Mar 31, 2023, 8:23 AM
Reference: Above Average Expectations
There's another rating system in place that I like a lot better. It asks managers something like this:
What would you do if Susan said she was leaving?
A. Do everything I could to keep her. We'd be in trouble.
B. I'd have to think about it. Susan does a good job.
C. Wish her well. We'll be fine without her.
This gets right to the heart of the matter. Either the person is vital to the team or they contribute decently to the team, or ... meh.
There's a school of thought that says if someone comes in at the C level, you should just proactively let them go. I don't buy that directly. Someone could be inexperienced, right out of school, on a good learning path. They're not indispensible yet, but they have promise. And for those that should be doing more and still come in at C, then there should be a conversation to raise them to B at least, before letting them go.
Anyway, with this method, I don't see that much of a paradox in saying we expect more people to go from B to A. Though the "we'd be in trouble" part is a bit strange. It would be great to say that of your team of five people, all are great performers. But if you're saying that if any one of them left you'd be in trouble, then there's something wrong with your management of the team. Maybe change that to "It would be a great loss if she left."