Small businesses (10–50 employees) often face a tough challenge: managing performance without dedicated HR support. Hiring a full-time HR professional might not be practical yet – but without a clear plan, it’s easy to end up with disengaged employees, inconsistent evaluations, and missed growth opportunities.
The Challenges
- Resource Constraints: Small agencies often lack the budget for sophisticated HR tools or dedicated personnel to manage performance systems.
- Time Limitations: Owners and leaders juggle multiple roles, leaving little time to focus on structured employee development.
- Inconsistent Processes and Focus: Without a standardized planning tool like EOS Traction, priorities shift quickly, and work tends to revolve around the loudest need rather than long-term goals.
Despite these challenges, performance management remains essential for growth. It’s the key to scaling effectively, empowering new managers, and ensuring every team member is aligned with leadership’s goals.
Simple Steps for an EOS-Based Process for Performance Management
The Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) offers a practical framework that small agencies can use to overcome these challenges. By focusing on structure, accountability, and alignment, EOS helps simplify the process of implementing effective performance management.
Step 1: Define Your Vision and Goals
- Use the Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO) to clarify your agency’s core values, long-term vision, and annual goals.
- Break these goals into measurable quarterly priorities called Rocks, ensuring everyone understands how their work contributes to the bigger picture.
Step 2: Create an Accountability Chart
- Develop an Accountability Chart to clearly define roles and responsibilities within your team.
- Assign ownership of key performance indicators (KPIs) tied to your goals.
Step 3: Use an Assessment Tool for Hiring and Reviews
- Helps eliminate bias and adds consistency and transparency.
- Helpful to define the right seat and the right person.
- EOS Traction recommends The Predictive Index or the Culture Index.
Step 4: Implement Weekly Scorecards
- Track progress using Scorecards of around 5 KPIs that are reviewed weekly. This provides a real-time pulse on performance and highlights areas needing attention.
- Use a simple green/yellow/red to indicate whether KPIs are on track.
Step 5: Quarterly People Analyzer
- As a leadership team, conduct a quarterly review of your staff by asking: Do they get it, want it, and have the capacity for the role they’re in?
- We also recommend adding your values to this review as well.
- You can use a simple red, yellow, or green for each category.
Struggling to Implement a System?
Celarity specializes in HR Consulting and Fractional support for small businesses. We are passionate about taking these challenges and turning people, processes, and HR policy into strategic assets.
Let’s connect if you’re looking for practical ways to align your people strategy with your business goals so you focus on growing your business.
