How to Have Positive Performance Conversations – an in-depth guide to help leaders engage their team

In this article, I want to break through the myths and the misunderstanding around what exactly performance management is in order to give you clarity and a tool-set to confidently lead your team into high performance. We’ll explore:

One: What is Performance from a Workplace Perspective?

As we start off, let’s get clarity around some terms.

The first term I want to explore is “Performance”. The following concepts are useful in describing workplace performance:

DEFINITION OF PERFORMANCE 

1. a: the execution of an action
   b: something accomplished : DEED, FEAT
2. the fulfillment of a claim, promise, or request : IMPLEMENTATION
3. the ability to perform : EFFICIENCY
4. the manner of reacting to stimuli : BEHAVIOR

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/performance

From these descriptions, we see that performance is a goal or task that we agree to take on, and within the task, we have to pay attention to:

Two: What is the difference between Performance Management and a Performance Improvement Plan?

Performance Management is the management of the day to day operations of your workplace or team, and is the first part of the Performance Continuum.

A Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) is the formalised process to manage under-performance.

It is the second part of the Performance Continuum and its aim is to provide a formalised framework that acknowledges that an individual’s performance is not up to standard and therefore needs to be paid attention to.

For more detail on what a PIP should entail, click here to sign up to the video teaching on this topic

At the end of a PIP process, we will hopefully have got to a point where our staff member is meeting objectives and ready to move back under the “Performance Management” area.

This is what we want!!

If however, our staff member has not met objectives, then the PIP process may well move into the final stage of the Performance Continuum, “Termination”.

In this case, an organisation will most likely use HR resources and even legal aid, to move this forward.

See more about how to do this in the video teaching, “How to Have a Positive Performance Conversation”

Three: What are Leaders Biggest Fears when Engaging in Performance Conversations?

Of course, the biggest challenge we have around performance conversations, is that if we don’t make time for them, we leave ourselves and our team open to uncertainty, misunderstanding and possible tension as a result.

Everyone wants to know they are doing good work and to be recognised for this.

Equally, we also want to know where the gaps are, so we can close those as well.

Why do leaders and managers avoid having performance conversations?

Some of the most common reasons I have experienced include: 

Four: Why Managers Need to Have Regular Performance Conversations

Even though most of us would rather have our teeth pulled out than have to deal with difficult conversations, there are so many benefits to regularly engaging in conversation about performance with our team. It’s important to outline them so we buy into the bigger picture.

As managers and leaders, it is our responsibility to manage performance within our teams proactively. The buck has to stop with us.

Here are 8 reasons to get you thinking  about why leaders and managers need to have regular performance conversations with our staff: 

1. They provide us with a road map of work role and expectations
2. We are able to address issues of poor performance
3. They can help us identify strengths in our people that we don’t have
4. They allow us to provide recognition and affirmation for good performance
5. It provides us an opportunity for personal interaction with our staff
6. Helps staff to evaluate their behaviour
7. They encourage change and innovation
8. It is our responsibility

Five: How to Create a Positive Performance Culture through Conversation

So, now that we have created clarity as to why we need to engage with our people regularly, let’s have a look at how we can go about creating an environment that allows for safety, trust and openness to occur.

As managers and leaders, we can do this through: 

1. Being clear in communicating our vision – read my article on how leaders set good goals here
2. Setting expectations on things like behaviour, roles, task clarity and measurement, team behaviour and interaction
3. Diarising consistent meetings with our staff to review and provide support regarding their performance
4. Making time to observe what your team is doing well in order to recognise and affirm this
5. Tailoring the conversation to the needs and communication style of your team – you can find how to do this here
6. Value the experience and contribution of your team
7. Being consistent in our interactions with individuals within our team
8. Upfront and frank – sharing necessary knowledge so that our team feels informed
9. Bringing a positive attitude to work – irrespective of what is going on
10. Being approachable and proactive in our attitude to failure and learning from mistakes
11. Ensuring our conversations are positive and our team is encouraged to bring solutions
12. Defending our team and making sure we have their backs when other’s judge, criticise or lay blame
13. Encouraging self-reflection

Six: five Steps to Having a Positive Performance Conversation

As we come to end of this article, I’ve left the best til last: the five simple steps to creating positive conversations.

