Understanding the 9 Box Grid: The Performance & Potential Matrix

Navigating HR can sometimes feel akin to standing on the deck of the Titanic, icebergs ominously looming on the horizon. On one flank you can see the business imperative to identify, nurture and retain top talent. On the other side you see line managers crumbling under increasing demands, resulting in inconsistent and underperforming, draining staff budgets, blocking promotion opportunities and depleting team morale. Navigating these waters successfully sits with you. Yet finding the time and resources to build talent insights to support the business can feel like a herculean effort of paper macheting a plethora of Excel spreadsheets exported from disjointed systems.

Before you start inflating your arm-floaties for an inevitable collision, consider harnessing the power of the 9 box grid for talent mapping. Renowned for its simplicity and efficacy in yielding actionable insights, this tool stands as a beacon for effectively identifying top talent and devising curated talent management strategies through training, coaching, mentoring, work experiences, and leadership development. Moreover, it offers the advantage of being skillfully supercharged by affordable technology solutions, so it’s an effortless, easily repeatable exercise. 

What is Talent Mapping?

Talent mapping is an HR-led process that evaluates employees based on two critical dimensions: current performance and future potential. Using both dimensions, staff are plotted onto a 3 x 3 grid, segmenting the workforce into nine categories. 

The talent mapping 9 box schema provides a structured approach to visualising internal talent and determining the support required to retain and develop each individual. Its simplicity in generating a clear talent overview makes the 9 box grid a favourite among HR professionals and managers alike.

The Composition of the 9 Box Grid

At its core, the 9 box Talent Map, shown in the image below, is divided into three levels of performance (low, moderate, high) and three levels of potential (low, moderate, high). Each segment offers insights into the current state and future potential of every employee, from ‘Low Performer with Low Potential’ (the red box marked Under Performer) to ‘High Performer with High Potential’ (the dark green box marked Future Leader).

9 Box Grid, Traditional 9 Box Grid

The variance of 9 Box Category Titles

The image above shows a typical 9 box grid for talent mapping. Central to its application are the titles assigned to each of the nine boxes, which categorise employees based on their current job performance and future growth potential. The specific titles used within the 9 box grid can vary significantly between companies, reflecting differences in organisational culture, values, strategic goals or fortitude in performance management approach. 

The choice of box titles is not merely administrative; when mapping the entire organisation, you may wish to have different titles for each box that reflect the level of the organisation being mapped, e.g. for Senior level roles, you may find the title ‘Future Leader’ may be changed to a title of ‘Stars’ when mapping entry-level roles.  

The following images include a few examples of alternative box titles:

9 Box Title Options, Shows the different 9 box titles for each category segment

In choosing box titles, it's crucial to consider how a manager, informed that they have a high number of 'Potential Gems' or 'Rough Diamonds,' might react. Such labels may not necessarily spur the desired surge in performance management required to move those individuals from being low performers simply because the box title sounds quite positive. Furthermore, the term ‘work horse’ feels derogatory; those individuals are your company's backbone, delivering high performance in their desired role. Ultimately, the choice of language plays a pivotal role in how feedback is received and acted upon. It needs to be a cultural fit for your organisation, so ensure you workshop a few options to find what feels the best fit. 

Moving Beyond Performance & Potential: The Z-Axis

While the conventional 9 box grid focuses on rating Performance (X-axis) and Potential (Y-axis) to map talent, introducing a third dimension—the Z-axis—can significantly enrich the model by offering more profound insights into employees' skills and behaviours. 

This additional third axis, often represented by the colour coding of individual names within each of the nine boxes, signifies the employees' rating against behavioural attributes essential for individuals to thrive within the organisation. These are the core competencies to succeed in your culture and embrace your values, the competencies required in their job-family and also in leadership roles. 

The Z-axis provides a nuanced understanding of how employees perform their roles, emphasising observable behaviours rather than merely assessing past results (Performance) or forecasting future ability to grow and perform at a higher level (Potential). This approach fosters a more holistic view of talent, highlighting how work is accomplished on a day-to-day basis. 

The data collection process for the Z-axis is performed through a simple cloud-based talent assessment, which takes, on average, 1-2 minutes to set up and just 5-7 minutes to collect staff and line manager ratings. 

Assessing behavioural competencies can be performed via line manager ratings or an enhanced dual approach: employee self-assessments and evaluations by line managers. To further stamp out bias, this can be extended further to allow for nominal rater input, much like a light-touch 360. The more data, the more accurate the picture of staff competencies.  

Determining the selection of specific behaviours to be assessed should be a collaborative decision made by leadership and HR, aiming to cover a broad spectrum of behavioural competencies. This collaborative approach ensures that the evaluated behaviours reflect the organisation's values and goals and are relevant to the company's diverse roles.

The mix of behavioural competencies can encompass the following:

• Core Competencies: Behaviors that resonate with the company's culture, commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), and overarching business values.

• Job Family Competencies: Specific behaviours that underline the skills needed for success in particular functional roles, both presently and in the future.

• Leadership Competencies: A set of behaviours that foster a psychologically safe and productive team environment, underpinning effective organisational leadership.

By integrating this behavioural lens, the 9 box grid transitions from a traditional talent mapping tool to a more comprehensive skills-based framework that facilitates richer insights, more meaningful discussions, and tailored development offerings. Furthermore, it aligns talent management strategies with the core values and objectives of the organisation, resulting in a workforce that is not only high-performing but also deeply integrated with the cultural fabric of the organisation.

The Enhanced 9 box Grid: Your Life Raft

Leveraging an affordable talent mapping tool that captures performance, potential, and behavioural competencies transforms talent management. The streamlined approach provides simplicity in data capture of ratings, readily accessible insights, dynamic grid filtering, and the capability of comparative data analysis to observe trends over time. The once laborious task of manual talent mapping and 9 box grid creations becomes seamless, freeing up previously expended energy for value-rich talent discussions and, more importantly, implementing development initiatives. 

From the above, it’s clear that in the vast ocean of talent management, you need more than a life raft big enough for both you and Jack; you require a sophisticated system that enables you to steer your organisational ship around those icebergs. It’s a business case that’s proven to pay for itself. 

Next Up: Implementing the 9 box Grid & Identifying Critical Roles

With the foundational knowledge of the 9 box grid established, our journey continues into the steps for successful 9 box Talent Mapping implementation. From setting up your initial grid to conducting calibration sessions and crafting development plans, we'll cover everything you need to transform this strategic framework into actionable insights that drive organisational growth and employee development.