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Calibration Chaos
Last week, we broke LinkedIn by launching a newsletter that’s not really a newsletter, but more of a Netflix binge-watch. Behind HR Lines is a dramatized composite of the messy, political, emotionally loaded reality of running the People function - narrated from the lens of Kelly Cross, Chief People Officer, LumaCore Labs.
Previously on S1E1 of Behind HR Lines:
Daniel Mercury, CEO, LumaCore Labs, blindsided everyone with an RTO email. Kelly spent 12 hours containing the chaos and bought herself some breathing room.
At 9:57 p.m., a Slack notification stopped her in her tracks. “If we are going back to the office next week, should we fast track calibrations while we are at it? I want to promote most of my team.” - Jessica Levin, CRO, and Daniel’s favorite.
Kelly sent out an email shortly after that, which read, “All calibration inputs will require supporting data and manager rationales. Gut feel is not evidence.”
Read Episode 1: The Policy That Appeared Overnight
The Situation
Monday. The first week of hybrid return. The calendar said “Calibration Roundtable.” The vibe said “Courtroom without evidence.”
Jessica sat two chairs away, perfectly composed. Daniel was upstairs, patched in from his glass office. Lena and Samir joined remote. Parker’s tile stayed black.
On the main screen, the calibration dashboard glowed. Rows, ratings, and colors. Almost half the company rated Exceeds Expectations.
Daniel began. “Let’s make this quick. We know who performs.”
Kelly kept her eyes on the data. “We also know forty-eight percent of the company can’t all be exceptional. Our target is fifteen.”
Lena jumped in. “And if we hold that distribution, we stay within bonus budget. Otherwise, we overspend by 1.2 million.”
Jessica leaned forward. “Sales earned the top spots. We hit 117 percent of target. Don’t flatten the curve because Engineering underdelivered.”
Parker’s voice came through the speaker, steady but edged. “We missed because Sales oversold.”
Jessica smiled without humor. “You’re welcome.”
Kelly straightened. “Let’s calibrate performance, not politics. Everyone gets rated against outcomes and competencies, not each other’s narratives.”
The Spiral
They started with Sales. Jessica’s managers had rated almost her entire org as “Exceeds.” Ridiculous. “Show me the goal alignment,” Kelly said.
Jessica scrolled. “Topline achieved, renewals solid.”
“Renewals were off-plan in Q1,” Kelly replied. “You recovered in Q3. So ‘Exceeds’ means consistent overperformance, not heroic recovery. Let’s adjust a few.”
Jessica exhaled. “So we’re punishing comebacks now?”
“No,” Kelly said evenly. “We’re defining performance as sustained, not seasonal.”
Across departments, the patterns repeated. Managers defending stars without proof, avoiding lows without history. Lena scanned the distribution. “No Below Expectations in any function? Are you afraid of PIPs?”
Daniel chimed in. “Why do we need PIPs? Underperformers should be fired.”
“Because if someone’s fired without prior documentation, you’ll be explaining it to Legal in a different kind of meeting,” Samir mentioned dryly.
Kelly’s tone cut clean through. “If it’s not in writing, it didn’t happen. PIPs without prior feedback are lawsuits with names attached.”
The Pivot
Kelly connected her laptop to the projector. A new tab opened: Justification Matrix.
“Every ‘Exceeds’ ties to a defined metric or documented competency,” she said. “Every ‘PIP Suggestion’ requires evidence of prior documentation. No exceptions.”
Parker folded his arms. “We’re overcomplicating a human process.”
Kelly didn’t look up. “No. We’re protecting a human process from bad data.”
Daniel frowned. “This is taking too long.”
She didn’t blink. “Speed is how bias hides. Let’s be deliberate - these are people’s lives we are talking about.”
A quiet pause followed, half the room processing, half defending. But gradually, people did fall in line.
The Pattern
Calibration isn’t about catching people out. It’s about keeping the system honest.
Three questions guide the table:
1. Is there data-backed evidence?
2. Does it align to defined goals or competencies?
3. Has prior feedback been given throughout the year?
If any answer is no, the decision pauses.
The Fallout
By 2:30 p.m., the ratings were redistributed with proper evidence. Lena looked up from her laptop. “The budget's clean now and legally defensible.”
Jessica smirked. “And if next Calibrations, Sales still comes out on top?”
Kelly smiled back. “Then you’ll have the receipts ready before I ask.”
The Pattern Behind the Episode
Fairness isn’t just philosophy - you need strong guardrails for fairness to show up in everyday decisions. Calibration done right surfaces truth, not consensus.
And PIPs without feedback aren’t accountability, they’re negligence.
Kelly’s Corner
Kelly Recommends: This isn't an ad or a sponsorship. We ask HR leaders in our network if they might want to recommend any platform they can personally vouch for.
They mentioned that running calibration on spreadsheets is an operational nightmare.
Dozens of files, version confusion, no live visibility, and with half the data missing, the loudest voice in the room wins.
Klaar’s Calibration Module changes that. It not only automates the operational chaos but uses AI to surface the right data in real time, ensuring that decisions are driven by evidence, not volume. Because when the data speaks, bias shuts up.
Dear Kelly: You’ve vented to a friend. You’ve laughed with your team.
Now tell Kelly. Dear Kelly is collecting the real-world HR stories that deserve to be told - the messy, painfully familiar ones. Drop yours here. Your story might even inspire the next edition.
In S1E3 (the next one),
Just When Things Were Settling Down…
It took another 10 days for all the Calibration sessions to wrap up. Meanwhile, managers had already started sharing performance feedback with their direct reports. Jessica’s trusted HRBP, Maya’s inbox pinged.
Subject: Clear bias at play
From: tom@lumacorelabs.com
Body:
Hi Maya,
My rating dropped after I pushed back against Jessica’s biased judgments during Sales’ internal Calibrations sessions. I’ve attached all our 1:1s and my overall goal achievement figures. I need this to be rectified.
— Tom
Maya logged the message in the reporting system and then forwarded it to Kelly with a short note - This one’s going to need you.
Kelly stared at the screen for a long second. Of course.
The week after calibration always bled into something else.
She opened a new doc.
Title: Investigation. Day 1.
Find out next week, how Kelly handles a majorly sensitive investigation that can have massive ramifications on the entire organization.
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