Ditch performance appraisals for real leader development

How do you go about conducting a Quarterly Coaching Review to ensure your leaders are truly developing into the high-performing A-Players your company needs to grow?​

In my recent 5 Minute Growth Tip, "Are your leaders high-performing?", I discussed the five key elements for developing executive team members: Job Scorecards, Quarterly Coaching Reviews, Personal Assessments, Quarterly Development Plans, and Weekly One-On-Ones. While job scorecards are a critical starting point in order to set clear expectations, the Quarterly Coaching Review is the foundational habit that kick-starts the development process.

The goal of the quarterly coaching review is to catch up, align, and connect with your leader to determine the important priorities they need to work on in the coming quarter, both for the business and for their own self-development. It is about ditching evaluations and focusing on "executing and developing the important".

We call these coaching reviews rather than performance reviews because we now know, through recent research, that traditional performance appraisals are not motivating. What is motivating is clarity of expectations, having opportunities to use one’s strengths, being recognized for excellent performance and being challenged to grow. 

Assuming job scorecards are in place and the leader is in the right role for their strengths, this new understanding requires a shift in focus for reviews: from intermittent evaluation to regularly acknowledging progress and supporting development. And it puts reviews in their proper place, as mere preparation for coaching throughout the quarter.

To make these reviews effective, follow a structured rhythm. There are four key steps to a successful Quarterly Coaching Review:

1. Preparation and Personal Connection
2. Reviewing Business Priorities
3. Review Performance Ratings
4. Setting Development Priorities

Let’s discuss each one. And feel free to contact me by email or on my website [link to contact me form page] to access the Quarterly Coaching Review guide I use with clients.

1. Preparation and Personal Connection

A successful quarterly coaching review starts before the meeting begins. Both the CEO and the leader should independently use the leader’s job scorecard to rate performance for the quarter, referring to targets, actual results, and priorities in your results tracking system.

Once the meeting starts, begin with a 10-minute personal catch-up. Ask about their personal and professional highs and lows over the last 90 days. This is also the time to check in on their well-being by asking how the team can support them or how communication is flowing between you. This connection strengthens the relationship and sets a supportive tone for the conversation.

2. Reviewing Business Priorities

Next, spend about 20 minutes reviewing the specific quarterly priorities the leader is accountable for in the next quarter. These should be the quarterly non-negotiable priorities that contribute directly to resolving the company’s #1 Addressable Challenge for the year in the executive team’s one page strategic plan.

Review the ultimate outcomes they want to achieve and have them come with any constraints or barriers that are in their way. By discussing these early, you can align on the resources they need, such as money, people, or time, to ensure they are set up for success before the quarter gets into full swing.

3. Reviewing Performance Ratings

This is often the most insightful part of the review. Spend time comparing your respective ratings from the job scorecard across core values, metrics, responsibilities, and competencies.

Rather than reviewing every item, focus on the differences. If you rated a leader a "2" on a core value and they rated themselves a "4," discuss what is behind those different perspectives. This conversation often exposes blind spots, helping the leader realize where they may be falling short of expectations despite their best efforts. These gaps highlight the most critical areas for their professional growth.

4. Setting Development Priorities

The final step is to translate those insights into action. Devote the last part of the meeting to setting 1 or 2 top self-development priorities for the next quarter. These priorities should address the development opportunities identified in the job scorecard during your rating comparison.

Just like business priorities, each development goal should be documented in your results tracking system, along with an action plan that outlines how the leader will go about developing in that area.

Before wrapping up, ask the leader for feedback on your own performance as their manager. Asking "What is one area I could improve in?" demonstrates that growth is a shared value and further encourages a high-performance culture.

By implementing this regular coaching rhythm, you ensure that leader development isn't left to chance. You transition from simply managing tasks to building the "A-Player" talent required to lead your company to its three-year goals and Big Hairy Audacious Goal.

​If you want to start using this development rhythm with your own team, let’s talk. Or contact me for the Quarterly Coaching Review guide I use with my clients. Email me or contact me on my website. Or complete the form in this article.

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