> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.gowindmill.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# FAQs

> Frequently asked questions about Windmill performance reviews, covering cycle setup, visibility, AI-assisted drafting, calibration, and release flows.

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Where do I find the admin or configuration area for a review cycle?">
    Open Performance Reviews, click into the relevant cycle, and click **Admin** in the top right. From there, use the **Configuration** tab to manage cycle settings and share packets. The Admin area is also where you monitor progress and run calibrations.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How does Windmill improve the quality of feedback during performance reviews?">
    When collecting feedback, Windy is trained to ask for more specific, constructive input. If responses are vague, Windy follows up with prompts focused on work products and outcomes rather than personalities.

    For example, when collecting peer feedback, Windy might ask:

    * "What project or outcome are you referring to?"
    * "Can you share a specific example of their impact on a recent project?"
    * "In which ways did they make the process smoother?"

    By encouraging feedback focused on work products rather than personalities, Windmill ensures that performance reviews are more actionable, fair, and grounded in reality.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I run performance reviews on different schedules?">
    Yes. Windmill supports flexible review cadences including monthly, quarterly, bi-annual, and annual cycles. You can also run different review types on different schedules—for example, quarterly peer reviews with annual manager reviews.

    Because Windmill continuously gathers context from Slack, meetings, and connected tools, your next review is always ready.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How does Windmill save time for managers?">
    When it's time to draft reviews, Windmill consolidates data that's been collected throughout the review period:

    * Employee self reviews completed in Slack
    * Peer feedback from colleagues
    * Upward feedback from direct reports
    * Context from connected tools (Jira, Salesforce, GitHub, Google Workspace, etc.)
    * Recaps, pulse surveys, and 1:1 notes

    By surfacing this context in one packet, Windmill eliminates the need for managers to rely on scattered notes or memories.

    Instead of spending 1-2 hours per review, managers can complete a full, data-backed assessment in as little as six minutes.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What review types does Windmill support?">
    Windmill supports four review types:

    **Self reviews** — Completed in Slack with Windy's guidance

    **Peer reviews** — Two-phase process (nominations + feedback) in Slack

    **Upward feedback** — Direct reports provide feedback about their manager in Slack

    **Manager reviews** — Comprehensive assessments drafted in the Windmill Dashboard

    All four types feed into one packet that managers use when drafting their reviews.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How does Windmill surface risks or underperformance?">
    Windy aggregates feedback, recaps, and pulse responses into review packets that highlight patterns, risks, and challenges.

    During calibration, Windmill flags potential inconsistencies such as:

    * High ratings with limited supporting evidence
    * Low ratings despite strong peer feedback
    * Misalignment between performance signals and manager assessments

    This helps cycle admins and managers spot underperformance earlier and prepare for difficult conversations with supporting documentation.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How is Slack activity used in performance reviews?">
    Windmill works best when Windy is added to relevant Slack channels. Context from those channels gives Windmill a richer view of team collaboration than DMs alone.

    Windy collects:

    * Collaboration signals (who works with whom on what projects)
    * Shoutouts and recognition from teammates
    * Project discussions and decision-making
    * Meeting recaps and action items

    This context is surfaced in review packets so feedback is grounded in actual work. Slack messages are used to generate insights and summaries—raw message content is not directly exposed in reviews.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Does Windmill support calibration?">
    Yes. After managers submit draft reviews, cycle admins can create a calibration session to compare ratings across managers and ensure fairness.

    The Calibration Board allows leadership to:

    * Review rating distributions across teams
    * Compare employees side-by-side
    * Adjust ratings based on evidence
    * Document calibration decisions

    All changes are audit-logged and sync back to employee reviews before they're shared.

    Learn more in [Calibration](/features/performance-reviews/calibration).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I check that everyone is included in a calibration?">
    On the cycle's **Analytics** tab, click **Employees in calibration reviews** to see everyone currently included, or **Calibrations scheduled** to view each session and its participant list. Cross-reference against **All Todos** to spot anyone missing, then update the calibration's participant list to add them.

    See [Checking calibration coverage](/features/performance-reviews/tracking-progress#checking-calibration-coverage).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can managers of managers view review status and packets for their org?">
    Yes. Skip-level managers and higher-level leaders can see review status and packets for everyone in their org, based on the org chart frozen at cycle creation.

    From the **My Team** view, managers see review status for their direct reports. Skip-level managers and above have the same access through the org chart, so they can see review progress and packets for everyone below them in the reporting chain—not just their direct reports.

    Click into any employee to open their **review packet**, where you can see their self review, peer feedback, upward feedback their reports wrote about them, and the manager review being drafted. If you're the direct manager, you can also start or continue drafting the manager review from the packet.

    The standard rule still applies: you never see feedback written about you, even if your role would normally grant access. See [Who sees what](/features/performance-reviews/visibility) for the full breakdown.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Who can see upward feedback?">
    Upward feedback is **not visible to the manager being reviewed**. It goes to the manager's manager and to cycle admins, so employees can share honest feedback without concern.

    Employees do not see upward feedback for their own manager—it's used exclusively for leadership and development conversations. See [Who sees what](/features/performance-reviews/visibility) for the full breakdown.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="If someone's manager changes after a cycle launches, does the new manager get access?">
    No. The org chart for a review cycle is **frozen at the moment the cycle is created**. Any subsequent changes to the org chart—including manager changes, team moves, or reorgs in your HRIS—do not update the frozen org chart for that cycle.

    This means:

    * The **original manager** at cycle creation retains review access and is responsible for drafting the manager review, even if they no longer manage the employee day-to-day.
    * The **new manager** does not automatically gain access to the in-flight cycle through the reporting change.
    * Skip-level and upward feedback visibility also follow the frozen org chart.

