7 Companies With The Best Practices for Performance Management
The companies with the best performance management practices – including Deloitte, Adobe, Accenture, Microsoft, Netflix, Google, and Uber – have all moved away from the traditional annual review toward more frequent, development-focused processes. The common thread: they each identified what wasn’t working, replaced it with something more agile, and saw measurable results.
This shift is widespread. More than a third of U.S. companies have ditched the annual review, and the results speak for themselves – Adobe saw a 30% decrease in voluntary turnover after replacing annual reviews with frequent check-ins, and companies with transparent performance processes report employees who are 75% more engaged.
Four trends define what these top companies have in common: custom performance management processes tailored to their culture, greater transparency in feedback and ratings, a focus on engagement over rigid measurement, and more relaxed, flexible review formats. Here’s how each company put these principles into practice.
1. Deloitte
The Original Process
The Change
Deloitte revamped their entire performance management system with a focus on finding the right balance between development and accountability. They replaced the annual review with a radically simplified approach: four questions answered by a team leader after each project or quarter. The questions focus on what the leader would do with the team member (promote, reward, keep, coach out) rather than abstract competency ratings.
The Outcome
The new system freed up time, produced more actionable data, and shifted the focus from backward-looking ratings to forward-looking development. Team leaders spend less time filling out forms and more time in real conversations about performance.
2. Adobe
The Original Process
Adobe’s previous system was a traditional annual review tied to rankings and ratings. Leadership recognized that the process was creating anxiety rather than driving performance, and employees dreaded the once-a-year evaluation.
The Change
Adobe scrapped the annual review entirely and replaced it with a "Check-in" system – frequent, informal conversations between managers and employees focused on real-time feedback, expectations, and growth. There are no ratings or rankings. Managers set expectations, give and receive feedback regularly, and support development on an ongoing basis.
The Outcome
Adobe saw a 30% decrease in voluntary turnover after implementing Check-in. The system also freed up approximately 80,000 manager hours per year that had previously been spent on the annual review process. Employees report feeling more supported and less anxious about performance conversations.
3. Accenture
The Original Process
Accenture – a regular on Fortune’s best companies to work for list – previously used a traditional ranking system that placed employees on a bell curve, limiting the number of people who could be rated as top performers.
The Change
In a 2015 interview with The Washington Post, then-CEO Pierre Nanterme announced that Accenture would scrap annual reviews for its 330,000+ employees. The new system focuses on individualized goals – employees work with managers to set goals for themselves. Rather than ranking people against each other, the approach coaches employees to understand their own strengths and drives a greater sense of passion and dedication at work.
The Outcome
By removing the forced ranking system and emphasizing individual development, Accenture created a more personalized performance process. The shift reinforced their reputation as one of the world’s best employers and helped retain talent in a competitive consulting market.
4. Microsoft
The Original Process
Microsoft’s infamous stack ranking system – which forced managers to rate a fixed percentage of employees as top, average, and poor performers – became one of the most criticized performance management practices in corporate America. The system pitted employees against each other and drew increasing criticism from employees and observers.
The Change
Microsoft eliminated stack ranking and replaced it with a system focused on collaboration and growth mindset – a concept championed by CEO Satya Nadella. The new process emphasizes how employees help others succeed, not just their individual output. Reviews focus on three dimensions: the employee’s own impact, how they contributed to others, and how they leveraged others’ work.
The Outcome
The shift from competitive ranking to collaborative growth fundamentally changed Microsoft’s culture. Under Nadella’s leadership, the growth mindset approach is credited with helping drive Microsoft’s resurgence as one of the world’s most valuable companies.
5. Netflix
The Original Process
Netflix’s early performance process was more traditional, but the company’s broader culture of radical honesty set it apart from the beginning. The challenge was building a formal review process that matched their culture of candor.
The Change
Netflix implemented 360-degree reviews where feedback is transparent – everyone can see what everyone else wrote. The system is built on the principle that honest, direct feedback makes people better. They also conduct "start, stop, continue" sessions where team members tell each other what they should start doing, stop doing, and continue doing.
The Outcome
Netflix’s transparent approach became a model for radical candor in performance management. The company has shown that full transparency in feedback – when rolled out thoughtfully – builds trust rather than eroding it. Companies with transparent performance processes report employees who are 75% more engaged.
6. Google
The Original Process
Google’s previous review format focused on the feedback itself rather than the person receiving the feedback. As many traditional processes do, it put the power in the hands of management and didn’t align with Google’s aspiration to lead in company culture.
The Change
Google has been progressive in putting workers first through its "People Operations" approach. The process is ever-evolving – they recently dropped the mid-year review and now conduct only an end-of-year review supplemented by ongoing check-ins and a ratings-based system that uses peer and manager input. Googlers also rate their managers, creating a two-way feedback loop.
The Outcome
Google’s willingness to keep iterating on their process – rather than treating it as set-and-forget – has kept them at the forefront of performance management. Their people operations approach consistently ranks them among the world’s best places to work.
