Review admins can add objectives to Best-Self Review® question templates to allow participants to assess, track, and directly connect objective data to overall performance while filling out reviews. When creating a review cycle with Objectives included, you will determine the types (company-wide, group, and/or individual) of objectives you would like participants to evaluate in the review cycle, as well as the timeframe of objectives that will be included.
Note
It is not possible to include self-development objectives in review cycles.
In this article you will learn...
- Why you should include Objectives in a review cycle
- How to enable Objectives for review cycles
- How to create a question template and review cycle that includes objectives
- What this looks like for review cycle participants
Why should I include Objectives in a review cycle?
Adding quantitative and qualitative objective data points enables a more fair and objective measurement of an employee's performance, and the ability to assess results of company-wide, group, and/or individual objectives increases fairness in assessments of total performance. The inclusion of Objectives allows for a truly holistic performance review.
Enable Objectives for Best-Self Review® cycles
- Click on the Settings gear in the upper, right-hand corner of your 15Five account.
- Select 'Features' from the drop-down menu.
- Click on 'Best-Self Review®'.
- Click on ‘Objectives’ to select which types of Objectives you want to be included in future review cycles by default.
Create a question template and review cycle that includes objectives
Now that you've enabled the type(s) of Objectives you want included in review cycles by default, it's time to ensure that an objective-specific question is included in the question template you want to use for your Best-Self Review® cycle. Continue reading for steps on how to add an objective-specific question to a question template. You can read more about creating a question template in our "Create, edit, and manage question templates" Help Center article.
Note
If objectives are included in a review cycle and a review cycle participant doesn't own any objectives, they will not see the 'Objectives' section when completing their self review, and their manager won't see it when filling out their manager review. If performance ratings are included in the review cycle and objectives are part of the rating formula, that section will simply be eliminated from the employee's rating.
- Click on Best-Self Review® In 15Five's main, left-hand navigation bar.
- Click to open the 'Template configuration' tab at the top of the page.
- To create a new question template, click Create a new template.
To edit an existing template, click the three dots to the right of your desired template and select 'Edit' from the dropdown menu. Please note that you cannot edit 15Five default templates. If you want to add objective questions to a default template, clone the template and then you can make edits.
- Within the question template, scroll to the 'Objectives' section and click Add a new question.
- Add the content of the question, question audience, whether you want the question to be asked only once in reference to all OKRs the participant owned or once for each individual objective and key result they owned, the question type, and whether you want the question to be optional or required.
- Finish making any desired edits to the question template, then click Create template.
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From here, it's time to create your review cycle. When you get to the 'Objectives' section in the review cycle creation process, you will determine which types (company-wide, group, and/or individual) will be included in the review cycle.
In the 'Question template' section of the review cycle creation process, you'll be asked to determine the timeframe of what Objectives should be included.
Featured Help Center article (linked above) 💡: Create a Best-Self Review® cycle
Note
If you select Jan 1-Jun 30 as the "timeframe of Objectives to be included," all applicable Objectives and Key Results that have start and end dates within January 1st-June 30th will be included in the review cycle. The only people who will see objectives questions are those who own at least one objective or key result that falls within this set timeframe.
What does the Objectives section look like for review cycle participants?
Within the review cycle, the review participant and their manager will see a list of the participant’s Objectives and Key Results that meet the parameters for the review cycle, and the applicable question(s) will be asked below that. The progress bar on the right shows the overall completion of that particular Objective or Key Result, and they are hyperlinked to easily access in greater detail.
If the question was to be asked only once in reference to all OKRs the participant owned, the question will be asked once below all of the listed OKRs:
If the question was to be asked in reference to each individual OKR the participant owned, the question will be listed underneath each OKR:
Tip
If a review cycle includes an active OKR and it is updated via either the Objectives feature or in a Check-in, those updates will be reflected in the review cycle.