People Management

Define the real role — not a copy-paste of the last job description. What does this person need to be able to do in the first six months, not the eventual dream version of the role.

Design the loop — the same questions for every candidate, scored against the same rubric, by interviewers calibrated on what a passing answer looks like before the loop starts.

Make the call — one clear decision-maker, not a committee vote diluted into nobody actually owning it. Debrief while the signal is still fresh.

Close the loop — candid with the person you hire about what they're walking into, and respectful of the ones you pass on. Both outcomes still reflect on you.

Learn the role and the team. No big swings yet — clear on what's expected, who's who, and how work actually moves here.

First real contribution lands. An early read on how they operate — a data point, not a verdict.

Full ramp. Running at the same bar as the rest of the team, which is where onboarding ends and Goal Setting's regular cadence picks up.

Know the band before the conversation — you can't speak credibly about someone's pay if you don't already know where they sit in the range and where the ceiling actually is.

Separate pay-for-performance from a market correction — a raise for doing great work and a raise for being underpaid relative to the market are two different conversations. Conflating them makes neither one land clearly.

Say what you can't change — out loud. If budget or banding ties your hands, saying so plainly earns more trust than a vague non-answer that reads as evasive.

Advocate in the room they're not in — calibration and comp planning happen without the employee present. That's where a leader earns or loses credibility with their own team.