9-Box Grid (Performance × Potential)
The 9-box plots people on two axes — current performance and future potential — producing nine segments that drive differentiated talent decisions. Originally a GE/McKinsey portfolio tool, it became the standard grammar for talent review meetings.
Explore
Use it — place your own people
Add people above, click a name to select it, then click a box to place them. Tip: agree on your definition of “potential” with the review team before placing anyone.
When to use
- Talent review / succession planning cycles with a leadership team
- Forcing a differentiated conversation instead of "everyone is doing fine"
- Spotting portfolio-level patterns (e.g., no future stars in a critical function)
When not to use
- As a performance rating communicated to employees — it is a calibration tool, not a scorecard
- When "potential" has no agreed definition; without one the vertical axis is astrology
- For small teams (< 8 people) where portfolio logic adds nothing over individual conversations
Worked example
A talent review of 24 senior managers places 11 in Core, 4 in Trusted Professional, 3 in Future Star — all three in the same product division. The insight is portfolio-level: two divisions have zero succession coverage. Actions: targeted stretch moves across divisions, and a definition-of-potential workshop because two markets rated potential as tenure.
Common pitfalls
- Undefined "potential" — agree observable indicators (learning agility, aspiration, capacity) before the meeting
- Box positions leaking to employees as labels; treat placements as confidential hypotheses, not verdicts
- Recency bias: last quarter’s result moving someone two boxes
- Doing the grid and skipping the actions — every placement needs a next step with an owner