How to Sign an OER as a Rater or Senior Rater

The Officer Evaluation Report (OER) is completed through the Army’s Evaluation Entry System (EES), where each member of the rating chain reviews, signs, and routes the evaluation. A rater and senior rater have different responsibilities, so the correct signature step depends on the role assigned in the report.

Signing an OER is a formal acknowledgment that the evaluation has been reviewed and is ready to move through the workflow. It does not necessarily mean that every participant agrees with every statement. The rated officer may later acknowledge receipt and submit comments according to applicable Army procedures.

Before opening the form, confirm that the correct evaluation, rating period, and rating chain appear in EES. Reviewing the report carefully before applying a digital signature can prevent delays caused by incorrect duty titles, dates, counseling information, or routing selections.

Confirm Your Role And Evaluation Status

Log in to EES using the access method available to you, such as a Common Access Card or an approved DS Logon option. Open the task or evaluation associated with your role rather than selecting a draft that belongs to another rating official. The dashboard normally identifies whether you are acting as the rater, senior rater, or rated officer.

The evaluation status is important. A report may be labeled as a draft, pending signature, returned for correction, or awaiting action from another member of the rating chain. If the signature button is unavailable, the report may still be with the previous official, or an administrator may need to correct the workflow.

Army personnel who manage several administrative records can also review related evaluation resources before beginning. General guidance can help explain common EES terms, but the current Army system instructions and local administrative direction control the actual submission process.

Review The OER Before Signing

A rater should check the rated officer’s identification data, organization, duty position, rating period, and authentication details. The narrative should match the officer’s responsibilities and documented performance. Verify that achievements are specific, supportable, and consistent with the observed duties rather than relying on vague descriptions.

The senior rater should review the entire report, including the rater’s assessment, senior-rater narrative, potential assessment, and any required profile-related information. The senior rater is responsible for the senior-rater portion and should ensure that the assessment is consistent with the officer’s performance and potential within the appropriate group of officers.

The digital signature should be applied only after reviewing the completed fields. If the form contains a factual error, missing entry, or inappropriate statement, return it through the available workflow before signing. Do not use a signature to move forward a report that requires substantive correction.

Signing As The Rater

After completing the rater portion, open the OER in EES and select the action for signing or digitally signing the evaluation. The exact wording can vary as the system changes, but the action generally appears near the review, submit, or workflow controls. Follow the prompts to authenticate the signature and confirm that the report is being routed to the next official.

The rater’s signature usually indicates that the rater has completed and reviewed the rater portion. It does not replace required counseling, support-form discussions, or documentation of performance throughout the rating period. A signature also does not prevent the rated officer from making comments or using authorized channels to address concerns.

After signing, verify the new status in EES. The report should show that it has been forwarded to the senior rater or another designated participant. Save or record the transaction details if local procedures require it, but avoid downloading or distributing sensitive personnel information through unauthorized channels.

Signing As The Senior Rater

When the report reaches the senior rater, open the assigned evaluation from the pending-actions or tasks area. Read the rater’s comments and verify the administrative information before completing the senior-rater section. Pay particular attention to the senior-rater narrative, potential assessment, and any information that affects the senior-rater profile.

Select the digital-signature option after all senior-rater entries are complete. Authenticate as directed by EES and review the confirmation screen. In many workflows, the signed report then moves to the rated officer for acknowledgment or to the next processing stage. The senior rater should confirm that the report no longer appears as an unsigned personal task.

The senior-rater signature does not mean the senior rater is certifying that the rated officer agrees with the evaluation. It confirms completion of the senior-rater responsibility. If the report requires a change after signing, use the authorized return, reopen, or correction process rather than editing an unofficial copy.

Role	Primary Review	Signature Effect	Common Next Step
Rater	Duties, performance, accomplishments, and rater narrative	Completes the rater portion and routes the report	Senior-rater review
Senior rater	Overall assessment, potential, narrative, and profile considerations	Completes the senior-rater portion and advances the report	Rated-officer acknowledgment or processing
Rated officer	Administrative accuracy and receipt of the evaluation	Acknowledges receipt; signature does not necessarily indicate agreement	Comments or final processing when authorized
Administrative support	Workflow, records, and system corrections	May return or route the evaluation under local authority	Correction, filing, or status follow-up

Handle Corrections And Returned Reports

If EES returns the OER for correction, read the reason carefully and change only the information that needs attention. A report may be returned because of a misspelled name, incorrect date, incomplete entry, missing signature, routing problem, or a concern raised by a member of the rating chain.

After making a correction, review the complete evaluation again. A change to one field can affect page references, narratives, dates, or the sequence of signatures. The rater or senior rater may need to sign again if the correction changes a previously authenticated portion of the report.

Use these practices before resubmitting:

• Confirm the rating period, rank, name, organization, and duty position.
• Check that required narratives and assessments are complete.
• Read every page after any returned-report correction.
• Verify that the workflow shows the correct next recipient.
• Keep a record of the status without sending protected personnel data through personal email.

A signature problem may also result from expired credentials, browser issues, unavailable certificates, or an account-access problem. In those cases, contact the appropriate unit administrator, S-1, or system help resource rather than repeatedly submitting the same action.

Track The Final Record

Once the senior rater and rated officer have completed their required actions, monitor the evaluation until it reaches the final processing stage. A signature alone does not guarantee that the report has been accepted, filed, or placed in the officer’s official military personnel record.

Personnel who need to locate supporting records can review instructions for finding an iPERMS account. If the completed OER does not appear in the expected record, check the EES status first and then contact the unit records manager or servicing administrative office.

For formal record needs, guidance on how to request an OMPF copy may help identify the proper request path. Keep copies only in approved locations and follow Army rules for handling personally identifiable information and protected personnel documents.

Reviewing the report before signing, following the correct rating-chain sequence, and checking the final status are the most reliable ways to prevent an incomplete OER from becoming an administrative delay. Use EES for the official action, apply your digital signature only when the report is accurate, and coordinate promptly with your unit’s personnel staff when the workflow does not behave as expected.