Must-have performance management software RFP template in 2025

Performance management isn’t just about annual reviews — it’s how you build, coach, and retain high-performing teams. The right system helps align employees with company goals, ensure fair evaluations, identify top performers, and make smarter people decisions about pay, promotions, and retention. But too often, performance management is manual, siloed, or reactive.

Spreadsheets, survey tools, and disjointed point solutions create busywork without providing the holistic visibility HR leaders need. Managers lack context to coach effectively. Employees don’t trust the process because reviews feel inconsistent, feedback is delayed, or promotions aren’t tied to data. And HR spends weeks auditing and reconciling results before outcomes can even be actioned.

Modern performance management software should change that. It should unify reviews, feedback, calibrations, compensation, and employee development — all in the same system as HRIS and payroll. It should be flexible enough to fit your culture, automated enough to eliminate admin, and powerful enough to give you insights that drive retention and growth.

This guide lays out the critical areas you should evaluate when running an RFP for performance management software. For each, we explain why it matters, what to look for, and the key questions to include. Plus, you’ll get a downloadable template with critical questions to ask vendors — so you can start evaluating ASAP. 

1. Review cycle management

Your system should make it easy to run structured, repeatable review cycles — annual, quarterly, or milestone-based. Look for flexible cycle setup (participants, timelines, templates), automated reminders, and customizable questions. A good platform should let you segment reviews by department, role, or level, without reinventing the wheel each time.

Rippling Performance Management lets you launch review cycles in minutes using prebuilt or custom templates. Cycles are tied directly to HRIS data, so managers and participants are always current — even if org changes happen mid-cycle. Automated reminders keep things on track without HR chasing down forms.

RFP questions to ask vendors:

• How easy is it to configure review cycles by role, department, or level?

• Can we use templates or customize cycle questions and timelines?

• How does the system handle org changes (e.g., new managers mid-cycle)?

• Does the platform automate reminders for participants and reviewers?

2. Continuous feedback and 1:1s

Performance isn’t built once a year. Your system should support ongoing 1:1s, feedback, and recognition, giving managers and employees a central place to track conversations, notes, and action items. Look for tools that integrate goals and OKRs with 1:1 discussions so managers always have context.

Rippling consolidates 1:1s, goals, and performance history in one system. Managers can document discussions, track feedback, and connect goals directly to company objectives. Employees and managers both have a single place to view performance data and feedback in real time.

RFP questions:

• Does the platform include structured 1:1 agendas and feedback tracking?

• Can managers and employees document action items and follow-ups?

• Are 1:1s tied to goals and OKRs?

• Is feedback visible to both employees and managers over time?

3. Goal-setting and OKRs

Aligning individual goals with company strategy is one of the most important outcomes of performance management. The system should allow cascading goals and OKRs, track progress, and provide visibility for managers and employees alike.

Rippling integrates goals and OKRs directly into the performance platform. Employees can see how their goals map to team and company objectives, and managers get visibility into progress across their org.

RFP questions:

• Does the system support cascading goals and OKRs?

• Can employees see how their goals map to team or company objectives?

• Can managers track progress across departments or roles?

• Are goals tied directly to reviews, feedback, and compensation?

4. Calibration and fairness

Calibration is critical for ensuring fair and consistent outcomes across teams. Your system should provide tools for managers and HR to calibrate ratings (e.g., 9-box grids), visualize distribution, and enforce consistency before decisions on comp or promotions.

Rippling makes calibration easy with drag-and-drop visualization tools like 9-box grids. HR can cut data by department, manager, or any attribute, ensuring equity across reviews. Compensation bands and compa-ratios are visible in the calibration stage to drive data-backed decisions.

RFP questions:

• Does the system include calibration tools (e.g., 9-box, distribution charts)?

• Can calibration views be segmented by role, department, or manager?

• Does the platform surface compensation bands and ratios during calibration?

• Can HR enforce consistency before finalizing results?

