Your browser is unsupported

We recommend using the latest version of IE11, Edge, Chrome, Firefox or Safari.

Development Conversations

Use development conversations to identify professional development opportunities, investigate barriers to an employee’s ability to meet job performance goals and expectations, and identify performance improvement opportunities.

Supervisor Role in Providing Development Heading link

Developing others is a skill that gives supervisors the ability to promote continuous improvement of the members of their organizational group, leading team members to increase innovation, productivity, and effectiveness. These conversations can take place at any time during the year; when an employee demonstrates readiness for new challenges, opportunities or responsibilities or when an employee begins to demonstrate difficulties in performing job duties.

Ideally, each of these conversations is held with an employee at least once during the year.

Most conversations can be completed in less than fifteen minutes. Tools and conversation guides help you quickly prepare for, conduct, follow up, and document various types of development conversations. Each conversation guide includes tips for supervisors, conversation objectives, discussion questions, development activities, and documentation form.

Conversation Guides Heading link

Use the Engagement and Motivation conversation guide to determine what motivates performance for your employee, how they appreciate the meaningfulness of their work, and how they feel about job satisfaction and morale.

Use the Continuous Improvement conversation guide to explore performance gaps and expected standards of performance while producing insights into team as well as individual effectiveness.

The Learning and Development conversation guide helps to identify learning and professional development resource that build on employee strengths and lift performance in critical areas. You can also use this conversation to learn about and support employees’ career goals.

The Communication and Collaboration conversation guide helps you gain an understanding of the effectiveness of communication within your department and the clarity of information shared. It also explores opportunities to strengthen teamwork and assess collaborations within your team.

Employee Performance Management Forms

Development Activities Heading link

Each development activity listed in the Development Activities Kit includes a description, suggested applications, tips for supervisors, and information to share with the employee to help ensure a successful learning experience.

Development activities include:

  • Coaching Assignment
  • Competency Development
  • Cross-Training
  • Job Journaling
  • Job Responsibilities
  • Job Shadowing
  • Meeting Participation
  • Mentoring
  • Setting Goals
  • Team Assignments
  • Technical Training