7. Uber
The Original Process
Uber’s early performance management reflected its fast-growth startup culture – less structure, more speed. As the company scaled rapidly, the lack of a formalized process created inconsistency and made it harder to develop talent.
The Change
Under new leadership, Uber introduced a more structured performance process that balances accountability with development. The system emphasizes regular check-ins, peer feedback, and a focus on behaviors and cultural values alongside business results.
The Outcome
The updated process helped Uber move past its earlier cultural challenges and build a more sustainable, people-centered approach to performance. It’s a case study in how companies can evolve their performance management as they mature.
Trends Shaping Performance Management in 2026
Across these seven companies, four trends stand out as defining the future of performance management.
Custom Performance Management Processes
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to performance management. Each of these companies designed a process that fits their culture, size, and business model. Deloitte’s four-question approach looks nothing like Netflix’s transparent 360-degree reviews, and both are considered best-in-class. The lesson: build a system that reflects how your organization actually works.
More Transparency
Transparent performance processes drive higher engagement. PwC research shows that employees at transparent organizations are 75% more engaged. Netflix took transparency to the extreme with fully visible 360 reviews. If you want more transparency, the key is to roll it out gradually – sudden full transparency can overwhelm employees who aren’t used to it.
Engagement First, Ratings and Measurements Second
The best-performing companies prioritize engagement over rigid measurement systems. Deloitte’s four simple questions were revolutionary because managers already knew the answers – it was a way to capture insights efficiently rather than creating busywork. In 2025, engagement is becoming central to performance management, with companies and workers collaborating to navigate a rapidly changing work landscape.
More Relaxed, More Flexible Processes
Rigid, formal review processes are giving way to more flexible, conversational approaches. Adobe’s Check-in system and Google’s evolving approach both reflect a preference for ongoing dialogue over once-a-year evaluations. Flexibility doesn’t mean less accountability – it means creating more natural touchpoints for feedback throughout the year.
Bonus: Companies with Clear Performance Management Goals
Beyond the seven major companies above, several other organizations stand out for aligning performance management with a specific organizational goal.
Cultural Alignment – The Stanley Clark School
The Stanley Clark School uses performance management to reinforce its educational mission. Every review ties back to the school’s cultural values, ensuring that teacher evaluations aren’t just about classroom performance but about how staff contribute to the broader school community.
Democratic Accountability – Valve
Valve, the gaming company, takes a radically flat approach – there are no managers in the traditional sense. Instead, the company conducts performance interviews with each individual through peer-driven evaluations. Employees stack-rank their peers based on who they’d most want to work with, creating democratic accountability.
Growth – Gap Inc.
Gap Inc. built their performance management strategy around a growth mindset philosophy. Reviews focus on development potential and learning from mistakes rather than punishing underperformance. The approach encourages experimentation and innovation across the organization.
Innovation – Apple
Apple’s performance management process uses 360-degree reviews and cascading goals, but what sets it apart is its focus on the future. With input from three or four different executives, employees dig into their strengths and weaknesses with the explicit goal of understanding where they can grow – not just where they’ve been.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which companies have the best performance management practices?
The companies most widely recognized for best performance management practices include Deloitte, Adobe, Accenture, Microsoft, Netflix, Google, and Uber. Each has moved away from traditional annual reviews toward more frequent, development-focused processes – and each has seen measurable improvements in engagement, retention, or culture as a result.
Why are companies getting rid of annual performance reviews?
Companies are eliminating annual performance reviews because they are too infrequent to drive real improvement, consume enormous amounts of time (Deloitte’s old process took nearly 2 million hours per year), and often create anxiety rather than motivation. More than a third of U.S. companies have already made the switch to more frequent, ongoing feedback models.
What is replacing the annual performance review?
Annual reviews are being replaced by a combination of frequent check-ins, real-time feedback, quarterly reviews, 360-degree evaluations, and ongoing 1:1 conversations. Adobe’s "Check-in" system and Deloitte’s four-question model are two of the most cited examples. The focus is shifting from backward-looking ratings to forward-looking development.
What are the key trends in performance management in 2025?
Four key trends are shaping performance management in 2025: custom processes tailored to company culture (no one-size-fits-all), greater transparency in feedback and ratings, prioritizing engagement over rigid measurement, and more relaxed, flexible review formats that favor ongoing dialogue over once-a-year evaluations.
How did Adobe improve its performance management process?
Adobe replaced its traditional annual review with a "Check-in" system – frequent, informal conversations between managers and employees focused on real-time feedback, expectations, and growth. The change led to a 30% decrease in voluntary turnover and freed up approximately 80,000 manager hours per year.
What is Microsoft’s growth mindset approach to performance reviews?
Microsoft eliminated its stack ranking system and replaced it with a growth mindset approach championed by CEO Satya Nadella. Reviews now focus on three dimensions: the employee’s own impact, how they contributed to others’ success, and how they leveraged others’ work. The shift from competitive ranking to collaboration is credited with helping drive Microsoft’s cultural transformation.
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