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Microsoft Word Performance Review Templates: 12 Great Templates You NEED to See!
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Updated on:
January 14, 2026
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Microsoft Word performance review templates are some of the simplest and most commonly used employee evaluation templates out there. In this list, we will not only provide you with various different performance review templates such as 90 day review templates or annual review templates, but if you scroll down, we will also show you how you can digitize your performance reviews and automate them in order to make the most out of your reviews!
Before you start downloading our free performance review templates for Word, did you know that you could use digital performance review templates inside Microsoft Teams and have a built-in AI review assistant help you write perfect performance review comments?
The Teamflect App built specifically for Microsoft Teams and Outlook not only comes with a massive library of customizable performance review templates that you can use inside Microsoft Teams but also includes an AI assistant inside those templates that lets you enhance your review responses. The app is free with full functionality for up to 10 users. So you can try it right away by clicking the button below.
The optimal performance review frequency depends on multiple different factors. That being said we recommend you conduct at least two performance reviews every year. While we have a mid-year review template below, this one right here is the perfect Word employee evaluation template for annual reviews. With a focus on the employee’s yearly goals, this annual review template for Microsoft Word is ready to be used!
Self-evaluation is one of the most important steps in the employee performance review process. Self-appraisals in performance reviews help the employee reflect on their own performance throughout the review period, fostering growth and development.
That is why this word self-appraisal review template is a great addition to any organization’s performance review practices. It has open-ended review questions that give the employee being reviewed a lot of freedom!
As we discussed previously in the first entry, performance appraisals should be conducted at least twice a year. The halfway checkpoint for every employee is the mid-year review.Mid-year employee evaluations help leaders give feedback and evaluate employee performance and make the necessary changes.
That is why we wanted to add a template for mid-year reviews.While there are plenty of different occasions to conduct performance appraisals, the first three performance review examples on this list should be the main anchor points of your employee review process.
The employee evaluation form you are seeing above is a far more general Word performance evaluation template. It aims to gain insight into an employee’s overall performance. This template accomplishes this through the use of rating questions for quantifiable data and open-ended questions for more nuanced conversations.
Employee competencies play a huge role in performance reviews. That is why this Word performance appraisal template is focused on the competencies expected of each role.
The best way to take advantage of this template is to customize it so it reflects your organization’s competency framework. This employee performance evaluation template is comprised of detailed rating questions that will let you evaluate an employee’s core competencies.
This particular performance evaluation template follows a simple structure and can be used as a 90-day review template. 90-day reviews are an integral part of every employee onboarding process and they ensure that the new hire and their performance aligns with organizational goals. Conducting effective 90-day reviews doesn’t just ensures your new hires feel valued but also saves the organization time and money by eliminating hires that weren’t great fits.
This is another Word performance appraisal template that is a perfect fit for onboarding programs. A new hire’s first experiences in your organization can shape the way that new hire feels throughout their employment.
Conducting introductory performance reviews with new hires also helps organizations gauge the effectiveness of the current onboarding practices in your organization and make the necessary adjustments.
An employee’s goals throughout the review period is one of the most important factors in evaluating that employee’s performance. For that reason, goal-related questions are a must-have for any performance appraisal.
The way you use this employee evaluation template in Microsoft Word will depend heavily on which goal-setting methodology. If you’re using KPI’s, OKRs, or any other trend around goal-setting, make sure you’ve done your research before applying your ideas to these employee review templates.
This template follows the SBI (Situation, Behaviour, Impact) Feedback Model rather effectively. Download this template if you want to put more emphasis on specific actions employees displayed throughout the review period or during certain projects. While focusing too heavily on specifics is a double-edged sword, this performance appraisal template can certainly start the right discussion.
Peer review and peer feedback are incredibly effective performance management practices. That is why we included an employee evaluation template specifically focused on peer reviews. If customized and expanded on correctly, this template could be used to integrate 360 review questions into the performance evaluations you conduct. A relatively simple questionnaire, this Word employee review template makes peer-to-peer feedback and peer evaluations more accessible.
Not every review needs to focus on the individual. Sometimes you need to step back and assess how your teams are performing as a unit. This performance review template uses open-ended questions to evaluate key areas like goal achievement, collaboration, adaptability, and innovation.
Whether you're wrapping up a major project or conducting quarterly check-ins, this template helps you identify what's working, address challenges, and recognize team wins. It's a great way to spark reflection and pinpoint opportunities for collective growth.
