👔 Executive

Executive Talent Review Session Template

Board-level and senior leadership talent calibration. Assess leadership performance, succession readiness, and organizational capability at the VP and above level. Includes confidentiality protocol and leadership rubric.

⏱ 3–4 hour session 👥 CEO + CHRO + Board (optional) 🔒 Highly confidential

About This Template

Executive talent reviews are the highest-stakes, lowest-documented calibration sessions in most organizations. CEOs and CHROs discuss the leadership team informally throughout the year — but without a structured session, succession gaps go unaddressed and leadership performance concerns fester until they become crises.

This template gives the CEO and CHRO a structured framework for reviewing the senior leadership team: assessing performance against leadership expectations, calibrating succession readiness, and identifying development needs before they become liabilities.

Who Should Run ThisThe CEO facilitates (or the CHRO facilitates with CEO as primary input). For public companies or VC-backed companies, the Board may participate in the succession planning segment. Keep attendance limited to the smallest group necessary — executive talent discussions are the most sensitive in the organization.

Session Agenda

👔 Executive Talent Review — Session Agenda (3.5 Hours)

0:00–0:20

Leadership Standard Alignment

CEO and CHRO align on the leadership capabilities expected at each executive level. What does strong VP-level leadership look like vs. C-suite? Confirm the rubric before individual reviews.

0:20–1:30

Individual Executive Reviews

Review each direct report: business results, leadership behaviors, team health, and organizational impact. 10–15 minutes per executive. CHRO presents performance data; CEO adds context and final assessment.

1:30–2:15

Succession Readiness Assessment

For each key role: who is the designated successor? Is that person ready now, ready in 12 months, or still developing? What's the bench depth for each critical function?

2:15–2:45

Leadership Risk Review

Surface leadership flight risks, executives with retention risk, and roles with inadequate bench depth. Agree on retention actions for critical leaders and contingency plans for high-risk roles.

2:45–3:30

Development Plans and Actions

For each executive: confirm development priorities for the next 12 months. What specific experience, coaching, or stretch assignments would accelerate their growth? CEO commits to specific actions, not vague support.

Facilitator Notes (CHRO Guide)

Before the Session

Prepare a one-page profile for each executive: business results vs. plan, team health indicators (engagement, attrition, performance distribution), leadership 360 data if available, ONA data showing their influence and collaboration patterns.
Prepare a succession map: each executive role with current incumbent, primary successor, and bench depth assessment.
Brief the CEO 48 hours before on any sensitive cases: executives with retention risk, leadership concerns that need direct conversation, or succession gaps that need immediate attention.
Confirm confidentiality: who will see the output of this session? Typically CEO, CHRO, and Board (succession only). Not HR generalists, not the executives being reviewed.

Leadership Assessment Rubric (Executive Level)

Business results: Is the executive consistently delivering on their business commitments? Are they forecasting accurately and managing accountability within their org?
People leadership: Is their organization healthy? Low voluntary attrition, high engagement, strong talent pipeline below them.
Cross-functional leadership: Do other executives rely on and trust this person? Are they a positive force in the leadership team dynamic, or a friction source?
Strategic capability: Can they operate at the level the business requires next year? This is the succession readiness question — not just current performance.

CHRO Pre-Work Checklist

📋 Executive Talent Review — CHRO Prep (Complete Before Session)

One-page executive profiles prepared for each direct report (business results, team health, leadership indicators)
Succession map completed: each role with current incumbent + successor + readiness assessment
Retention risk flags identified for executives with market value significantly above comp
Leadership 360 or upward feedback data collected and summarized
Voluntary attrition data pulled by department — flag any executive with attrition significantly above company average
CEO pre-briefed on any sensitive cases 48 hours before the session
Session output format agreed: who sees what, how is it documented, where is it stored

Executive Talent Review FAQ

How often should an executive talent review happen?

Most organizations run executive talent reviews annually, timed with the annual performance cycle. High-growth companies or those going through leadership transitions benefit from semi-annual reviews. Quarterly is typically overkill — executive performance data moves slowly enough that quarterly reviews don't produce meaningfully different insights.

Should executives know their talent review is happening?

Executives should know that a talent review process exists and that they're part of it — that's a baseline transparency expectation. They shouldn't be surprised by the fact of a review. However, the specific discussions about succession readiness, development concerns, and retention risk are confidential to the CEO, CHRO, and Board. The output for the executive is their individual development plan — shared directly with them after the session.

How do you assess executive potential vs. current performance?

Current performance and future potential are separate dimensions. An executive can be a strong current performer but a weak future candidate for a larger role — or a moderate current performer with high potential in a different context. Use a simple 2x2: current performance (meets expectations / exceeds expectations) vs. potential (ready now / developing / uncertain). This produces four segments that drive different development and succession actions.

Executive talent intelligence — beyond the annual review

Confirm surfaces leadership performance signals, team health data, and ONA influence maps so your executive talent review is grounded in data — not impressions.

👀 See Confirm first →