What is Self Evaluation and How to Write a Self Evaluation?

What Is Self Evaluation?

A self evaluation provides an opportunity for all employees to self-reflect on their strengths and weaknesses. By critiquing their own work, employees can get a better idea of the work they have done and areas of improvement they can work on. In addition to highlighting your strengths and accomplishments, self-evaluations are also a powerful tool for employees due to the following reasons:

Identify Your Own Areas of Growth

If you focus on metrics and examples over the course of the year, you will be able to identify your own areas for growth and demonstrate your value to the organization. Through this, you can advocate for yourself and the resources you need to expand your skills and knowledge.

Stay Prepared

It will prepare you for the scheduled performance review conversation with your manager which will likely boost your performance appraisal. As you think about the work you have done over the last 6-12 months in order to write your self-evaluation, you’ll know exactly what went well, what were the challenges, and what can be improved, which will equip you with tools to ensure that you won’t be caught off-guard.

Showcase Your Past Achievements

Self evaluations give you the chance to showcase yourself to the manager and the company as a valuable asset. Since managers are in charge of a lot of people, it can be hard for them to keep track of all the people reporting to them. Over the course of a year, people’s memories fade and they might not remember everything that everyone has done. Luckily, you can use a self evaluation report to highlight what you’ve accomplished and how you’ve contributed to the success of the company.

Self Evaluation Example

Self-evaluations can come in multiple forms - they can be in scorecards where you give yourself a score against certain points, while some provide a more open and fill-in-the-blank format. Here is a self-evaluation example that you can modify and use:

Your Strengths:

• I have met/exceeded all my OKRs. Most notably, I consider myself to have worked best in customer satisfaction (You can insert a specific example here. Eg: I worked on introducing chatbot support which was not present on the website)
• By working on the marketing campaign X (provide specific details of the campaign), I have been able to increase brand awareness for our company in a previously untapped market.

Areas You Would Like to Improve:

• I struggle with time management and communication issues in my team. To improve this, I would like to suggest a daily meeting with each of my team members to ensure that we are all clear on what work we have for the day. This will enable me to delegate tasks accordingly.

How to Write a Self Evaluation

Sometimes, it can feel awkward or even boastful to talk about all the things that you have achieved. Here are some tips that you can use to write an effective self evaluation report that demonstrates your strong achievements while also highlighting areas for growth.

1. Be Specific and Give Examples

If you simply write that you are a “people-person” in your self evaluation, this doesn’t show that you’ve been able to meet your customer acquisition OKRs. Vagueness robs you of the opportunity to present all the hard work you have done. Hence, you need to be as specific as possible and provide examples whenever you can. Own your achievements and write about all the work that you have put in, whether that be your diligence in following up with leads, being able to maintain a long-term relationship with them, etc. If you’re struggling to come up with specific details, you can try brainstorming a list of the skills, expertise, and abilities that you possess. Then elaborate them on your review with specific examples that illustrate each of these qualities.

2. Numbers, Numbers, Numbers!

When it comes to providing backup claims for your contributions, nothing works better than numbers. Quantifiable figures make a clear connection between performance and results. Not only are they useful in providing evidence, but they also serve as leverage for you to negotiate for your salary or even a flexible work schedule. 

3. Frame Weakness as Opportunities

While a self evaluation serves to highlight all your accomplishments so far, they also provide you with an opportunity to assess the areas you can improve on. Wherever possible, be honest about your shortcomings and frame them as opportunities. Most managers would actually prefer it if you can bring up your weaknesses while also presenting solutions for them. For example, instead of saying, “This is where I am not able to progress further,” say something like, “This is an area I would like to focus on,” or, “This is where I think that we could use some more resources,” or, “This is how we should proceed in future.”

4. Keep Track of Your Accomplishments

While writing a self evaluation, most people only tend to focus only on the most recent events or even forget about certain achievements altogether. Trying to remember a deal you have closed or a successful marketing campaign you have led a year ago can be difficult. As such, you need to keep track of whatever you have done throughout the year. You can keep a notebook or a Word doc with important details about your achievements every month. This will make it easier for you to quickly refresh your memory and write a comprehensive self evaluation report.

Boost Your Self Evaluation With a Certification

Taking the time and effort to put together a thorough self evaluation will present an accurate portrayal of your performance. Another way you can stand out from the rest is by continually educating yourself and showing your managers that you are willing to grow. You can do this by taking up courses and certifications that push you to the next level, no matter what field of work you are in. Simplilearn offers a number of advanced courses that are curated by global experts and the world's leading universities. From cybersecurity to data science to digital marketing, you can find almost anything that will accelerate your career in this digital age. Sign up for one of our courses today and boost your performance reviews for this year!