Quarterly Reflection Rhythm

In the last section, we talked about using a weekly reflection practice to constantly learn and improve. The weekly reflection cycle allows you to note progress, course correct, and celebrate small wins as a team in order to stay on track for your big-picture goals. This allows for evolution. For revolution, you need to formally step back and move from examining the trees to taking a look at the forest. A deep and thorough retrospective allows you to address thorny problems that resist change. I recommend quarterly, as many business functions mark progress by quarters.

Quarters are useful temporal landmarks. A temporal landmark is an artificial moment in time that a group shares, like New Year’s or a special birthday (30, 50, 75) or an anniversary. A temporal landmark is a place where people pause, reflect, and commit to change. Monday is a tiny one, quarters are midsize ones, annual is a big one . . . perhaps too big? If we wait until the end of the year to examine our performance, first, we probably can’t remember back to last January and second, it’s way too long to wait to fix a recalcitrant problem.

Spotify Labs notes, “Quarterly seems to be a good starting point. Every month seems too often (people get fed up with it, and the data doesn’t change fast enough to warrant it). Bi-annually seems too seldom (too much happens within that period). But, again, it varies.”

Quarterly has three key advantages:

  1. If you know you are going to be discussing what’s going right and what needs improving again in three months, you can keep it short. Less information is more likely to be taken to heart. I’ve found when I give three pieces of feedback, all are acted upon. When I gave twenty, none were. It’s just too overwhelming. Save little things for the one-on-ones, and cover the big issues in the quarterly.
  2. It’s hard to remember what happened last February, but the last three months are pretty memorable. Over time, we tell ourselves stories about what happened, often making ourselves the hero, and the other person the villain. Doing a check-in every three months means you will hopefully remember things the same way as the employee. (But always document anyhow. Paper doesn’t forget.)
  3. Reviewing reduces the stakes. If you only get a shot at a promotion or a bonus once a year, it can be devastating when employee expectations and hopes aren’t met. But in a three-month cycle, there is always next time.

    If your company is stuck in the annual review cycle, you can still do a formal sit down with your direct reports every three months. Document the conversation, and you might actually have a shot at remembering what happened in February. And you’ll be providing invaluable feedback regularly.

    What to Cover

    During this adjourn-and-reflect quarterly review, I recommend spending time reflecting on the following three areas:

  4. Goals. How did we do on the goals we set ourselves at the beginning of the quarter? If you use OKRs, this is when they get graded. Then, using what you’ve learned, you’ll set OKRs for the next quarter.
  5. Roles. Performance reviews are based on three things: How well is the individual living up to their goals, role expectation, and team norms? The quarterly assessment is an excellent time to grade the individual’s performance, give feedback, and decide whether to promote or fire.
  6. Norms. Bring out your rules and ask folks if they are living up to their own standards. Discuss changes. Make updates.

This may sound like a lot of time, but really it’s just two meetings with some prep. Moreover, it’s an investment in moving your team from a workgroup to a learning team to eventually an autonomous team. Wouldn’t you like to leave your phone in the room someday, rather than be tied down with the emergency du jour? Invest in your people, and they’ll invest in you.