5. Compensation and promotion alignment

Performance management should directly inform compensation and promotion decisions. Look for systems that integrate performance outcomes with compensation bands, merit increase guidelines, and payroll — so approved changes flow automatically.

Rippling ties reviews directly to compensation. Managers see bands and compa-ratios during calibration, and approved comp changes sync automatically to payroll. Promotions and title changes update everywhere instantly — eliminating manual handoffs.

RFP questions:

• Does the system integrate performance outcomes with compensation planning?

• Are compensation bands and compa-ratios visible during calibration?

• Can comp and title changes sync automatically with payroll and HRIS?

• Can promotions trigger workflow updates (e.g., permissions, policies)?

6. Employee development and L&D integration

Reviews should drive development, not just ratings. The system should connect outcomes to learning and growth initiatives, enrolling employees automatically in the right training or development plans.

Rippling integrates performance outcomes with its LMS. High performers can be targeted for leadership training, while employees needing support are automatically enrolled in courses. Managers and employees both see development paths tied to review outcomes.

RFP questions:

• Can performance outcomes trigger automatic enrollment in learning paths?

• Can managers assign courses or development goals directly from reviews?

• Does the system integrate with a learning management system (LMS)?

• Can employees track their own development goals in the platform?

7. Employee engagement and retention

Performance management plays a key role in employee engagement and retention. Look for systems that can trigger surveys after reviews, track engagement by manager or team, and identify regrettable attrition risks among top performers.

Rippling connects reviews with engagement surveys. HR can trigger surveys for high performers, gather insights on what motivates them, and launch initiatives to improve retention. Attrition risks can be flagged early using performance and engagement data combined.

RFP questions:

• Can the system trigger engagement surveys after reviews?

• Can engagement results be segmented by manager, department, or role?

• Can the platform identify attrition risks for top performers?

• Can HR take targeted actions based on survey and review data?

8. Analytics and insights

The best performance management systems don’t just collect data — they help you use it. Look for analytics that connect performance with other people data: retention, compensation, recruiting sources, and more. HR should be able to create custom dashboards without IT support.

Rippling connects performance data with HR, payroll, recruiting, and comp data in one system. HR leaders can run custom reports that combine performance outcomes with hiring sources, tenure, or engagement scores to get a holistic picture.

RFP questions:

• Can performance data be joined with other HR and business data?

• What prebuilt dashboards and reports are available?

• Can HR leaders build custom reports without technical support?

• Can reports be scheduled and shared securely with permissions?

9. Flexibility and configurability

Every company runs performance differently. Your system should support different review types (annual, 360, 30/60/90), multiple feedback formats, and customizable workflows.

Rippling provides flexible review types, from milestone reviews to annual cycles, with customizable templates and workflows. You can configure rules by department, level, or location, ensuring the process matches your culture.

RFP questions:

• What review types are supported (annual, quarterly, 360, 30/60/90)?

• Can templates, workflows, and reminders be customized?

• Can rules be applied differently for departments or levels?

• Can new review types be added easily as processes evolve?

How Rippling helps enterprises

Rippling Performance Management transforms reviews from a compliance exercise into a driver of retention and growth. Because it’s unified with HR, Payroll, Recruiting, and L&D, every outcome is actionable: comp changes sync to payroll, promotions update titles and permissions, and development plans enroll employees in the right training automatically.

With Rippling, enterprises can:

• Launch review cycles in minutes with real-time HRIS data

• Ensure fairness with calibration and compensation alignment

• Tie performance directly to pay, promotions, and development

• Trigger engagement surveys and flag attrition risks

• Run powerful analytics connecting performance to retention, comp, and hiring

• Deliver a seamless experience for managers, employees, and HR

Performance management no longer has to be manual, inconsistent, or disconnected. With Rippling, it becomes a fast, fair, and strategic process that builds stronger teams.

Rippling RFP for performance management software example

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This blog is based on information available to Rippling as of September 11, 2025.