Here’s a simple truth to reflect on: A new quarter won’t fix old assumptions.
Over the next few days, leadership teams everywhere will gather to talk about Q4. There will be plenty of discussion about numbers, priorities, forecasts and responsibilities. By the time the meeting ends, most people will probably feel like everyone is on the same page.
That may be true when it comes to the goals. The trouble is, agreement about where you are going does not always mean agreement about how you will get there.
Most teams understand what needs to get done and why it matters. The challenges usually begin when people bring different expectations to communication, decision making, ownership and accountability.
Those expectations often remain unspoken until the pressure is on and something breaks down. Maybe you can relate? I absolutely can, which is why I’m so passionate about this work!
Without that level of conversation, we’ll end up working towards agreed upon goals with Performance Assumptions.
Agreement is not alignment
I saw this happen in motorsports.
Before a race, the driver, crew chief, engineers, spotter and pit crew all knew the goal. Everyone wanted to run well and give the team a chance to win.
But wanting the same outcome did not guarantee aligned execution.
The team still had to define how information would be communicated, who would make the final call and how quickly people needed to respond. We also needed to know what would happen when the original plan no longer matched the conditions on the track.
Those conversations mattered because pressure is a terrible time to discover that everyone has a different definition of urgency, quality, ownership or accountability.
Business teams are no different.
You can set a clear Q4 target and still struggle because one leader believes “keep me informed” means a weekly update, while another expects a call within the hour.
One person thinks collaboration means gathering input, while someone else thinks it means reaching consensus.
Neither person is necessarily wrong. They are simply operating from different assumptions.
Alignment lives in behavior
Performance Alignment begins when leaders stop assuming that capable people will naturally work well together.
Smart people can interpret the same expectation in very different ways. That is why your next planning conversation needs to go beyond goals, timelines and deliverables.
Your team also needs to agree on the behaviors that will support the work.
This is where my E.P.I.C. framework becomes practical.
Excellence: What will exceptional execution look like during Q4?
Do not settle for “do great work.” Define what quality, responsiveness and follow-through actually mean.
Presence: How will we show up for one another?
Talk about meetings, difficult conversations, distractions and how the team will respond when pressure builds.
Intentionality: Where will we focus our time and energy?
Clarify what deserves attention, what can wait and what the team needs to stop doing.
Curiosity: What assumptions should we challenge?
Invite people to question the plan, surface concerns and offer better ideas without being labeled negative or resistant.
These questions turn broad expectations into shared behaviors. That is the shift from Performance Assumptions to Performance Alignment.
Before you ask your team to move faster, make sure everyone has agreed on how you will move together.
What expectation does your team need to clarify before Q4 begins?
Share your thoughts below. I’d like to hear what is showing up for your team.