The goal of performance conversations

The direct goal of a performance meeting is simple: to support or improve performance. I've seen many cases where the only time a manager would talk about performance is when something was going wrong. I've also seen many situations when the only time a manager would mention performance was during the scheduled annual performance appraisal.

Both of these approaches are wrong.

If the only time a manager speaks to an employee is when something is wrong, then employees won't want to speak with them. This potentially means that companies are missing out on great ideas because employees don't spend time with their managers. One example would be the impact on workplace safety. Employees don't share potentially unsafe working conditions or possible improvements because conversations aren't taking place.

In addition, if employees aren't talking with their manager, then the company doesn't know what they're doing well. Organizations should want to know what employees...