HRM304 · Skill 2 · Panellist · Scenario 1
Panel — LumiTech Shenzhen pitches
You are a panel of four. You will listen to three pitches in a row on the same broken system. You are not assessors. Your job is to ask the question that would push each design to improve.
The scenario you're hearing about
LumiTech Shenzhen — 320-person Chinese subsidiary of a US SaaS firm. Six months into running the parent's annual review template, translated unchanged from San Francisco.
The template: seven 1–5 rated dimensions; a half-day calibration meeting where line managers defend ratings to peers (no employee in the room); a 30-minute review meeting; skip-level sign-off.
The signals: ratings flat in one band; voluntary exits rising among the people the system was meant to identify and retain; managers joining calibration by video or skipping; skip-level signing off everything without revision.
The HR director has been asked to diagnose and fix before the next cycle.
How your panel works during prep (13 min)
Work as a panel, not as four individuals.
- First 4 min — alone. Read the scenario. Each panellist writes down two sharp questions you would ask any pitch on this scenario.
- Next 6 min — together. Put all eight questions on the table. Pick the four sharpest — one for pitch 1, pitch 2, pitch 3 (and pitch 4 in Group A). Assign one to each panellist. Hold a backup question each in case yours is asked first.
- Last 3 min. The synthesis lead drafts the comparison rubric (below).
Question slots during the pitches
- Panellist 1 asks the question after pitch 1.
- Panellist 2 asks after pitch 2.
- Panellist 3 asks after pitch 3 (panellist 4 after pitch 4 in Group A).
- Synthesis lead drafts the rubric during prep, then after all pitches runs a 3-min discussion of "what's missing from all three?" Not "what would I have done" — that's the lecturer's job.
What to listen for
- Is the proposed change architectural — anonymity, timing, channel, criteria, who is in the room — or is it the same system with friendlier wording on top?
- Who pays the cost? If nobody pays, the change is only for show.
- Does the source actually fit the proposed mechanism, or is it being mentioned to sound credible?
- What is the failure mode of the proposed change? Every redesign has one.
Scenario-specific listen-for. Listen for whether the redesign deals with the calibration meeting — the place where line managers negotiate ratings between themselves — or quietly leaves it untouched. Most groups will leave it.
Sample sharp questions
Use, adapt, or write your own. Sharpest questions are short, specific, and name the mechanism.
- "You changed the form. What stops managers from inflating ratings in the new form the way they did in the old one?"
- "You shortened the calibration meeting. The calibration meeting is where line managers negotiate ratings between themselves. Where does that negotiation go now?"
- "You made the review developmental. The line manager is the one whose bonus depends on the rating. How do you stop 'developmental' from becoming a polite word for the same old judgement?"
- "Who in your design loses something? If no one loses anything, what is actually changing?"
Synthesis lead — comparison rubric
Use during the 3-min synthesis. Start with: "What I think is missing from all three pitches is …" Don't try to be a fourth pitch.
| | Pitch 1 | Pitch 2 | Pitch 3 (4) |
|---|
| What does the change actually move? | | | |
| Who pays the cost? | | | |
| What is its failure mode? | | | |