A handbook isn’t a formality - it’s a living, strategic tool that protects your business and strengthens your culture. It sets expectations, reduces risk, and helps your team operate with confidence and clarity.

Performance management often gets a bad rap for being too rigid, too infrequent, or too disconnected from the day-to-day reality of work. But when done intentionally, it can be one of the most effective tools to drive clarity, accountability, and growth for both your organization and your people.

Here’s a step-by-step approach to creating a performance management system that truly supports growth.

When you’re building something from scratch, it’s tempting to focus only on product, sales, and funding, and push “People stuff” into the “later” pile. But waiting too long to bring in HR guidance (even just a few hours of consulting here and there) can cost you the very things that make your company special.