There’s something about this time of year that always feels like a reset. The first chill starts showing up in the air. Unless you live in Texas, where we’re still sweating in triple digits and waiting for fake fall to make its first appearance, but at least football is back.

I got to spend Sunday at the Texans game, cheering like crazy and, like every good football fan, becoming the football equivalent of a backseat driver on the walk to the car after a loss.

Why did they call that play? How did nobody see that coming? Clearly, we think we could coach it better from the stands. And that got me thinking about Q4.

There’s a game plan, pressure, different teams have to work together, and almost always a surprise nobody planned for. And just like the Super Bowl, sometimes the halftime show gets as much attention as the game itself.

Q4 is full of things competing for your attention, while you’re still trying to win the game.

As business leaders, we don’t get to critique the decisions from the stands; we have to make them.

Q4 is the Super Bowl of HR.

Everything seems to happen at once, everyone has an opinion, and something unexpected will absolutely show up.

With 100 days left in 2026, focus on three things:

RUN the business you have today. CLOSE 2026 cleanly. BUILD the people infrastructure your business needs to win in 2027.

Don’t confuse activity with strategy. Pick the priorities that will actually move the business forward.

Budgets. Open enrollment. Performance conversations. Compensation decisions. PTO. Year-end payroll. Headcount planning. 2027 strategy.

And somewhere in there, something unexpected will happen.

A key employee resigns. A renewal comes in higher than expected. A performance issue finally has to be addressed. The growth plan changes. An acquisition closes.

Welcome to Q4.

The companies that handle it well aren't the ones with the prettiest playbook. They're the ones that know what matters, who owns what, and how to adjust when the game changes.

RUN: You still have a business to run. People need to perform. Customers need to be served. Goals need to be hit.

Ask: What could prevent us from finishing 2026 strong?

Capacity? Manager accountability? A critical vacancy? The performance issue everyone already knows about? Deal with the friction now.

CLOSE: January is a terrible time to discover something didn't get done in December.

Performance conversations. Bonuses. Compensation decisions. PTO balances. Benefits elections. W-2 preparation. Retirement plan data. Compliance updates.

Ask: What needs to be reviewed, reconciled, communicated, or decided before December 31?

And remember, year-end isn't just HR's responsibility. Finance, payroll, managers, and leadership all own pieces of it.

BUILD: This is the big one.

Don't build the 2027 people plan separately from the 2027 business plan.

If the company wants to grow revenue, improve margin, enter a new market, integrate an acquisition, or launch something new, what does that require from your people?

Headcount? Different organizational structure? Leadership development? Succession planning? Compensation changes? New capabilities?

Start with the business plan. Then build the people strategy required to execute it. And as with any good plan, there can’t be 17 HR initiatives. If everything is a priority, nothing is. Pick three.

What are the three people priorities that could have the biggest impact on the business next year? Focus there.

In what will feel like five minutes, it will be Thanksgiving. Then someone will say, "Let's circle back after the holidays." And congratulations, you've just made a 2026 problem a 2027 problem. So get the leadership team together and ask:

RUN: What could prevent us from finishing strong?

CLOSE: What must be resolved before December 31?

BUILD: What does the business need from its people to win in 2027?

Q4 will throw something at you that wasn't in the playbook. You don't have to predict every surprise.

You need enough clarity that when the play changes, your team knows what to do next.

📖 Reading: Shoe Dog by Phil Knight. A reminder of how much of building something requires moving forward before you have proof it’s going to work.

🎧 Listening: BigDeal Podcast with guest Geoff Woods. I’ve been thinking a lot about where AI creates real leverage, not just more noise. This one was worth the listen.

😲 What surprised me this week: How easy it is to know the revenue number you’re chasing and still not be able to name the three things that actually need to happen to get there,

🙌 What I’m saying “yes” to: An extra 18 holes before the schedule gets tight. Q4 will get busy soon enough.

Let’s talk through what’s creating friction in your business and what actually needs your attention.