🔐 Who can use this feature?
Subscriptions: Any package with Performance cycles
Ratings Preview is an optional feature in a Calibration view that helps HR Business Partners (HRBPs) and Performance Admins collect early feedback on employee ratings from selected "calibrators" before a calibration session. This provides better visibility into agreement and disagreement ahead of time, so you can lead more focused and efficient calibration discussions. Read the science behind ratings preview.
Ratings Preview also helps ensure that all calibrators have a chance to provide input before the live session, minimizing the risk of louder voices dominating and surfacing potential disagreements early. This makes the conversation more balanced and inclusive.
How to enable ratings preview
You can enable Ratings Preview while creating or editing a calibration view.
Create a calibration view with ratings preview
Go to Performance > Calibrations (admin view). You'll see an introductory page outlining the steps.
Click Create New Calibration View.
Fill in the Calibration Name and select one or more Performance Cycles.
Under "Include Ratings Preview," check the box to enable it. You can enable this now or after the calibration view has been created.
Set a due date and time for calibrator submissions.
You can adjust this later if needed.
Once the due date passes, calibrators can no longer submit.
Confirm your timezone.
Continue with the standard setup: select employees and click Create to save the draft.
How to add calibrators
Once your calibration view is created with Ratings Preview enabled, you'll see two tabs:
Calibration overview: The standard calibration view.
Ratings preview: A tab where you can track calibrator responses and manage the process.
Under the Ratings preview tab:
Click + Add Calibrators.
Search and select the individuals who should review and provide feedback. Recommended: 5 to 7 calibrators per session for efficiency.
Click Submit to confirm.
Calibrators will receive an email invitation to begin their task.
ℹ️ Note: When you add calibrators to the Ratings Preview, they won't automatically see the Calibration overview tab, unless you share that with them separately.
Why can't I add a calibrator?
If you are unable to select a user or the Add Calibrators button is greyed out, check the following:
Due date has passed: If the button is greyed out, update the Ratings Preview due date to a future time to re-enable it.
Employee is already in the view: You cannot add a user as a calibrator if they are already included in that calibration view as an employee being reviewed. The system excludes them to prevent people from reviewing their own ratings.
View is published: Once a calibration view is published, the setup is finalized and no new calibrators can be added.
Admin facilitators: Admins who created the view cannot add themselves as calibrators; they must act as the facilitator or have another admin add them.
What calibrators see in respond to ratings
When you add a calibrator, they don't start from a blank table. Their Respond to ratings view opens already set to whatever filters, columns, and sort order you currently have on your own Ratings preview tab, so there's no extra step for you to take and nothing for them to set up first.
A calibrator can change their own filters, sort order, or which columns are shown, at any time. Once they do, your later changes to your Ratings preview view stop reaching their table, until they choose to bring in your current setup again using their own Reset view control.
A few things never carry across to a calibrator's table, because their screen doesn't have an equivalent to receive them:
Support, Abstain, and Questions columns: These show you, at a glance, how everyone has responded so far. Calibrators don't have an equivalent; they see their own Your response and Questions / comments columns instead.
Performance group filter (where available on your account): This filter is facilitator-only, so calibrators never see it.
Response filter: Calibrators have their own Response filter, but your selection there is never carried over to it. On your Ratings preview tab, it filters by how everyone responded; on a calibrator's own screen, the same filter would only apply to their own single response, so it's excluded from what carries across.
This is rolling out gradually, so you might not see it on your account yet.
Monitor calibrator progress
In the Ratings preview tab, you can:
See a list of calibrators and track who has submitted.
Click the dropdown beside List of Calibrators to manage or remove calibrators.
Use the progress bar to gauge overall completion.
Review calibrator responses
Feedback is grouped by each employee and categorized as:
I support
I abstain (default option)
I have questions (includes required written comments)
You can:
Use filters (e.g. demographics) to filter by employee demographics and refine your focus further.
Use the Response filter to view employees by response type (Support, Abstain, Questions).
Click an employee name to view comments from those who selected "I have questions."
Use the flag icon to highlight employees you want to prioritize during the live calibration session.
Example: Use filters to quickly identify employees flagged as "top performers" where multiple calibrators selected "I have questions." This helps you focus time where scrutiny is most valuable, ensuring fairness in high-impact decisions.
ℹ️ Note: Calibrator comments are only visible to the facilitator—they are not shared with other calibrators or observers.
During the calibration session
Use the Calibration Overview tab to guide the meeting conversation.
Bring in insights from the Ratings Preview tab to focus discussion and make final rating decisions as needed.
Prioritize flagged employees and those with multiple "I have questions."
Skip discussion for employees with alignment (e.g., all "I support" and "I abstain").
Follow up asynchronously with calibrators before or after the session if needed.
Use the feedback to guide a fair, structured, and informed discussion.
Example: You might find, for example, that employees like Adam, with full alignment and no questions, require little or no discussion. In contrast, someone like Abby, who's rated as a top performer but received multiple "I have questions" responses, should be prioritized for deeper review.
💡 Tip: Use filters to focus on disagreement or flagged questions. You'll spend less time rehashing consensus and more time where it counts.
After the session
When you're ready, click Publish Calibration View.
A confirmation pop-up will appear.
If you'd like to notify the employee's direct and indirect managers about any changes, check the box labeled Notify managers of changes to performance ratings or notes.
