Performance reviews may not be your favorite activity, but they are important for the employee’s and the business’s success. Performance reviews create an opportunity for managers and employees to communicate about expectations, discuss opportunities for professional growth, and set goals for the future.

Despite their importance, performance reviews can often feel like an awkward and daunting task. Fortunately, Zywave has created a quick and structured way to provide your employees valuable feedback to ensure their success in your company.

Zywave is a Human Capital Management (HCM) platform that all Brewers Association (BA) members have access to, free of charge! Zywave offers users numerous human resources (HR) tools, and below is just one of the many practical applications for Zywave in your business.

Using the Zywave Performance Review Builder

1. Log into Zywave. If you have not yet visited the Zywave platform, log in via the Brewers Association website.

2. Once you are on the Zywave platform, click on HR Apps on the left side of the homepage, then click to launch the Performance Review Builder.

3. To begin using the Performance Review Builder, enter basic information about the employee, including their name, job title, and review period. At the bottom of this screen you have the option to include an Action Plan. This is an opportunity to provide the employee with actionable items to improve performance. This section is helpful for employees that are underperforming in one or more areas. Once you have entered the employee’s information, scroll back to the top and click Next.

You will be required to select a gender for your employee. If your employee is non-binary, you will want to change the pronouns in the summary after each section to “they” and “them.”

4. Next, choose the performance review criteria that you would like to evaluate. Hover your mouse over the (?) symbol for additional information. Scroll back to the top and click Next.

5. Now it’s time to select the language you want to use for the rating of each competency. Once you have made a selection, scroll back up to the top and click Next.

6. The Performance Review Builder will now break each of the competencies you selected down into items to be rated. Use the sliding scale to rate the employee’s performance for each item. The rating associated with the number you select will appear below the scale. Click Next at the top of the page to continue rating the remaining competencies.

For each competency, Zywave will generate a written summary based on the ratings you have selected. Reminder: If your employee does not use male or female pronouns, you can edit the text in this box to insert the proper pronouns.

7. If you had selected to include an Action Plan at the beginning, this is where you will have the opportunity to provide personalized suggestions and feedback to help your employee improve.

8. After completing the Action Plan (if applicable), Zywave will generate a performance summary. At this point, you will have the opportunity to edit any of the sections, if needed. Scroll to the top and click Next to continue.

9. That’s it! Your employee performance review will be available to download on the following screen. Download a Microsoft Word version for easy editing or a PDF to share with your employee.

Looking for Additional Guidance for Performance Reviews?

Check out these great resources from Zywave:

• The Performance Review Meeting: Getting Ready
• Performance Review Steps
• Why Performance Reviews Are Advantageous

The above is just one of the many ways you can utilize Zywave in your organization. Zywave offers countless resources including templates, workplace posters, document and question builders, and state specific guidance to keep your business in compliance with federal and state laws and guidelines.

Not a member yet? Join the Brewers Association and gain access to all that Zywave has to offer, included in your BA membership!