How do I choose the axes?

Pick four to eight skills the role really depends on and that are independent of each other. Two closely related skills, such as speaking and presenting, stretch the shape twice in one direction; merging them is more accurate.

Who gives the scores?

A common approach is one line for self-assessment and one for the manager's view on the same chart. The axes where they differ most are the ones to talk through. Rename the two curve lines accordingly.

Can I put the chart in a review deck?

Yes. Export to PowerPoint gives you a slide with the chart, or export a PNG and insert it into an existing deck. The code is appended to the exported file, so next year you only change a few numbers.

Skills assessment radar chart template

Previewed in the “Light” theme; you can switch themes in the editor

When to use it

Annual reviews, one-on-ones, development plans and competency model write-ups. Six axes form a circle and the "Now" and "Target" polygons overlap, so the widest gap shows where to work next.

Make it yours

Change the axis names on the axis line; the text in brackets is shown on the chart. Four to eight axes read best.
Each curve is one data series. The numbers follow the order of the axes and there must be one per axis.
max 5 is the top of the scale; if you switch to 10 or 100, convert the data as well.
To compare two people or two quarters, rename the two curve lines.

Mermaid code

skills-assessment-radar.mmd

radar-beta
    title Skills assessment
    axis a["Communication"], b["Technical skills"], c["Problem solving"], d["Project management"], e["Learning"], f["Writing"]
    curve now["Now"]{3, 4, 3, 2, 4, 2}
    curve goal["Target"]{4, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4}
    max 5
    min 0

Ask an AI for one with this structure

Send the prompt below to ChatGPT or Claude, then paste the whole reply into the editor; the code inside is detected automatically.

prompt.txt

Draw a skills assessment radar chart with Mermaid radar-beta syntax. Write radar-beta on the first line; define six axes on one axis line: communication, technical skills, problem solving, project management, learning and writing, as axis a["Communication"], b["Technical skills"], ...; write one curve line per series: now is 3, 4, 3, 2, 4, 2 and target is 4, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4, as curve now["Now"]{3, 4, ...}; end with max 5 and min 0. Output only the mermaid code block.

FAQ

How do I choose the axes?: Pick four to eight skills the role really depends on and that are independent of each other. Two closely related skills, such as speaking and presenting, stretch the shape twice in one direction; merging them is more accurate.
Who gives the scores?: A common approach is one line for self-assessment and one for the manager's view on the same chart. The axes where they differ most are the ones to talk through. Rename the two curve lines accordingly.
Can I put the chart in a review deck?: Yes. Export to PowerPoint gives you a slide with the chart, or export a PNG and insert it into an existing deck. The code is appended to the exported file, so next year you only change a few numbers.