Adobe replaced annual performance reviews with regular “Check-in” conversations. The software company introduced the approach in 2012 after deciding that yearly ratings had become cumbersome, bureaucratic, and poorly timed.
Check-ins focus on an ongoing, two-way conversation between an employee and manager. The discussions cover expectations, feedback, and growth or career development. Instead of waiting for a formal year-end assessment, employees can receive coaching and adjust goals while work is still underway.
The change was associated with Adobe’s rejection of traditional ranking practices, sometimes described as “rank and yank.” Adobe argued that annual reviews encouraged paperwork and retrospective judgments rather than timely development. The company’s experience became a widely cited example in the broader movement away from fixed annual appraisals.
“Check-in” does not mean Adobe stopped evaluating performance or making compensation decisions. It changed the timing and format of feedback, while performance, goals, and rewards continued to matter.