This gives them access to:
Any updates to performance ratings.
Any calibration notes (Overview tab only).
ℹ️ Note: The Publish button applies to the entire calibration view, not just the tab you're on. This action finalizes both the Ratings Preview and Calibration Overview tabs.
After publishing:
Facilitators can no longer add or remove calibrators.
Calibrators retain access to the calibration view from their Calibrations section.
Calibrators can no longer edit their responses. They now have read-only access. This applies to both the Calibration Overview and Respond to Ratings tabs (if both were shared).
Calibrators can no longer access the manager reviews in the Ratings Preview tab.
If calibrators had access to the Calibration Overview tab, they lose access to view employee profile data from that tab.
FAQ
Can I include Ratings Preview in a multi-cycle calibration?
Can I include Ratings Preview in a multi-cycle calibration?
Yes, which means you can link multiple review cycles in one calibration session. This is especially useful for those orgs who want to calibrate across different groups or timeframes. While the current experience is functional, please note it's still being refined, so some elements may feel a little unpolished.
Here's how employees will appear based on the selected cycles:
Employees are distinct for each cycle: Each employee will be represented as an individual row for the respective cycle.
Some overlapping employees across cycles: Overlapping employees will be represented in multiple rows relative to each linked cycle. Distinct employees will still be listed individually.
All employees overlap: All overlapping employees will be represented in multiple rows relative to each linked cycle.
Can I enable Ratings Preview after creating the calibration view?
Can I enable Ratings Preview after creating the calibration view?
Yes. You can enable Ratings Preview at any time by editing the calibration view, up until it's published.
Can I remove Ratings Preview after enabling it?
Can I remove Ratings Preview after enabling it?
Yes. You can remove the Ratings Preview capability, but doing so will delete all submitted responses. If you enable it again later, previous responses won't be restored. You'll need to re-add calibrators and request new submissions.
Is there a limit to how many calibrators I can add?
Is there a limit to how many calibrators I can add?
There's no system-enforced limit, but we recommend adding no more than 5 to 7 calibrators to maintain quality and clarity in decision-making.
Will calibrators see the employee profile?
Will calibrators see the employee profile?
It depends on which view has been shared and the calibrator's role.
1. If only "Ratings Preview" is shared: Calibrators will not see the full employee profile or historical data. They only see the manager's written performance review for the current cycle. This keeps the focus strictly on current performance.
2. If the "Calibration Overview" tab is shared: Access to the Employee Profile (EP) becomes more nuanced based on the calibrator's relationship to the employee:
User role | Level of access |
Performance Admin / HRBP | Full access: can see all available content in the EP. |
Direct Manager | Full access: can see all available content for their direct reports. |
Skip-level Manager | Full access: can see all content for their indirect reports (skip-level refers to the manager of the manager). |
Non-Managers | Limited access: can only see "Limited Content" (e.g., public shoutouts, goals they have access to, and feedback they authored themselves) if the employee is not in their reporting line. |
This tiered system ensures that while calibrators have the necessary context to make fair decisions, employee privacy remains protected across the broader organization.
Why are percentages not shown for support/abstain/question figures?
Why are percentages not shown for support/abstain/question figures?
To avoid confusion (especially in cases with smaller numbers of calibrators) we show numerical counts instead of percentages. This provides clearer, more straightforward data.
How does the Ratings Preview due date work across timezones?
How does the Ratings Preview due date work across timezones?
The due date and time will automatically adjust to each calibrator's local timezone. For example, if an admin sets the due date as 10 AM, July 9 (AEST), someone in New York will see the equivalent in EDT, so everyone sees the same deadline in their own local time.
Can a direct report see their manager’s rating if they’re added as a calibrator?
Can a direct report see their manager’s rating if they’re added as a calibrator?
Yes. If a direct report is added as a calibrator in a session that includes their manager, they'll be able to see the manager's rating. While this setup isn't common, and we haven't seen it happen often, it's something to be aware of when assigning calibrators.
Can someone see their own rating if they’re both a calibrator and included in the calibration view?
Can someone see their own rating if they’re both a calibrator and included in the calibration view?
No. If an employee is selected to be included in the calibration view, they can't be added as a calibrator. The system automatically excludes them from the list of people who can be selected as calibrators, so no one can view or provide feedback on their own rating.
Can Admins include themselves in a Calibration View as an employee? Will they see their own data?
Can Admins include themselves in a Calibration View as an employee? Will they see their own data?
No. Admins can't add themselves to a Calibration view as an employee, even if they were part of the performance cycle being used. They won't appear in the list of selectable employees and won't see their own data in the Ratings Preview.
Why can’t Admins add themselves as calibrators in Ratings Preview?
Why can’t Admins add themselves as calibrators in Ratings Preview?
Admins who create a Calibration view can't add themselves as Ratings Preview calibrators, as the system expects them to act as the Facilitator with admin-level privileges instead.
If you need to participate as a calibrator, ask another Performance Admin to add you to the calibration view. Once added, you'll receive the same task/email and access the Ratings Preview flow like any other employee.
➡️ Next Steps
Finalize your calibration view setup
Invite calibrators and communicate expectations
Use Ratings Preview insights to prepare for a focused session
💬 Need help? Open a support conversation to speak with our Product Support team.