A while back I worked on an Employee Handbook for a company who was daring enough, and confident in their people, to ditch the old and invent new ways or doing.
This was an excerpt:
We don’t have annual performance reviews. We don’t do quarterly evaluations. There are no color-coded grids or numbered boxes telling you how “aligned” you are with a job that’s already outgrown its own description.
What we do, do, is pay attention. Always. In all ways.
Because here, being a People Manager is not a bullet on your job description. It is the job. Not a side quest. Not a mentorship hobby tacked onto a strategic roadmap. It is your core function. Your soul responsibility.
And with that responsibility comes one very real, very clear expectation: know your people. Deeply. Know who is excelling—not just by metrics, but by momentum. Know who’s raising the bar, and who’s ducking under it. Know who needs oxygen, who needs a challenge, and who needs a damn push. And don’t wait for HR to send you a reminder. Don’t wait for a survey to tell you someone’s disengaged.
Because if you’re doing your job, you already know.
Our People Managers don’t delegate development to systems. They don’t outsource coaching to HR. They don’t wait until a problem becomes a performance issue. They step in early. Often. With clarity and care. They are coaches, yes. But they are also mirrors. Accountability partners. Growth activators.
They model what they expect. They don’t just tell you to take feedback well—they show you how it’s done. They don’t demand accountability and then ghost when it gets uncomfortable. They show up. Especially when it’s hard. They have the conversation before it’s escalated. They offer clarity before confusion calcifies into conflict.
They don’t manage people like projects.
They lead people like futures.
It’s not about perfection. It’s about presence.
Because in a system like ours, where performance reviews aren’t a ritual but a daily pulse, where “managing” isn’t about keeping peace but creating progress—there’s no place to hide. And that’s the point.
We don’t need quarterly ratings to tell us who’s thriving and who’s coasting.
We already know.
Because great People Managers don’t fill out forms to prove they’re leading.
They prove it in how their team performs. How their team stays. How their team grows.
Or doesn’t.
And if they can’t tell the difference?
They shouldn’t be leading anyone.