The 9-box grid in Excel
A 9-box grid sorts your team by performance and potential so leaders can talk about talent the same way. Here's what the nine boxes mean, how to build the grid in Excel, and where to get a done-for-you template.
A 9-box grid is a 3×3 talent matrix that plots employees on two axes — performance and potential — to sort a team into nine categories, giving leaders a shared, visual way to discuss talent, plan succession, and decide where to invest in development.
Performance × potential, in nine cells
The 9-box grid — sometimes called the 9-box talent grid or the McKinsey 9-box matrix — is one of the most widely used tools in talent management. It maps every person on a team against two questions: how are they performing today, and how much potential do they have to grow?
Each axis is split into three bands — low, medium, and high — which produces a 3×3 grid of nine boxes. The horizontal axis usually carries performance and the vertical axis carries potential, though plenty of teams flip them. Where the two scores intersect is the box a person lands in, and that box implies a recommended action: coach, develop, retain, stretch, or promote.
The value isn't the grid itself — it's the conversation it forces. Instead of vague impressions, managers have to place each person deliberately and defend that placement against the same criteria everyone else used. That's why it shows up in talent reviews, calibration sessions, and succession planning at companies of every size.
What each box means
Read bottom-left to top-right: potential rises as you go up, performance rises as you go right. Names vary by organization — these are the common labels.
How to make a 9-box grid in Excel
The mechanics are simple — a scored table feeding a labeled scatter grid. The hard part is honest, consistent scoring.
Set up the data table
One row per employee, with columns for name, role, a performance score, and a potential score. Keep scores on a small scale — 1 to 3 maps cleanly onto the three bands.
Define the criteria
Write down what a 1, 2, and 3 mean for performance and for potential before you score anyone, and use the same definitions for the whole team so placements are comparable.
Plot on a scatter grid
Use an XY scatter chart with potential on one axis and performance on the other. Each employee becomes a point that falls into one of the nine cells automatically.
Label the quadrants
Overlay a 3×3 grid and label each cell with its talent category — Star, Core Player, Risk, and so on — so reviewers read meaning, not coordinates.
Color-code the boxes
Shade high-high cells green and low-low cells red to create an at-a-glance heat map. Restrained color does the work; don't paint all nine boxes different shades.
Add labels & a legend
Label each point with the employee name and add a short legend. A reviewer should understand the grid without anyone narrating it.
Or skip the build
The 9-Box Grid analysis template
A McKinsey-style 9-box talent grid, already built. Enter each employee's performance and potential scores and the grid, color-coding, and talent categories update automatically — ready for your next talent review or succession-planning session.
Build it yourself with the guide above, or get the done-for-you file and start in minutes.
What breaks a 9-box review
Related on Big Excel Energy
9-Box Grid template
The done-for-you McKinsey-style talent grid for Excel 2021 and Microsoft 365.
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What is a 9-box grid?
A 9-box grid is a 3×3 talent-management matrix that plots employees on two axes — performance and potential — to sort a team into nine categories. It gives leaders a shared, visual way to discuss talent, plan succession, and decide where to invest in development.
How do you make a 9-box grid in Excel?
Build a table of employees with a performance score and a potential score, plot them on an XY scatter chart with one score on each axis, overlay a 3×3 grid, label the nine quadrants, and color-code the cells from red to green. Each employee then falls into one of the nine boxes automatically. Or start from the ready-made template →
What do the 9 boxes mean?
The nine boxes range from low performance and low potential in the bottom-left to high performance and high potential in the top-right. Common labels are Risk, Average Performer, Solid Performer, Inconsistent Player, Core Player, High Performer, Potential Gem, High Potential, and Star. Each box implies a different action — coach, develop, retain, or promote.
Is there a 9-box grid Excel template?
Yes. Big Excel Energy sells a McKinsey-style 9-Box Grid analysis template for $39, built for Excel 2021 and Microsoft 365. You enter employee scores and the grid, color-coding, and talent categories update automatically. See the template →
What is the 9-box grid used for?
It's used for talent reviews, calibration sessions, and succession planning. By placing each person deliberately against shared criteria, it turns vague impressions into a structured conversation about who to develop, who to retain, and who is ready for more responsibility.