As a leader, having impactful performance conversations with your employees and team is one of the most important responsibilities you have.

These conversations are essential for aligning everyone's goals, addressing any concerns, and setting clear expectations. However, it can be challenging to know how to approach these conversations and what questions to ask.

In this blog post, we explore how to prepare for performance conversations, what questions to ask, and how employees can prepare for the conversation. Performance conversations need to be consistent throughout the year, not an annual event. Ideally, these conversations are happening every 3-4 months.

Preparing as a Leader

Before having a performance conversation with your employees or team members, it's crucial to prepare by setting clear objectives, gathering information, and creating an plan for the conversation. The goal here is to be intentional which means it takes time, but it does not have to be hours of preparation. If you can think through a plan for each of these steps below, your conversations will have more meaning and accelerate performance forward.

1. Set clear objectives: Start by setting clear objectives for the conversation. What do you hope to achieve from the conversation? Is there a particular issue or concern you need to address? Having clear objectives will help you stay focused during the conversation and ensure that you achieve your desired outcomes.

2. Gather information: Collect information about the employee's performance. This could include data about their productivity, quality of work, or customer feedback. Make sure to gather both positive and negative feedback so that you can have a balanced conversation.

3. Create an agenda: Create an agenda for the conversation that outlines the topics you will cover. This will help you stay organized during the conversation and ensure that you cover all the important points.

Questions to Ask

When it comes to having impactful performance conversations, asking the right questions is key. Here are some specific questions you can ask during a performance conversation:

1. What are your goals for the next quarter/year? - This question is designed to help employees identify their performance goals and how they will measure success.

2. What are your biggest achievements in the last quarter/year? - This question is designed to help employees reflect on their past successes and build confidence.

3. What areas of your job do you feel confident in? What areas do you feel you could improve in? - This question is designed to help employees identify their strengths and weaknesses, which can be used to develop a plan for improvement.

4. What resources or support do you need to achieve your goals? - This question is designed to help employees identify any barriers to achieving their goals and what resources they need to overcome them.

5. What progress have you made towards your goals? What challenges have you faced? - This question is designed to help employees reflect on their progress and identify any challenges that need to be addressed.

6. What are your career aspirations? How can we support you in achieving them? - This question is designed to help employees think about their long-term career goals and how the organization can support them in achieving them.

7. What do you see as your biggest challenges in your job? - This question is designed to help employees identify any obstacles they are facing and how they can be overcome.

8. What feedback do you have for me or the organization? - This question is designed to create an open dialogue between you and your employee and give them an opportunity to provide feedback.

9. How can we work together to ensure your success? - This question is designed to create a sense of partnership between you and your employee and establish a plan for moving forward.

Employee Preparation

It's not just the leader who should prepare for performance conversations; employees should also come to the conversation prepared. Here are some ways employees can prepare:

1. Reflect on their performance: Employees should reflect on their performance over the past quarter/year and identify their successes and areas for improvement.

2. Identify their goals: Employees should identify their goals for the next quarter/year and how they will measure success.

3. Be open to feedback: Employees should be open to feedback and willing to have an open and honest conversation about their performance.

4. Come prepared with questions: Employees should come prepared with questions they have for their leader or the organization, such as seeking clarity on expectations, opportunities for growth, or how they can contribute to the team's success.

Employees want to know if they are on or off track to what you expect from them as their leader. When they have this clarity, their motivation and contribution increases and they save energy by not having to guess about how things are going. When you are intentional about these performance conversations, asking the right questions and encouraging employees to prepare as well, you and your team member will both appreciate the momentum towards key goals and the building trust between the two of you.

With these tips in mind, you can have impactful performance conversations that benefit both the organization and the employee.

Thinking, maybe, you still need a little guidance on how to best prepare for performance and real-time employee feedback?

Reach out here to schedule a FREE 30-minute consultation so we can further discuss your business goals and employee culture for the future.