Case Study: WP Engine achieves stronger employee communication and performance with 15Five

WP Engine’s Employee Experience (HR) Team uses 15Five to enhance employee communication and performance

WP Engine, a leading digital experience platform for WordPress that powers hundreds of thousands of sites, faced a people challenge: traditional, retrospective performance reviews were time-consuming, inhibited meaningful conversations with ratings, and didn’t support employees’ desire for development and growth. Erin Barber and Sarah Randall from the Employee Experience team decided to replace that annual cycle with a forward-looking approach emphasizing clarity around roles, expectations, and goal-setting.

They implemented 15Five’s continuous performance tools—regular Check‑Ins, 1‑on‑1s, Best‑Self Reviews and High Fives—to create ongoing, peer and developmental feedback and objective tracking. Within a year WP Engine saw stronger communication and manager adoption, 65% check‑in utilization, 91% self‑review completion, time savings in reviews, improved survey scores on performance clarity, and positive uptake across teams as the company grew 25% to 530 employees.

WP Engine

Erin Barber

Vice President of Employee Experience