Clarity Before Consequence: The Leadership Work That Must Precede Hiring Season

Do the work before the Hard Conversation. Define theRole. Define the Values.

There is a predictable rhythm in schools.

Spring brings contracts, renewals, non-renewals, leadership shifts, restructuring, and the quiet but heavy conversations about fit, effectiveness, and future direction.

And every year I watch leaders brace themselves for “the hard conversation.”

But here is what I have learned.

The hard conversation is rarely hard because of the moment itself. It is hard because of what was not made clear before it.

If you are heading into hiring and firing season, the most important work you can do is not drafting scripts for difficult meetings. It is defining roles and clarifying values before the next critical conversation ever happens.

Role Clarity Is a Gift, Not a Weapon

Too many evaluation conversations are vague. Leaders say things like:

“You just are not quite where we need you to be.”
“You’re not aligning with expectations.”
“We need stronger performance.”

But what does that actually mean?

If the role is not clearly defined in writing, with specific outcomes tied to student impact, professional behaviors, collaboration expectations, and communication standards, then conversations drift into personal territory. They feel subjective. They feel emotional. They feel unfair.

Role clarity protects everyone.

A strong role definition answers:

• What outcomes must this position produce for staff and/or students?
• What are the clear responsibilities of this position?
• What does excellence look like in observable terms?
• What behaviors are required to make this team successful?
• What skills are non-negotiable versus coachable?

When a role is clear, accountability is not personal. It is professional. You are not critiquing identity. You are evaluating performance against a defined set of expectations.

That changes everything.

Values Decide Who Stays and Who Thrives

Role clarity without values clarity creates compliance.

Values clarity without role clarity creates chaos.

You need both.

Many schools say they value collaboration, accountability, excellence, innovation, compassion. Those words are easy to print on a wall.

The real question is this:

• What behaviors do we reward?
• What behaviors do we tolerate?
• What behaviors will cause someone to lose their position here?

If your organization says it values accountability but excuses chronic lateness, missed deadlines, and resistance to feedback, then your values are decorative, not operational.

Defined values become operational when they are written in behavioral language. Not abstract ideals, but daily expectations.

For example:

• Accountability means meeting deadlines without reminders and owning mistakes without deflection.
• Collaboration means contributing productively in meetings and supporting colleagues without undermining them.
• Professionalism means speaking about students, families, and colleagues with integrity even in private.

When values are defined in this way, hiring becomes easier because you know what you are selecting for. Non-renewals become clearer because you can identify where alignment is missing.

Values are not about personality fit. They are about mission alignment.

Undefined Expectations Breed Resentment

Nothing corrodes a team faster than perceived inconsistency.

When one teacher is held to a standard that another is allowed to ignore, resentment builds. When expectations shift without being stated, trust erodes.

Clarity is kind. Ambiguity is not.

Every critical conversation should be grounded in:

• A written role definition.
• Clearly communicated values.
• Prior coaching conversations tied to both.

If those do not exist, you are not having a performance conversation. You are having a reaction.

Leadership cannot be reactive and effective at the same time.

Define Before You Decide

Before you enter this season of evaluation and decisions, ask yourself:

• Are our role descriptions outcome-driven or task-driven?
• Have we explicitly defined what excellence looks like?
• Can every staff member articulate our core values in behavioral terms?
• Have we aligned coaching conversations to those definitions?

If the answer is no, then this is where your work begins.

Not in the termination meeting.

Not in the hiring fair.

Not in the contract draft.

Start with clarity.

Courage Is Built on Structure

We tend to believe difficult conversations require extraordinary courage. They do.

But courage without structure feels reckless. Courageanchored in clarity feels steady.

When a leader can say:

“These were the expectations of the role.”
“These are the values we agreed to operate by.”
“These are the documented moments when we coached toward improvement.”

That is not harsh. That is honorable.

It protects the student and staff experience. It protects the culture. It protects the integrity of the organization.

Most importantly, it protects your own leadership.

Because leadership is not about being liked in hiring season. It is about being clear, consistent, and aligned with the mission you claim to serve.

If you define the role and define the values before the next critical conversation, you will find that those conversations feel different.

Still serious.

Still weighty.

But grounded in fairness and clarity rather than emotion and ambiguity.

And that is how real leadership matures.