My manager will not write success criteria. What now?

Hold the conversation verbally, then send a recap email naming the three deliverables, two metrics, and the dates. Ask them to correct anything wrong in the recap. Silence on an email becomes your baseline, and that dated note is what you point to at review time.

How many metrics should a 90-day plan include?

Two is usually enough, chosen from the team's existing measures so your numbers are comparable to peers. Add one stakeholder signal rather than a third metric. Too many measures make the first review a discussion about which number counts instead of what you delivered.

Should I mention work outside my agreed criteria?

Yes, briefly, as scope evidence. Extra work that was above the agreed baseline is what separates a meets rating from an exceeds rating. Keep it to two items with dates and numbers so the room can read it quickly next to the agreed deliverables.

Do first-cycle ratings affect my first raise?

Usually yes. The rating maps to the increase range, and a median rating narrows it in most companies. Ask how ratings map to ranges before the cycle closes, and put the raise conversation against the band with a written request rather than a verbal ask.

Manager resists writing criteria?

Ask for the 30/60/90 plan verbally, send a recap email. The paper is your baseline.

Criteria change mid-ramp?

Get the change in writing with dates. Moving goalposts are the top cause of first-cycle median ratings.

Co-Write Your 90-Day Success Criteria

Your first US performance review is built in week one: the 90-day success criteria you co-write with your manager become the language of your first cycle. Managers who never defined "success" give median ratings by default. Define it, in writing.

The Week-One Ask

"I want to write my 90-day success criteria with you in the first week — deliverables, metrics, and the ramp points. It keeps our calibration aligned at the first review."

Senior candidates get this conversation fast. Write it as a shared doc; every line is review language later.

Criteria Anatomy

Three deliverables with dates and owners named.
Two metrics that match the team KPI (not vibes): response time, throughput, revenue impact, defect rate.
One stakeholder signal: who must see your work, in what forum, how often.

Those bullets become the self-assessment spine — the performance review generator formats them in executive language for the first cycle. Cycle mechanics are in the performance season guide, and the mid-cycle money path in the mid-cycle raise guide.

Ramp points and the mid-check

A 90-day plan without check-in dates is a document nobody updates. Add three ramp points and one mid-check, and the first review becomes a reading of the file instead of a debate about impressions.

Day 30. Access, systems, and one shipped artifact. Confirm the manager agrees that the artifact counts.
Day 60. Ownership of something measurable, plus the first stakeholder signal: the person outside your team who has seen your work twice.
Day 90. The review packet: outcomes with numbers, what was hard, and what you own next quarter.

Put a calendar invite in your own calendar for the day-60 check, not only the manager's. A mid-check that never happens is the most common reason a first-cycle rating lands at the median even when the work was strong.

Write the criteria as a shared document with the date attached, then send a short recap email naming the three deliverables and two metrics. The recap is the paper trail if the criteria move later. The performance review generator converts the same bullets into review language for the first cycle.

Criteria for an import or a transfer

A first US cycle is harder when the local norms are unfamiliar: self-assessment length, how explicitly you claim credit, and who counts as a stakeholder. Three adjustments cover most cases.

Convert the assignment into outcomes. If your onboarding plan is written as learning goals, rewrite each as a deliverable with a date. Learning is not measurable in calibration.
Name the forum. State where your work must be visible and how often, because silent delivery gets discounted in a comparison room.
Ask for the band mapping. Request the level expectations in writing, not an implied standard; the difference between meets and exceeds is usually a scope statement.

For an internal transfer, inherit the rating conversation early: ask what the receiving team will assume from your prior cycle, and write the answer down. Related pages are on the reviews and remote work hub, and the calibration room entry explains how the first rating gets decided.

When the criteria move

Moving goalposts are the top cause of a weak first cycle. Handle it as a records issue, not a feeling.

Date the change. Send one message: what changed, when, and how it affects the agreed deliverables and metrics.
Split the credit. State plainly which original deliverables were completed before the change, with numbers and dates.
Ask about weighting. A scope change mid-ramp usually deserves a partial-credit line rather than a fresh baseline.
Escalate once, in writing. If the manager will not confirm the change, send one short note to the skip-level or the people partner naming the dates and the original criteria.

If the cycle ends badly anyway, the same file becomes the opening of a PIP response or a transfer request. Keep the criteria document, the recap email, and the change message together; three dated items are a stronger record than a long narrative written after the rating.

Ramp point	Deliverable to show	Evidence to save
Day 30	One shipped artifact plus system access	The criteria document with the agreed date
Day 60	Ownership of a measurable task	Stakeholder message or forum note confirming delivery
Day 90	Outcome list with numbers	Self-assessment packet and the recap email
Any change	Revised criteria in writing	Dated message stating what moved and when

Before you rely on a date or an amount on this page, check it against the California job exit rules page and the New York job exit rules page. Rules move, and those pages carry the current text.

Frequently Asked Questions

My manager will not write success criteria. What now?: Hold the conversation verbally, then send a recap email naming the three deliverables, two metrics, and the dates. Ask them to correct anything wrong in the recap. Silence on an email becomes your baseline, and that dated note is what you point to at review time.
How many metrics should a 90-day plan include?: Two is usually enough, chosen from the team's existing measures so your numbers are comparable to peers. Add one stakeholder signal rather than a third metric. Too many measures make the first review a discussion about which number counts instead of what you delivered.
Should I mention work outside my agreed criteria?: Yes, briefly, as scope evidence. Extra work that was above the agreed baseline is what separates a meets rating from an exceeds rating. Keep it to two items with dates and numbers so the room can read it quickly next to the agreed deliverables.
Do first-cycle ratings affect my first raise?: Usually yes. The rating maps to the increase range, and a median rating narrows it in most companies. Ask how ratings map to ranges before the cycle closes, and put the raise conversation against the band with a written request rather than a verbal ask.
Manager resists writing criteria?: Ask for the 30/60/90 plan verbally, send a recap email. The paper is your baseline.
Criteria change mid-ramp?: Get the change in writing with dates. Moving goalposts are the top cause of first-cycle median ratings.

The 90-day review, the rating cycle, and the calibration quota are internal process, not law. The agency point applies to the wage lines around a separation: the final-pay window, the PTO payout rule, and the claim deadline. Confirm those with the state agency named on the state rule pages, write your own record with dates and measurable outcomes, and keep the band midpoint in writing for the salary counteroffer calculator.