How we evaluate engineering performance at Gusto
summary
Gusto evaluates engineers on a four-axis performance axes: project impact, better engineering, people impact, and better organization, each rated 1–5 twice a year and summed into an overall rating. Project impact is required for everyone; higher levels add required axes like better engineering and organization. Reviews favor measurable outcomes (example: Next‑Gen time tracking cutting customer entry time by ~30%) over raw effort, use 2‑minute writeups plus 3‑minute manager calibrations, and promote when calibration places a person around the midpoint of the next level.
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chapters (11)
- 0:00Introduction
- 1:06Engineering performance axes
- 3:21Defining impact axes
- 10:45Measuring impact to outcomes
- 12:28Rating system levels
- 14:16Engineering performance write-up
- 16:46Qualitative and quantitative balance
- 17:07Required axes by level
- 18:33Calibrating ratings across teams
- 19:14Promotions and standards
- 20:39Q&A
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