IT CultureSeries: Office Bakwas

The Indian IT appraisal cycle: six months of self-evaluation forms, peer feedback nobody reads, a bell curve that was supposed to be abolished in 2019 and wasn't, a rating of "Meets Expectations" for work that exceeded all expectations, and a hike that covers approximately one month of the rent increase you just received.

By Bench Babu  |  May 19, 2026  |  Office Culture Series, Part 2

HYDERABAD/PUNE/CHENNAI — It is April. The appraisal letters have arrived. You know what you got before you open it because your colleague Vikram, who talks too loudly, got 9% and he has been here two years less than you and his project went live three months late and you know this because you were on the same project and you fixed the bug that caused the delay and your manager put Vikram's name on the fix email because Vikram was cc'd and was "instrumental in the resolution." You got 8%. You are Meets Expectations. You open the letter. You close the laptop. You sit quietly for four minutes. Then you open LinkedIn.

The Indian IT appraisal system runs on a bell curve — a distribution model imported from GE in the 1980s that forces a fixed percentage of employees into each rating band regardless of actual performance. In practice this means: someone on your team must be "Below Expectations" this year. Someone must be "Exceptional." The exceptional person is the one who presented the most slides in the most meetings. The below expectations person is the one who worked quietly, shipped everything on time, and did not attend the optional team offsite in Coorg where the manager played badminton with the people who later got promoted.

"The rating does not reflect your actual performance. It reflects the team's overall distribution requirement."— HR Business Partner, to a developer who shipped four major features in a year, discovered two security vulnerabilities, and mentored three juniors. The distribution required a C. The developer received a C. The developer is now at a GCC earning 35% more.

The Appraisal Translation Dictionary

What They SaidWhat It MeansWhat You Get
"You've had a great year"You are getting 8%8%
"We see huge potential in you"You are getting 6%6%
"The market conditions this year..."You are getting less than 6%5% or a pizza party
"You're rated Exceptional"You are getting 14% and a trophy no one asked for14% + trophy
"We'd like to discuss a PIP"You have 90 days. Start applying.LinkedIn Premium free trial
"Variable pay is linked to company performance"The company underperformed. Your variable is zero.Zero
"Hike effective from July 1"You will get the money in July. It is April. You will forget by July.Money in July, relevance in April

The average IT salary hike in India in 2026 is 9% to 9.5%, according to industry reports. Inflation is running at 4.5–6%. The real wage increase is therefore 3–4.5%. In real terms, you are getting a raise of approximately ₹2,800 per month on a ₹12 lakh salary. Your rent went up ₹3,000 in January. You are moving backwards at a pace so slow it cannot be called movement but can be felt in every EMI statement. You will tell your parents you got a good hike. Your parents will tell the neighbours. The neighbours will ask if you can refer their son. You will say yes. You will not follow up. This is the cycle.

Appraisal 20268 PercentBell Curve NonsenseMeets ExpectationsLinkedIn After LetterVariable Pay Zero
Disclaimer: Satire. Average hike of 9–9.5% is from Mercer India Salary Survey 2026. Bell curve usage in Indian IT is documented extensively on r/developersIndia. The Coorg offsite detail is universal. — Ed.