Kylie D.
Organizational Success Manager

At Toast, our culture of recognition not only provides opportunities for employees to celebrate their victories, but it also encourages open conversations that help us all grow. We believe that feedback is a gift, and work hard to ensure our performance conversations reflect that. 

Every six months, we take the time to reflect on the amazing contributions employees have made during the past half of the year and identify areas of focus for the future. We do this through a performance review process that involves self reflections, manager reflections, and performance conversations with your manager.

Whether you’re currently a Toaster, or watching our career site just waiting for the perfect roll* to pop up, check out these tips for making the most of your performance review:

1. Celebrate your accomplishments.

Taking time to reflect often starts with celebrating what went well this first half of the year. When writing your reflection, identify key areas you’ve made the most meaningful impact. What went really well for you? How did you do with your personal and team goals? Think through how you might connect your impact to your company’s broader mission to showcase your accomplishments.

2. Be candid in where you have the opportunity to grow.

Upon reflecting on what went well, also identify where you have an opportunity to grow. Regarding your contributions to the first half of the year, is there a skill, ability, or competence you can take to the next level? Think through an upcoming project or initiative where you might give this skill a try. Include that in your reflection to document where you’re at and where you want to be.

3. Remember your reflection is just a taste of what you want to talk about with your manager.

We understand how busy you are, and we want this to be straightforward and stress free – this is just one of many opportunities to stop and reflect. Focus on a couple of bullet points and use them to guide your performance conversation with your manager. 

4. Be clear about what additional support you need to thrive.

While we believe learning and development are continuous throughout your journey at Toast, performance conversations also provide a great opportunity to identify where you might need more support. As you reflect on what went well and what you can improve upon, talk with your manager on how they can help support you in reaching your goals. Identify what types of support could help take you to the next level in the second half of the year.

At Toast, our goal is to help Toasters do the best work of their careers by ensuring role and goal clarity, getting you the feedback you need to grow, engaging you in your work and experience, and allowing you to see your own potential and growth trajectory.