Performance Review in large companies is presented as an efficiency assessment tool. But in reality — it's a ritual regulating emotional tension, resource distribution, and perception of fairness.
The process serves the system, not the result. Excel, scales, models, metrics — these are symbols of a fair system, not fairness itself.
The Signs
Multi-page instructions, scripts, examples, timings, checklists. System tries to "cement" a process that's inherently loose.
Manager gets lines, tone, conversation structure. This isn't development — it's ritual behavior.
Ratings aren't fixed — they're negotiated. Manager must defend them. Control mechanism, not assessment.
"++ is good," "+ isn't a threat," "HR doesn't interfere." System assumes pre-existing distrust.
Its function isn't to measure — it's to formalize.