Self-Evaluation Template with Examples

Self-Evaluation Template with Examples

Self-evaluations give employees a voice in their own performance review. For small businesses, they also save managers time by providing a starting point for the review conversation. But most employees stare at a blank form and struggle with what to write. This template solves that by including self evaluation examples and ready-to-adapt phrases for every section.

Hand this to your team before review season and you will get more thoughtful, useful responses.

When to Use This Template

• Before annual or semi-annual performance reviews
• As part of a quarterly check-in process
• When an employee is up for a promotion or role change
• During a 90-day review for new hires
• Any time you want employees to reflect on their own performance

Employee Self-Evaluation Form

Section 1: Employee Information

Section 2: Key Accomplishments

List your most significant accomplishments during this review period. Focus on results and impact, not just tasks completed.

Accomplishment 1: _______________________________________

Accomplishment 2: _______________________________________

Accomplishment 3: _______________________________________

Example phrases you can adapt:

• "I led the implementation of [project], which resulted in [measurable outcome]."
• "I took ownership of [process/task] and improved it by [specific change], saving approximately [time/money]."
• "I trained [number] new team members on [topic], reducing onboarding time by [amount]."
• "I consistently met or exceeded my [specific target] throughout the review period, achieving [number/percentage]."
• "I identified an issue with [process] and proposed a solution that was adopted by the team."

Section 3: Core Skills and Competencies

Rate yourself in each area and provide a brief explanation or example.

Rating scale: 1 = Needs improvement   2 = Meets expectations   3 = Exceeds expectations

Example phrases for self evaluation examples in this section:

• Quality of Work: "I consistently deliver work that meets or exceeds our quality standards. For example, my error rate on [task] was under [percentage] this period."
• Communication: "I improved my communication this period by [specific action, e.g., sending weekly status updates to the team, improving response times to client emails]."
• Teamwork: "I collaborated with [colleague/department] on [project], contributing [specific role or deliverable]."
• Initiative: "I proactively identified [issue/opportunity] and took action by [what you did] without being asked."
• Adaptability: "When [unexpected change] happened, I adjusted by [specific action] and maintained productivity."

Section 4: Goals from Last Review Period

Review the goals set during your last evaluation. How did you do?

Example phrases:

• "I fully achieved my goal of [goal description] by [what you did]. The result was [outcome]."
• "I partially met my goal of [goal description]. I completed [what was done] but was unable to [remaining piece] due to [reason]. I plan to finish this by [date]."
• "I was unable to meet my goal of [goal description] because [reason]. I have since [corrective action] and would like to carry this goal forward."

Section 5: Areas for Improvement

Be honest about areas where you can grow. Identifying your own development areas shows self-awareness and initiative.

Area 1: _______________________________________

What steps will you take to improve? _______________________________________

Area 2: _______________________________________

What steps will you take to improve? _______________________________________

Example phrases:

• "I would like to strengthen my skills in [area]. I plan to [specific action, e.g., take an online course, shadow a colleague, practice a new technique]."
• "I recognize that I could improve in [area]. This period, I sometimes [specific behavior], and I want to work on [desired change]."
• "Feedback from my manager/colleagues has highlighted [area] as a growth opportunity. I am going to address this by [specific plan]."
• "I need to be more consistent with [behavior]. Going forward, I will [concrete step]."

Section 6: Goals for the Next Review Period

Set two to four goals for the upcoming period. Make them specific and measurable.

Example goals:

• "Complete [certification/training] by [date] to improve my skills in [area]."
• "Reduce [error rate/response time/turnaround time] by [percentage] over the next [timeframe]."
• "Take on a lead role in [project type] to develop my [management/leadership/technical] skills."
• "Improve customer satisfaction scores for my accounts from [current score] to [target score]."

Section 7: Training and Development Interests

Section 8: Additional Comments

Use this space for anything else you want your manager to know -- feedback about the team, suggestions for the company, or anything that did not fit in the sections above.

Employee Signature

How to Use This Template

1. Distribute before reviews. Send this self-evaluation template to employees at least one week before their review meeting. Two weeks is even better.
2. Explain the purpose. Let employees know this is an opportunity to highlight their work and have a voice in the review process. It is not a test, and there are no wrong answers.
3. Point them to the examples. Encourage employees to use the self evaluation examples as starting points. They can adapt the phrases to fit their own situation.
4. Review before the meeting. Read the completed self-evaluation before sitting down with the employee. This helps you prepare and shows that you take their input seriously.
5. Use it to guide the conversation. Compare the employee's self-assessment with your own observations. Where do you agree? Where do you see things differently? These gaps make for productive discussion.
6. File with the performance review. Attach the self-evaluation to the employee's review form and store both in their personnel file.

Tips for Small Businesses

• Lead by example. If you complete your own self-evaluation and share it (even informally), it normalizes the process and shows your team it is not just a formality.
• Make it regular. Self-evaluations are most valuable when they happen consistently -- annually at minimum, quarterly if your team is growing quickly.
• Do not punish honesty. If an employee admits to struggling in an area, that is self-awareness, not a weakness. Respond with support, not criticism.
• Keep the examples visible. The example phrases in this template are there specifically to reduce the "blank page" problem. Remind employees they do not have to start from scratch.

Keeping self-evaluations, performance reviews, and development goals organized across your team is straightforward when everything lives in one system. Boring HR's Team Tracker helps you centralize employee records so review season does not turn into a scavenger hunt.