    This ensures continuity and confidentiality during an active cycle. The general 24-hour manager-change access rule described in [Permissions and Access](/permissions-and-access) applies to ongoing platform access, not to in-flight review cycles.

    If you need to reassign a review mid-cycle (for example, because the original manager has left or a reorg materially changes accountability), contact a cycle admin to handle the reassignment manually.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="If I have delegated access to someone else's account, can I see their team's reviews?">
    No. Review visibility is determined by the frozen org chart for the cycle, not by access delegation. If you have delegated access to another person's account, you will not be granted visibility into any reviews through that delegation—including reviews of their direct reports or team.

    This is expected behavior and ensures that review confidentiality follows the official reporting structure captured when the cycle was created.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can employees edit their reviews after submitting?">
    Yes. After completing a review in Slack with Windy, employees can still edit their responses in the [Windmill Dashboard](https://app.gowindmill.com/COMPANY/performance).

    This lets employees:

    * Refine answers after reflecting further
    * Add examples they remembered later
    * Adjust phrasing for clarity
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I restart a self, peer, or upward review with Windy?">
    Yes. If you want to scrap what you've written so far and have Windy ask the questions again from scratch, just ask Windy in Slack to restart the review.

    Keep in mind:

    * Any drafts in progress will be lost and cannot be recovered.
    * Previously submitted reviews are not deleted.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens if someone misses a deadline?">
    If a deadline passes and a review is still not submitted:

    * The review status changes to overdue in the tracking views
    * Cycle admins can see who's behind in the [All Todos view](https://app.gowindmill.com/COMPANY/performance/cycles/CYCLE_ID/all-todos)
    * The employee or manager can still submit after the deadline

    Cycle admins can follow up with individuals who are overdue to understand blockers. Windmill sends automated reminders before and on the deadline to minimize late submissions.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I include only certain review types in a cycle?">
    Yes. When creating a cycle, you select which review stages to include:

    * Self Review
    * Peer Feedback (nominations + feedback)
    * Upward Feedback
    * Manager Review

    You can include all four or just a subset. For example, you might run quarterly peer reviews without manager assessments, or annual manager reviews without upward feedback.

    Each stage is configured independently with its own timeline and participants.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I export ratings from a completed review cycle?">
    Yes. To pull each person's **Rating** for a cycle:

    1. Open the review cycle from **Performance Reviews**.
    2. Open **Admin** in the top right, then click the **All Todos** tab.
    3. Click **Export** in the top right.
    4. Select the relevant questions in the export dialog, then download the CSV.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Is there a way to easily see everyone's ratings?">
    Yes. Cycle admins can open the cycle, click **Admin → Insights**, and toggle **Show employee details** to see ratings broken down by person across the org. You can filter by department, team, or manager to compare groups.

    Insights is the right place for a quick, data-driven view of how the cycle is going. If you want to compare employees side-by-side and adjust ratings for fairness, use the [Calibration Board](/features/performance-reviews/calibration) instead.

    Learn more in [Insights](/features/performance-reviews/tracking-progress#insights).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I track progress during a review cycle?">
    Managers can track their team's progress in the [My Team view](https://app.gowindmill.com/COMPANY/performance/cycles/CYCLE_ID/my-team), which shows completion status for each direct report.

    Cycle admins can monitor org-wide progress in the [All Todos view](https://app.gowindmill.com/COMPANY/performance/cycles/CYCLE_ID/all-todos), with filtering by department, team, or manager.

    Both views update in real-time and show status for self reviews, peer feedback, upward reviews, and manager reviews.

    Learn more in [Progress Tracking](/features/performance-reviews/tracking-progress).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Does Windy use our career leveling framework in reviews?">
    Yes. If you've added a leveling framework (or other rubrics, job descriptions, or competency matrices) to [Company Knowledge](/features/company-knowledge), Windy uses it as context when:

    * Guiding employees through **self reviews** in Slack, including follow-up questions framed around the expectations for their level
    * Generating AI-suggested observations and draft answers for **manager reviews** in the review packet

    The leveling document isn't injected verbatim into reviews as explicit criteria—it informs how Windy drafts and frames answers. To make level expectations show up explicitly in a cycle, also reference the framework in the self review or manager review questions you configure on the cycle.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I customize the questions Windy asks during reviews?">
    Yes. When creating a cycle, you configure questions for each review type—self reviews, peer feedback, upward feedback, and manager reviews. All review types support the same question types: text, rating, and yes/no.

    For self, peer, and upward reviews, these questions are the prompts Windy uses to guide the conversation in Slack. For manager reviews, they are the questions managers answer in the Windmill Dashboard.

    Questions are fully customizable to match your company's review process.

    Learn more in [Cycles](/features/performance-reviews/cycles).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Related reading

* [Performance Reviews](/features/performance-reviews) — Overview of the complete review process
* [Cycles](/features/performance-reviews/cycles) — Set up review cycles
* [Self Reviews](/features/performance-reviews/self-reviews) — Employee self-reflection and performance assessment
* [Peer Reviews](/features/performance-reviews/peer-reviews) — Collect structured peer feedback
* [Upward Reviews](/features/performance-reviews/upward-reviews) — Feedback from direct reports about their manager
* [Manager reviews](/features/performance-reviews/manager-reviews) — Draft reviews with AI assistance
* [Calibration](/features/performance-reviews/calibration) — Ensure fair and consistent ratings
* [Sharing reviews](/features/performance-reviews/releasing-reviews) - Share packets with employees
* [Progress tracking](/features/performance-reviews/tracking-progress) — Monitor completion and analytics