Probation reviews mark the end of a new hire's trial period, typically anywhere from 30 days to 6 months depending on the organization. This is your chance to formally assess whether a new employee is the right long-term fit for your team.
This Word probation review template includes both a self-review section for the employee and a dedicated section for the manager to complete. Having both perspectives in one document makes for a more balanced and productive conversation. It also helps standardize your probation process across the organization, keeping things objective and consistent.
Research shows that only 14% of employees strongly agree their performance reviews inspire them to improve, suggesting that traditional, form‑driven reviews often fail to motivate performance.
An extremely problematic issue with Word templates is their limited customization options. Review templates created in Microsoft Word can be a bit too rigid for you to tailor the template to your organization’s specific needs or preferences, leading to a generic and potentially unhelpful review process. Word templates may not offer a wide range of formatting choices, which can make it difficult to create a visually appealing and easy-to-read document.
These templates do not offer any advanced features for tracking and analyzing review data. You will have to manually gather and organize the data, which can be challenging and error-prone, especially if you are dealing with a large number of reviews. At that point, is it really that much better than using printed-out performance review forms and wrestling with mountains of paperwork?
Microsoft Word performance review templates aren’t just difficult for their users. They are also very hard for the people that design them. Using them can be a time-consuming and tedious process, especially if you are starting from scratch. You will need to spend time creating a new document, formatting it to match your organization’s branding, and inputting the relevant information about the employee’s performance. This can take up valuable time that could be better spent on other HR tasks or activities.
These templates may seem like the easiest way to create these documents, but they actually perpetuate outdated methods. Not only are they rigid and inflexible, but they also force you into creating a lengthy process from scratch every year—a tedious task that can be simplified by using software that works with your existing HR data.
This is one of the biggest drawbacks of Word templates, and it often gets overlooked.
When reviews live in separate documents, performance management tends to become a yearly event instead of an ongoing habit. Managers fill out the form when deadlines approach, the conversation happens, and then everything goes quiet again until the next cycle.
Templates aren’t connected to goal progress, continuous feedback, or coaching notes, so when it’s time to evaluate performance, managers often rely on memory or recent events. That can lead to rushed, vague feedback and makes it harder to turn reviews into consistent development actions throughout the year.
Templates can still help you get started, but they don’t naturally support the kind of continuous feedback that makes reviews actually meaningful.
Employee performance review solution such as Teamflect are powerful tools that can greatly improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your performance review process no matter the size of your organization. Here are some of the key benefits of using performance review software:
Performance review software typically comes with a range of customizable templates that allow you to tailor the review process to your organization’s specific needs and preferences. This means you don’t have to spend time creating and formatting a review document from scratch, as you would with a Word template. Teamflect’s performance review template gallery offers an extensive library of highly customizable templates for almost every situation!
Performance review software enables you to track the progress of the review process in real time, making it easier to stay on schedule and avoid delays. You can also set reminders and notifications to ensure that all parties involved in the review process are kept informed and up-to-date.
If the performance review software of your choice has strong integrations into communication tools, such as the integration between Teamflect and Microsoft Teams, you can make continuous feedback an essential part of your day-to-day operations.
One of the major benefits of performance review software is its ability to provide insights and data analytics on employee performance. You can easily view and analyze data on factors such as employee productivity, goals achieved, and areas for improvement, helping you to make informed decisions about employee development and training.
Top-of-the-line performance review software such as Teamflect includes self-assessment and a 360 degree feedback platform, which enable employees to reflect on their own performance and receive feedback from multiple sources, including their managers, peers, and even customers. This results in a more rounded view of an employee’s performance and identifies areas for improvement.
Lenar Asanov, Invacare
“Teamflect allowed us to digitize our entire performance management process."”
Depends — Word templates are still widely used because they’re simple. They’re especially helpful for small teams or organizations that are still building structure around performance management. However, Word templates can become limiting when you need automation, analytics, or consistency across many employees.
A self-appraisal is completed by the employee and focuses on reflection:
A performance review is typically completed by the manager, and may include ratings, feedback, and future goals. The best performance review processes combine both.
Some of the most common issues include:
Most problems aren’t caused by the template — they happen when the review has no structure after the form is completed.
To reduce bias, include clear rating criteria, require examples for ratings, use goal progress sections, and include competency definitions. Structured prompts help managers give evidence-based feedback instead of vague opinions.
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