Meta Announces Major Overhaul of Employee Performance Reviews
Facebook-parent Meta is shaking up how it evaluates its workforce. The company has revealed plans for a comprehensive revamp of its performance management system. This move promises significant changes for employees and managers alike.
Introducing the Checkpoint Program
Meta is launching a new performance program called Checkpoint. According to an internal memo obtained by Business Insider, this system will officially take effect in mid-2026. The core feature of Checkpoint is a simplified four-tier rating scale designed to assess employee contributions more clearly.
The four categories under Checkpoint are:
- Outstanding: This tier applies to roughly 20% of employees. It recognizes those delivering outsized impact with a bonus multiplier of 200% of their base pay.
- Excellent: Approximately 70% of staff are expected to fall into this category. It serves as the baseline for Meta's high-performance culture, offering a 115% bonus multiplier.
- Needs Improvement: About 7% of employees with performance gaps will receive a 50% bonus multiplier.
- Not Meeting Expectations: The remaining 3% who fail to meet standards will get a 0% multiplier.
Special Recognition and Enhanced Bonuses
Beyond the standard tiers, Meta is introducing an exclusive award. The Meta Award will recognize a small group of employees for delivering truly exceptional impact. Recipients of this special recognition will enjoy a substantial 300% bonus multiplier on their base pay.
The company emphasizes that most employees will likely land in the 'Excellent' category. This reflects Meta's belief that the majority of its workforce consistently produces meaningful results.
Streamlining the Review Process
Meta aims to make performance reviews less bureaucratic and more focused. The redesign promises to save considerable time for everyone involved. Currently, managers spend about 80 hours each year on performance-related tasks. Employees collectively dedicate a staggering 330,000 hours per cycle to peer feedback.
Interestingly, fewer than 25% of managers find this extensive feedback useful. The new Checkpoint system will address this inefficiency by moving to two review cycles annually—one at mid-year and another at year-end. Bonuses will be paid out twice a year under this new schedule.
Equity grants will continue to be awarded once per year. These grants will be based on the average of an employee's two ratings from the mid-year and year-end reviews.
Background and Context
This overhaul follows CEO Mark Zuckerberg's declaration of 2025 as an 'intense' year for Meta. During this period, the company tightened performance management and cut approximately 5% of low performers. Employees and managers have described the work environment as becoming tougher and more competitive, with performance ratings carrying greater weight than before.
Previously, Meta's review system varied between mid-year and year-end assessments. It used multiple labels ranging from "Exceeds Expectations" to "Redefines Expectations." The new Checkpoint program simplifies this into a single, unified four-tier scale, aiming for clarity and consistency across the organization.
