Roundtable: What You Should Already Be Doing to Prepare for the End of Year Performance Review Cycle

Promotion packets. Calibration calls. Borderline cases.

December can feel like a sprint with no warm-up. If the cycle started tomorrow, would your team’s wins be documented? Would you know how to defend every rating in the room?

This roundtable is where engineering leaders swap playbooks before the crunch hits.

What we’ll tackle:

1. October prep checkpoints: Docs, feedback, and early signals to avoid scramble-mode
2. Fair calibrations: Tactics to check bias and stop the loudest voices from dominating
3. Borderline cases: Scripts for honest conversations that still motivate
4. Promo readiness: Setting clear bars so no one’s surprised—or stalled
5. Post-cycle follow-through: Turn review data into real growth plans

Meet Your Host

Nono Guimbi leads teams at Airbnb and coaches engineering leaders across the industry. With 15+ years of experience, she’s guided dozens of managers through the chaos of reviews, calibrations, and career convos. Expect tested frameworks, not theory.

Walk into December calm, prepared, and a step ahead.