15Five

Pros

Super easy to use - no 'training' necessary (even though it is available). Get's the team to think every week about what's important, how they can be intentional with their time, what they want to achieve and how to bring ideas to the table. The performance management software takes conversations to where they should be - improving the working life of employees. It's development focussed and doesn't take long to do. The new homepage allows each team member to use the product daily to stay on top of what's important. We use the rating out of 5 each week as a key company metric to get a sense of how our team are feeling about work.

Cons

We recently engaged a points based recognition program which I fear will replace the high5's. I'm wondering if this could be integrated somehow as the high5's were a real motivator for the team. From what I can tell, there is no analysis tool at the end of a review period to analyse the 'manager only' data so see what ratings were provided across the board. It would be great to use a talent rating in the system too which showed where our high performers were.

Pros

The "annual review" and the like are very invaluable to the individual and become an exercise in repetition. 15Five takes what that same concept tries to accomplish and incorporates it into smaller, admin defined spans. With each [bi]weekly 15Five, the Team can focus on their priorities and align them with the overarching objectives/goals (individual, department, and/or company-wide). As a result, the growth path is managed at early stages and progress is recorded throughout the process to document each team member. I have used 15Five at 3 companies and have seen my teams improve within a short period each time. It does take effort but once it becomes the norm, progress just starts running!

Cons

There are always going to be features that are wanted and/or desired in any software. 15Five has a lot right out of the gate with a lot of the features I would have liked to see now in production and currently getting worked into my setup. I honestly don't have anything negative regarding 15Five as a software nor as a company.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to 15Five

Pros

It provides a lot of value in terms of getting the pulse of our teams, and it helps with keeping team members consistent in giving feedback. Its notes and 1:1 features also are helpful for creating talking points. The kudos feature, integrated with our Slack is also widely used and it has become one of our main recognition tools .

Cons

Some links from email reminders don't work as expected and internal navigation is perhaps not as intuitive as it could be.

Pros

I'm not going to lie, I hated using this software. It facilitates the kind of micro managing, having meetings about meetings style of working within a team that I hate about non-profit life, and am glad to have left behind.

Cons

I just never got anything valuable from using this software. I don't understand the need for it, and I found using it to be a giant waste of time.

Pros

That it is so easy to use and great way to stay connected with your employees and your boss. It keeps all the conversations in a central location! I just started using it but really like the 1:1 tool, as both of you can enter information and action items.

Cons

So far I like everything, with anything it takes time to get familiar with the system.