Purpose – The aim of this paper is to assess the validity of the self-enhancement tactician perspective, which proposes that workers inflate their self-ratings regardless of their national culture, while exploring the nature of self-ratings in Mexico. Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation modeling and t tests were applied to data collected from a sample of 300 employees randomly selected from a manufacturing company in Mexico. The data collected include self-performance ratings, employees’ expected evaluations from supervisors, evaluations by supervisors and a pay-per-performance measure. Findings – The results provide general support to the self-enhancement tactician model, showing that self-rating is inflated and that supervisory rating constitutes the best predictor of employees’ performance. Research limitations/implications – Based on previous research findings, it was presumed that Mexican workers participating in this investigation reflected collectivistic-oriented traits. Future research projects investigating the universality of the self-enhancing tactician model may strengthen the validity of the results by including an independent measure of culture. People living in a predominantly collectivistic society are not necessarily collectivists. Practical implications – When self-ratings and supervisory ratings were compared to the objective measure of performance, supervisory ratings emerged as the most reliable and reasonable predictor. This finding may assist practitioners as they try to make strategic decisions regarding the evaluation of employees’ performance. Originality/value – The unique comparison of self-ratings and supervisor ratings with an objective measure of performance constitutes one significant element in this investigation. The findings encourage future research efforts and particular performance evaluation practices.