Understanding the Phases of Performance

If your organization has Phase of Performance enabled, this article will explain each Phase and how to utilize in Inspire.

When creating OKRs and associated tasks, you can evaluate your Phase of Performance. The Phases of Performance describe the current Ability and Energy toward accomplishing the Objective. By identifying the Phase of Performance, you can enhance communication and accelerate progress.

For Objectives, you can use the Launch Assessment link to classify your Phase of Performance. 

This article contains the following sections:

• Phases of Performance Overview
• The Five Phases of Performance

Phases of Performance Overview

There are natural stages you and your team navigate through when pursuing an Objective. Assessing the Phase of Performance helps identify and communicate any current needs to advance through the series of Phases toward completing the Objective.

The five Phases of Performance are:

• Curious
• Confronting
• Cautious
• Achieving
• Discerning

Each phase is composed of a combination of Ability and Energy toward pursuing an Objective. To determine the Phase of Performance, you will need to define Ability and Energy levels for the specific Objective.

Addressing Ability and Energy

The Phases of Performance are distinguished by differing levels of Ability and Energy.

Ability represents the resources and skills required to accomplish a specific Objective. Ability is low when you do not possess the knowledge, procedures, or strategies necessary for completing the Objective. While you might already possess skills related to accomplishing the Objective, Ability will still start off low when beginning a new Objective or if the OKR's requirements change. Your Ability level should increase as you advance through each Phase.

Energy is determined by your enthusiasm, interest, or motivation toward the Objective. When you first begin a new OKR, your Energy is most likely high, unless you do not find the Objective motivating. As you progress on your Objective, your Energy will naturally fluctuate.

The Five Phases of Performance

This section defines the five Phases of Performance. If you are creating an Objective, you can use the Launch Assessment Link. 

Curious

The Curious Phase of Performance is a common beginning point for new Objectives. Since the Objective is new, Ability is low and Energy is high because an individual does not yet contain the skills required to complete the Objective, but they are motivated to obtain the desired outcomes.

Confronting

The Confronting Phase of Performance naturally follows the Curious Phase as challenges or complications arise. The Confronting phase could occur, for example, when encountering obstacles that require time and a higher level of skill to overcome. In the Confronting phase, an individual’s Ability is low-to-some, but any prior skills or experience accomplishing similar Objectives could accelerate progress. Energy is low during this Phase because of the challenges that develop.

It is important to remember that the Confronting Phase is a key part of the process and provides a time to solve critical problems and opportunities to learn and grow. While Ability and Energy is low, this Phase does not equate to reduced performance. The Confronting Phase is a crucial stage for progressing on the goal.

Cautious

Typically following the Confronting Phase of Performance is the Cautious Phase. In the Cautious phase, the knowledge and skills necessary for accomplishing the Objective increased, but a variety of circumstances might affect motivation.

In the Cautious phase, an individual’s Ability is moderate-to-high, but Energy fluctuates.

Achieving

In the Achieving Phase of Performance, an individual is confident in their skills and knowledge and are motivated to complete the goal. The Achieving phase supplies an opportunity to inspire others. In the Achieving phase both Energy and Ability are high.

Discerning

The Discerning Phase of Performance is a unique phase that might occur while pursuing an Objective. In the Discerning Phase an individual cultivated the skills and knowledge needed to accomplish the Objective, but they may no longer receive opportunities to grow and learn or contain significant motivation to complete the Objective. Additionally, when maintaining high-levels of both Energy and Ability for an extended time, an individual might become restless and shift from the Achieving Phase to the Discerning Phase. In the Discerning Phase, Ability is high, but Energy is low.

The Discerning Phase could be used as an opportunity to challenge assumptions about the Objective, create new Objectives, and discuss the motivation for continuing the current Objective.

In Inspire you can set your Phase of Performance at the Objective Level and the Task Level. 

Objective Level: 

Enter an Objective Title, Description, Date, Key Results. 

Depending on the type of Licenses your Organization has enabled -you will see at the bottom of your Objective:

• SMART
• Phase of Performance
• Motivation Assessment
• Objective Builder (Franklin Covey)

At the task level - you can choose where your Phase of Performance Level is: 

Step 1: Enter a Task

Step 2: Edit the task to choose the Phase of Performance Level

If you have any questions about Phase of Performance, please reach out to support@inspiresoftware.com.