Use cases
Where Groundwork earns its place.
The shape is the same every time. Each person gives their own account, independently. Groundwork shows where they match, where they differ, and what to do about it. Here is what that looks like across the moments it helps most.
Starting something
A new hire and their manager each describe what success looks like in the first ninety days, independently. Groundwork shows where the two pictures match and where they quietly differ, before month three turns a small gap into a hard review conversation.
Everyone joining a new project sets out scope, ownership, and what done looks like, on their own. Groundwork surfaces the assumptions that do not line up, so the project starts on agreed ground rather than discovering the mismatch at delivery.
A new board member and the team each set out what the role is for and what good looks like. Groundwork shows where expectations diverge, so the relationship is defined before it starts costing more than it returns.
Each founder records their own account of roles, contribution, and what success means. Groundwork shows where they agree and where they differ, so equity and authority rest on something written, not on memory.
Both sides of a contract describe what was delivered against what was expected, independently. Groundwork builds the record the renewal or exit decision rests on, rather than leaving it to relationship management.
Before a pivot, each person sets out the goals, responsibilities, and risks as they see them. Groundwork surfaces where the new direction is understood differently, so the team commits to the same plan.
Both accounts on record before the process starts - the concern, the support available, and what success looks like. Groundwork gives the process a fair foundation without waiting until things have already gone wrong.
Not to set goals - to check whether everyone is actually aligned on the ones you have. Each person says what they understood. Groundwork shows where the plan means different things to different people before the work begins.
A quick independent read from each person. What is moving, what is stuck, and what has changed. No meeting required. Groundwork builds the picture from everyone's account and shows you where the ground has shifted.
Recognition
The person and their manager each account for what was contributed over the period, independently. Groundwork builds the case from a record made over time, not assembled the night before the conversation.
Both sides describe the scope and impact of the role as it actually ran. Groundwork shows where the accounts agree, so the case is built from the record rather than from who argues best in the moment.
Each party documents contribution and expectation before the negotiation. Groundwork puts both accounts side by side, so the conversation starts from a shared picture instead of two competing memories.
When performance expectations need to be on record
Before a PIP is issued, the manager and the person each set out what good performance looks like and where the gaps are, independently. Groundwork shows where expectations match and where they don't, so the conversation starts from a shared picture rather than a surprise. The record is there from the beginning, not assembled after things have already gone wrong.
When you need everyone seeing the same thing
Each person checks in on where the team is and what matters most, independently. Groundwork shows where people are pulling in different directions without realising it, so the team can reset to one outcome.
Teams, partners, funders, and implementers each give their own account, with no one seeing the others. Groundwork builds one shared picture across all of them, so a programme with many parties moves on the same facts.
Everyone records what was agreed, what was delivered, and what should happen next. Groundwork shows where those accounts line up and where they do not, so the review produces decisions rather than debate.