Each feedback type in a review cycle has its own form. This article explains how to add questions, link goals and competencies, and configure the form settings for self, downward, upward, and peer feedback. Each form is configured independently, so repeat the process once per enabled feedback type.

Before you begin

You must be:

• An admin with access to Engage > Reviews
• Working in a review cycle with at least one feedback type enabled

Add questions to a feedback form

Step 1 – Open the form editor

• Click Configure form on an enabled feedback type.
• Use the left sidebar to navigate between forms and manage weighting, the center canvas to build questions, and the right settings panel for access controls.

Note: Everything in this article applies to all four feedback types. Each form is configured independently.

Step 2 – Add a question

• Click Add question and choose a question type.
• Click Search question library instead to pull from a bank of ready questions.

Question types

• Rating scale: Respondents score on a numeric scale, configurable up to 10, with an option for 0. Use it for quantifiable data you can aggregate and track over time.
• Open-ended: Free-text response. Best for qualitative insight, examples, and development feedback.
• Single-choice: Respondents pick one option from a list you define.
• Multiple-choice: Respondents can select more than one option.

Step 3 – Add questions from the library

• Click Search question library to open a panel with all questions created in your organization. The account includes questions created by the Deel People team, and you can add your own.
• Filter by question type, tags, or creator. Each question shows how many active cycles currently use it.
• Check one or more questions and click Add selected.

Tip: Click Go to the Question library to manage your full bank of questions outside the cycle setup.

Step 4 – Set required and comments options

• Toggle Required so respondents cannot submit the form without answering the question. Use it for any question that feeds into scoring or decisions.
• Toggle Enable comments to add an optional free-text comment box below the rating.

Step 5 – Configure the rating scale

• Set Scale range with the lower bound (From) and upper bound (to). The lower bound starts at 0, and the upper bound can be 1 to 10. Set the default scale in Organization Settings > Engage > Reviews > Scale.
• Toggle Hide numbers to show labels only, such as "Rarely" to "Always". Define a label for every point on the scale first.
• Toggle Display N/A option to add a "Not applicable" choice, so respondents are not forced to give an artificial rating.

Step 6 – Choose the rating layout

• Select a Rating layout: horizontal, vertical, or dropdown.

Note: Reviewees see the question title, marked with a red asterisk if required. Each linked goal or competency follows, rated separately, then the labeled rating scale.

Link goals and competencies to a question

Step 1 – Link goals to a question

• Toggle Include goals on a rating or non-rating question to show the employee's goals inside the question.
• Filter the goals by goal name, goal cycle, or tags. Leave all filters empty to include all of the employee's goals.

Step 2 – Enable competencies

• Toggle Enable competencies on a rating scale question or an open-ended question. Competency ratings appear below the main question, and employees are rated only on competencies that match their role.
• Select All competencies to use every competency in your organization's frameworks, or select Select competencies to choose a subset.

Step 3 – Select specific competencies

• Select Select frameworks to include every competency in a framework, such as "Product & Engineering". Manage frameworks with the Manage frameworks link.
• Select Select categories to narrow to a category within a framework, such as "Leadership" or "Technical competencies". Manage categories with the Manage categories link.
• Select Select competencies to pick individual competencies by name, such as "HRIS implementation", "Google Analytics", or "Copywriting".

Note: Selections are additive. Choosing a framework or category includes all competencies within it. The question shows a Competency pool badge with the count of attached competencies, and reviewees see one rating item per competency.

Configure form settings by feedback type

Step 1 – Configure self review

• Toggle Allow resubmission? to let employees edit and resubmit their self review until the deadline. It is off by default.

Note: By default, self-review feedback is shared with managers. You can change this setting.

Step 2 – Select downward feedback writers

• Select one or more roles under Who will write the downward feedback? Roles come from your worker relationship roles or custom org structure, for example Manager, HRBP, and Head of Department.
• Toggle Allow resubmission? to let reviewers edit and resubmit until the downward feedback deadline. It is off by default.

Note: With multiple roles, each role receives a separate writing task and scores are averaged. Comments from all reviewers combine into a single view for the reviewee. Resubmission and calibration cannot be used together.

Step 3 – Lock downward feedback until self review

• Toggle Scheduled downward feedback: Lock until self review? so managers cannot start writing downward feedback until a trigger is met.
• Select Self review deadline to unlock manager feedback once the deadline passes, whether or not the employee submitted.
• Select Self review submitted to unlock manager feedback only after the individual employee submits their self review.

Step 4 – Configure upward feedback

• Toggle Allow resubmission? to let upward feedback writers edit and resubmit until the deadline. It is off by default.

Note: By default, upward feedback is visible to the manager's manager. You can adjust the setting so the direct manager sees it too.

Step 5 – Select how peers are chosen

• Select Workers nominate peers so employees nominate their own peer reviewers. Direct managers and admins can approve the nominations or substitute different reviewers.
• Select Direct managers and admins nominate peers so managers select feedback providers for their direct reports without employee input.

Note: A participant with no direct manager nominates their own peers with automatic approval, whichever option is selected.

Step 6 – Set peer nomination rules

• Toggle Allow reviewers to decline peer nominations to let a nominated peer decline the request. It is off by default.
• Toggle Limit peers per reviewee and enter a number, for example 4, to cap how many peers each employee can nominate.
• Toggle Limit how many times someone can be nominated and enter a number, for example 3, to protect against feedback fatigue.

Step 7 – Configure peer resubmission

• Toggle Allow resubmission? to let peer reviewers edit and resubmit until the peer feedback deadline. It is off by default.

Frequently Asked Questions