We have our quarterly EOS offsite coming up, but my leadership team members often show up unprepared, having barely glanced at their Rocks or updated their departmental metrics beforehand. How do we ensure everyone does the necessary pre-work so we do not waste valuable offsite time?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

A quarterly offsite is a major investment of time and money. When leaders show up unprepared, they drag down the velocity of the entire session, forcing you to spend the first half of the day doing basic admin work instead of high-level strategic alignment and IDS.

To fix this, establish a strict pre-work protocol at least two weeks before the session. This starts with clear ownership. Each leader must complete and submit their individual and departmental updates, including their final Rock progress and updated numbers, seventy-two hours before the offsite.

Utilize conative profiling tools like the Kolbe A Index to understand how your team prepares. Leaders with high Fact Finder scores need detailed data and historical context to feel comfortable making decisions. If they do not have the numbers in advance, they will shut down or stall the offsite with endless questions.

Make pre-work non-negotiable. If a leader fails to submit their pre-work on time, call it out during the weekly Level 10 Meeting preceding the offsite. Do not let it slide.

By formalizing this preparation phase, you ensure that when the team sits down at the offsite, they are already on the same page. This allows you to dive straight into solving complex issues and setting clear, actionable Rocks for the upcoming quarter.