Interesting take on the origin of the performance review bs, but I was hoping this would add something to the discussion.

In the current state of things the process is heavily defended by the HR department and most ICs want to have an "objective" way to be promoted and have a raise, when there's very little in this to be "objective", making it almost impossible to dismantle.

In more than 25 years in the industry, I haven't been once in a company that solved this conundrum and makes me want to quit being a manager.

A good book I've read that I can suggest if you're painfully struggling with this, is "Abolishing Performance Appraisals"

There it is.. "they happily give the super stars..." but who is a superstar? The answer: the guy/gal doing a show for one. And with her, the record company, the studio assistant, the groupies etc. If there was someone objectively great but quiet, that would be bad. A no show? That would make a sort of bureaucracy necessary that tracks performance objectively..