top grading

Definition

A rigorous hiring methodology involving extensive interviews to ensure only 'A players' are hired, popularized by Bradford Smart. It's exhausting for everyone involved and assumes you can actually define an 'A player.'

Example Usage

Our top grading process includes twelve interviews and a full-day case study—we've hired three people this year and lost fifty to competitors with saner processes.

Origin

Developed by Bradford Smart in the 1990s, detailed in his book 'Topgrading' (1999)

Fun Fact

Top grading's chronological interview can last 3-4 hours, covering a candidate's entire career history, which some consider thorough and others consider psychological warfare.

Source: Hiring methodology and talent assessment systems

Related Terms

Intermediate

time-to-fill

The number of days between posting a job opening and a candidate accepting the offer. The metric that reveals how desperately understaffed you've been while HR 'sources quality candidates.'

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

internal mobility

The movement of employees between roles, departments, or locations within the same organization. Companies love promoting it as a benefit while simultaneously blocking transfers to keep you trapped in your current role.

👥 Human Resources

Advanced

employee value proposition

The unique set of benefits and experiences an employer offers in return for the skills and experience an employee brings. It's a marketing pitch, but for jobs instead of products.

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

talent pipeline

A pool of qualified candidates cultivated over time for future hiring needs, like a farm system for employees. Requires significantly more patience than posting on Indeed when you're desperate.

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

EAP

Employee Assistance Program—a confidential service offering counseling, legal advice, and wellness resources, theoretically showing the company cares about your mental health while spending minimal money on actual support. The corporate equivalent of thoughts and prayers.

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

calibration session

A meeting where managers compare employee ratings to ensure consistency and fairness, theoretically. In practice, it's where your fate is decided by people arguing over forced distribution curves.

👥 Human Resources

Translate This Term

See “top grading” in Corporate Speak, Gen-Z Slang, Pirate Speak, and more.

Try the Translator

Share This Term

Post on X Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn

Discover a Term

Intermediate

pass

The sacred counter where completed dishes await final inspection before servers whisk them to awaiting diners. This is w...