback has been received.
Requesting Feedback
When managing performance reviews, you may need to request feedback for your team members.
Types of Feedback: You'll request either Peer Feedback (from colleagues, not direct reports) or Upward Feedback (from direct/indirect reports).
Requesting Feedback: Click on an employee’s name to view who they’ve nominated for feedback (if nominations are enabled). You can also add additional people by using the search field.
Previewing Questions: Before sending feedback requests, click the Preview Questions icon to an example of the questions that could be sent.
Sending Requests: Once you're ready, click Send Requests.
Tip: Keep feedback requests focused. Ask people who know your team well, and consider getting feedback from direct reports if your team members are managers
Managing Feedback Requests
Once feedback has been collected, you can view and manage it:
Viewing Feedback: Click on an employee’s name to review the feedback received. You can make changes to who has been selected to provide feedback or add additional requests if the feedback stage is still open.
Automated Upward Feedback: If automated requests are enabled on your cycle setup, feedback will be sent automatically to your direct reports’ team members. You can track these requests, and see if they’re Complete or Incomplete.
Switching Between Employees: Use the Switch Employee dropdown to easily manage feedback tasks for multiple direct reports.
Withdrawing Feedback Requests: If necessary, you can withdraw a feedback request (e.g., if a nominated person is no longer working closely with the employee). Simply scroll to the right and click the X next to the request in the Requests Sent section.
Writing and Submitting Manager Reviews
When it’s time to write reviews, you’ll receive an email notification and an action item on your task list. Here’s how to complete them:
Open the Review: Click on the review task to open it. On the left side, you'll find the questions you need to answer. On the right side, you’ll see helpful information about your direct report, such as feedback received, their self-reflection, and goals.
Auto-Save: Your responses are auto-saved as you write. You can also use rich text formatting to highlight key points.
Review Sharing: Some questions in the review will be marked as shareable. If you want your responses to be visible to the employee, make sure you note which questions are shareable.
Finalizing the Review: When you’re finished, click Complete Review to submit it. You can always come back and make changes until the cycle closes.
Adding Collaborators
If you’re writing a review for someone with complex reporting lines (e.g., a recent manager change or dotted-line reports), you can add collaborators to help with the review.
How to Add Collaborators
From the Employee List:
Locate the employee in the Manager Review section of the employee list.
Scroll to the right and click the ellipsis (…) under More actions next to the employee's name.
Select Manage Collaborators.
Use the search field to find and add your collaborator. You can also add an optional note to provide context. (Your comment will only be visible to the collaborators you select.)
From the Manager Review:
Click on the employee’s name to open the Manager Review.
In the top-right corner, click the ellipsis (…) and select Manager Collaborators.
Search for the collaborator's name, add any notes, and click Update to save.
Your collaborator will be notified and can leave comments on each question in the review.
Visibility and Comments
Visibility: Comments made by collaborators are visible only to you and admins. Your direct report will not be able to see these comments, even if the question is marked as shareable.
Adding and Removing Collaborators: You can add or remove collaborators at any time during the review process. If you remove a collaborator, their comments will remain in the review, but they will no longer have access to it.
How to Remove a Collaborator
Open the Manager Review for the employee.
Click the ellipsis (…) in the top-right corner.
Select Manager Collaborators.
Click the X next to the collaborator’s name to remove them.
Click Update to save.
Tracking Review Progress
You can easily track your progress throughout the performance review cycle on your dashboard:
Review Progress Overview
Tracking Reviews Completed: You’ll be able to see how many reviews you've completed, helping you stay on track and meet deadlines.
Sharing Status: Check if reviews have been shared with employees (if sharing is enabled), and see how many reviews have been acknowledged.
Performance Ratings: If your reviews include performance ratings, you can also track how these ratings are distributed across your team.
Sharing Reviews
Once reviews are complete, it's time to share them with your direct reports. The timing for sharing reviews typically depends on your organization’s process, so be sure to follow guidance from your People team.
Sharing Reviews: In the Performance > Reviews section, if sharing is enabled for the cycle, you'll see the option to Share Reviews. You can share individual reviews by selecting the share icon next to each employee, or use Share All to share them at once.
Once shared, your direct reports will receive an email with their review.
Note: Once shared, performance review data cannot be unshared.
Review Acknowledgements
If your cycle includes Review Acknowledgements, employees will need to confirm they've had a discussion with you about their performance once the review is shared.
Acknowledging Reviews: After reviews are shared, employees will see an Acknowledge button next to their review. Once they click this, the acknowledgment will be tracked in your dashboard.
Timing: Employees should complete their acknowledgment after discussing their review with you, not before.
Tracking Progress: The % of Reviews Acknowledged will update on your dashboard as employees complete this task.
Exporting Reviews to PDF
If you need a hard copy of a review, you can easily export it to a PDF:
Export from Employee List: In the employee list, scroll to the right and click the ellipsis (…) next to the employee’s name in the More actions section. Then, select Export PDF.
Export from Employee Profile: You can also export the review directly from the employee’s manager review page. Open the Manager Review screen, click the ellipsis (…) in the top-right corner, and select Export PDF.
Calibrations
Calibrations are an important part of ensuring that performance reviews are fair and consistent across your organization. They help improve rating accuracy, mitigate potential bias or error, and enhance the quality of feedback given to employees.
If you’ve had a calibration shared with you, for example, as a leader participating in a calibration conversation, here’s how to access it:
Navigate to the Performance tab.
Select Calibrations to view the calibration sessions shared with you.
You will also receive an email to access the calibration view if it has been shared with you. Note that you will only have read-only access to this information and will not be allowed to change any performance data.
Calibration View
In the calibration view, you'll see a list of employees included in the calibration process. Click on an employee's name to view their detailed performance review, including feedback, ratings, and employee profile.
Filters: Use filters to focus on specific groups (e.g., Account Executives), allowing you to easily access all the information needed for the calibration discussion.
Three-Dot Menu: Use the three-dot ellipsis ("...") next to an employee’s name to view additional information about their performance or profile.
If you've been added to a calibration view, expect additional guidance from your People team. This will likely be followed by a calibration conversation where your input will help ensure the fairness and consistency of the review process.
FAQs
I can’t see my direct reports’ team members for feedback requests. Why?
This could be because the cycle is set to request peer feedback only or upward feedback requests were automated by your People Team.
Why is the Complete review button greyed out in my review?
Check if you’ve answered all required questions. If you missed one, fill it in or mark it as N/A to enable the completion button.
Why can’t I see my direct reports’ reviews?
You might not be listed as their manager in their Culture Amp profile, or they may not be part of the cycle. Contact your People Team for clarification.
Can I edit a Manager Review after submitting it?
If the overall review cycle is still live then yes! You can continue editing your review until the cycle closes. Just go back into the review and make your changes.
How can I view reviews for my indirect reports?
Use the Groups filter to view Indirect Reports and see their reviews alongside your direct reports.
💬 Need help? Just reply with "Ask a Person" in a support conversation to speak with a Product Support Specialist.