Feedback topics
Feedback topics are ready-made sets of questions for feedback, such as a probation check-in, a project retrospective or a quarterly peer review. Create one so everybody answers the same questions, then pick it with Select Template when you request or leave feedback. A template also fixes the feedback's confidentiality, so set that with care.
Where:
- Performance › Settings › Feedback Topics
- Or the Feedback topics page, which shows the same list
You need: the Reviewer (Manager) right, both to manage templates and to pick one in a feedback dialog
How to create a feedback topic
- Open Performance › Settings › Feedback Topics and select Add Feedback.
- Enter the Template Name, up to 100 characters, for example "Quarterly Peer Review".
- Choose a Feedback Type: Training, Performance, Peer Review, Manager Review or General. This is a label only.
- Choose the Confidentiality. It starts on Private and confidential.
- Under Questions, type the first question. Select + Add Question for each further one, up to 10. Remove one with the cross.
- Select Save.
Keep each question under 120 characters. The field accepts more, but feedback topics are limited to 120 characters, so a longer question makes Request or Submit fail for anyone using the template.
How to use a feedback topic
- In Request Feedback or Leave Feedback, select Select Template next to Feedback topics.
- Click the template. Each row shows its questions, its Feedback type label and its Confidentiality.
- The template's questions replace the topics in the dialog. They cannot be edited or removed, but Add Custom Topic still adds your own.
- The Feedback type is set to the template's confidentiality and locked.
- Finish the dialog as usual.
Select Select Template again to switch to a different template. To get the default topics back, close the dialog and start again.
How to edit or delete a feedback topic
- Find the template in the list and select the pencil to edit, or the bin to delete.
- To edit, change any field and select Save.
- To delete, confirm with Delete. It cannot be undone.
Editing or deleting a template does not change feedback already requested or given with it: the questions were copied into each piece of feedback.
What the fields mean
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Template Name | What people see in the Select Template list. Up to 100 characters. |
| Feedback Type | A label to group templates, shown in the picker. It does not change who can read the feedback. |
| Confidentiality | The Feedback type the feedback gets, and who can read it. See Giving and receiving feedback. |
| Questions | One topic each. Up to 10. The person giving feedback must answer every one. |
⚠️ "Feedback Type" means two different things. On this page it is a label. In the feedback dialogs, Feedback type is the confidentiality. Name templates so the confidentiality is obvious, for example "Peer review (private)".
The list shows No feedback topics yet. Add your first one. until you add one.
What Happens Next
- The template is in the Select Template list straight away, for anyone with the Reviewer right.
- Feedback using it is about whoever the requester or provider chooses. The template does not choose people.
- Feedback using it counts towards ratings and averages like any other feedback.
Tips
- Build one per recurring moment: probation, project close, quarterly peer review. Comparable questions make answers comparable.
- Three to five questions is enough. Every question needs an answer before anyone can submit.
- Ask about behaviour, not personality. "What did they do well on the last project?" beats "How good are they?".
- Use Public only if everyone with the Reviewer right also holds Feedback Allow Public. A Public template locks the dialog on Public, so anyone without that right cannot submit it.
- Use Confidential only on purpose, for concerns that must be raised safely. The person it is about will never read it.
Troubleshooting / FAQ
Q: Select Template shows "No records found matching your criteria." There are no templates, or you do not hold the Reviewer right. Employees cannot load templates and write their own topics instead.
Q: Request fails after picking a template, and I can't edit the topics. A question is longer than 120 characters. Shorten it in Settings › Feedback Topics and pick the template again.
Q: Submit says "You do not have permission to select public feedback." The template is Public and you lack the Feedback Allow Public right. Ask an admin to change the template's confidentiality.
Q: Can I change the feedback type after picking a template? No. Close the dialog and start again without the template.