What do Performance Reviews and Santa Clause have in Common – 8 years on.

For eight years I have been commenting on how similarities between Performance Reviews and Santa Clause have changed over time.  This year I thought I’d ask AI (in this case CoPilot) “what do performance reviews and Santa Clause have in common? Here’s CoPilot’s verbatim response.

“Ha! More than you might think. Here’s a fun (and a little-too-real) look at what performance reviews and Santa Claus have in common.

• The Naughty/Nice List:

  
  

  Both involve judgment against a list—KPIs for reviews, “naughty or nice” for Santa. If the list isn’t clear early, December feels… tense.

• Once-a-Year Magic (and Anxiety):

  
  

  It’s annual, it’s high-stakes, and everyone gets nervous. Surprises are delightful at Christmas—less so in a review.

• Wish Lists & Rewards:

  
  

  Employees bring aspirations (promotion, development, pay). Santa brings gifts (or coal). Good managers translate wish lists into realistic development plans.

• Elves & HR:

  
  

  Behind the scenes, a small army makes it all work—HR, calibration, peer feedback… the “workshop.”

• Stories & Memory:

  
  

  Santa “checks twice.” Great managers keep notes all year so it’s not just the last 6 weeks of sprinting that hijack the narrative.

• Rituals Matter:

  
  

  The ritual signals importance. Done well, it builds trust; done poorly, it feels performative.”

My next question was “How can we turn Performance Reviews from Santa Season into something meaningful?” This is a summary of CoPilot’s reply.

1.    Shift from an annual event to ongoing dialogue. Continuous feedback builds trust and reduces anxiety whereas annual reviews feel like judgment day.

2.    Make goals visible and dynamic in order to go from hidden goals to no surprise outcomes.

3.    Focus on development not just ratings because ratings alone don’t grow people.  Pair every performance discussion with a development plan and offer tangible actions: training, shadowing, stretch projects.

4.    Use data and stories because data shows trends while stories show impact.

5.    Build fairness through calibration because perceived bias kills trust.  Document rationale for ratings and promotions.

6.    Leverage technology because manual collation wastes time. Use HR platforms (like NEOS HR) to capture goals, skills, and support needs digitally. [Nb: Yes, CoPilot did mention us!]

7.    End every review with momentum to launch action, not close a chapter.

Because CoPilot mentioned NEOS HR, I also asked it “How does NEOS HR’s approach aligns with these principles?” Below is CoPilot’s verbatim reply.

“NEOS HR strongly aligns with contemporary performance management principles as it:

• Eliminates complex, administrative-heavy processes

• Enables continuous feedback and agile goal alignment

• Uses behavioural scales and tech for fairness and efficiency

• Separates misconduct interventions (PRP) from regular reviews

• Prioritizes engagement, development, and data-driven insights

This positions their solution as a modern, principles-driven system—moving far beyond outdated annual reviews toward continuous, value-focused performance management.”

Thankyou Santa and CoPilot for the very nice Christmas present to me and the NEOS HR team.

Merry Christmas to everyone reading this post.