Why “Everyone gets a three” punishes your best person
Rating everyone the same feels safe, but it tells your best person that extra effort changes nothing. Write the example before you pick the number.
THE QUICK ANSWER
Before you pick a number, write the example. No example, no rating. Rating everyone the same feels safe, but your best person just learned that extra effort changes nothing, and your weakest person learned they’re fine. The conversation gets harder for ten minutes and easier for the next year.
GO DEEPER
Why the safe rating is the unfair one
Giving everyone a three feels like fairness. Nobody argues, nobody feels singled out, and the reviews are done by lunch. But it is not fairness. It is avoidance.
Look at what each person learns. Your best person learns that extra effort changes nothing, because the number is the same as everyone else’s. Your weakest person learns that they are fine, so there is no reason to change. The people in the middle learn that the rating means nothing. You have spent a year of effort and ended up teaching the wrong lesson to everyone.
The fix is to write the example before the number. For each person, write down one specific thing they did, then choose the rating that fits it. No example, no rating. If you cannot name an example, the rating is not earned yet, which is useful to know.
This makes the conversation harder for about ten minutes, because you cannot hide behind a number everyone shares. But it makes the next year easier: your best person knows their effort counts, and the person who needs to improve knows exactly what to work on. The free review builder can help with the wording.
KEY TAKEAWAY
No example, no rating: write the specific example first, then choose the number.
TEST YOURSELF
You are about to rate every direct report the same. What should you do first?
PRACTISE IT
Try this lesson in the arcade
Quick retro games that start with this lesson’s situations. One thumb, one to three minutes, free.
