Allen & Overy (A&O) is set to move all of its staff to a new performance management scheme next year, becoming the latest firm to scrap annual appraisals in favour of a system based around ongoing feedback.

The new scheme, dubbed 'Compass', replaces the magic circle firm's current annual review process with more frequent one-on-one meetings between staff and partners or managers.

The firm piloted the system last year, with 550 people across its London capital markets team, its Middle East and Singapore offices and its London HR team initially taking part. The scheme has now been extended to 2,000 members of staff, and A&O is aiming for a complete firmwide rollout by May 2019.

The most recent additions to Compass include staff in the firm's London real estate, litigation and support teams, its offices in the US, South Africa and Luxembourg, and its Belfast support base. Further A&O offices in Europe and Asia and other London teams will adopt the new system this summer.

Employees are required to take personal responsibility for organising their feedback meetings, which the firm expects to be held about every two months.

A&O has also introduced an app, via which immediate feedback can be provided in response to work. All feedback is attributable and is visible to employees and their partners or managers, and can be solicited or unsolicited, upward, downward or peer to peer.

The firm said the change had come in response to widespread demand for more regular feedback, and more "honest" career conversations.

A&O global head of reward Toni Graves, who is spearheading the Compass scheme, said: "The response to the programme has been extremely positive and, overall, the focus of performance-and-development conversations has become much more future-oriented.

"Through check-ins and talent discussions, we have a much better understanding of people's career aspirations and teams are identifying opportunities for individuals that allow them to grow and achieve their potential."

A&O co-head of global international capital markets David Benton added: "Compass has transformed our performance-management process. It has become much more focused on future development based on regular, honest and open conversations. We're already seeing the tangible benefits of this to our business."

The firm is one of a number currently shaking up their appraisal systems as more and more move away from the traditional annual structure for performance reviews. Hogan Lovells recently announced that it is scrapping annual feedback for associates in favour of a new programme, dubbed 'Pathways', which directs associates to proactively seek input from partners and other colleagues about their performance throughout the year.

The programme has been rolled out across Hogan Lovells' global offices, and the firm said it will expand the initiative to include the firm's business services staff next year.

Slaughter and May also recently overhauled its appraisal system for associates, with performance scores dropped in favour of more ongoing feedback and mentoring by dedicated 'continuity' partners.