It is important to mention that unless we believe in the goodness of our people as well as take the time to role model the values and behaviours we want to see, it can be difficult for our team to believe we have their backs

The following are five simple steps you can take to make sure you focus on the positive and keep your people front and centre of your conversations:

Having regular, positive conversations with your staff will make it a lot easier when you need to have the constructive ones.

Questions to Consider:

I hope I have given you something to mull over in the detail shared.  There certainly is a lot to consider and reflect upon in the search for high performance and positive culture.

Best wishes in stepping up, be sure to leave your comments below and I’ll,

See you at the top!

In this article, I want to break through the myths and the misunderstanding around what exactly performance management is in order to give you clarity and a tool-set to confidently lead your team into high performance. We’ll explore:

One: What is Performance from a Workplace Perspective?

As we start off, let’s get clarity around some terms.

The first term I want to explore is “Performance”. The following concepts are useful in describing workplace performance:

DEFINITION OF PERFORMANCE 

1. a: the execution of an action
   b: something accomplished : DEED, FEAT
2. the fulfillment of a claim, promise, or request : IMPLEMENTATION
3. the ability to perform : EFFICIENCY
4. the manner of reacting to stimuli : BEHAVIOR

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/performance

From these descriptions, we see that performance is a goal or task that we agree to take on, and within the task, we have to pay attention to:

Two: What is the difference between Performance Management and a Performance Improvement Plan?

Performance Management is the management of the day to day operations of your workplace or team, and is the first part of the Performance Continuum.

A Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) is the formalised process to manage under-performance.

It is the second part of the Performance Continuum and its aim is to provide a formalised framework that acknowledges that an individual’s performance is not up to standard and therefore needs to be paid attention to.

For more detail on what a PIP should entail, click here to sign up to the video teaching on this topic

At the end of a PIP process, we will hopefully have got to a point where our staff member is meeting objectives and ready to move back under the “Performance Management” area.

This is what we want!!

If however, our staff member has not met objectives, then the PIP process may well move into the final stage of the Performance Continuum, “Termination”.

In this case, an organisation will most likely use HR resources and even legal aid, to move this forward.

See more about how to do this in the video teaching, “How to Have a Positive Performance Conversation”

Three: What are Leaders Biggest Fears when Engaging in Performance Conversations?

Of course, the biggest challenge we have around performance conversations, is that if we don’t make time for them, we leave ourselves and our team open to uncertainty, misunderstanding and possible tension as a result.

Everyone wants to know they are doing good work and to be recognised for this.

Equally, we also want to know where the gaps are, so we can close those as well.

Why do leaders and managers avoid having performance conversations?

Some of the most common reasons I have experienced include: 

Four: Why Managers Need to Have Regular Performance Conversations

Even though most of us would rather have our teeth pulled out than have to deal with difficult conversations, there are so many benefits to regularly engaging in conversation about performance with our team. It’s important to outline them so we buy into the bigger picture.

As managers and leaders, it is our responsibility to manage performance within our teams proactively. The buck has to stop with us.

Here are 8 reasons to get you thinking  about why leaders and managers need to have regular performance conversations with our staff: 

1. They provide us with a road map of work role and expectations
2. We are able to address issues of poor performance
3. They can help us identify strengths in our people that we don’t have
4. They allow us to provide recognition and affirmation for good performance
5. It provides us an opportunity for personal interaction with our staff
6. Helps staff to evaluate their behaviour
7. They encourage change and innovation
8. It is our responsibility

Five: How to Create a Positive Performance Culture through Conversation

So, now that we have created clarity as to why we need to engage with our people regularly, let’s have a look at how we can go about creating an environment that allows for safety, trust and openness to occur.

As managers and leaders, we can do this through: 

1. Being clear in communicating our vision – read my article on how leaders set good goals here
2. Setting expectations on things like behaviour, roles, task clarity and measurement, team behaviour and interaction
3. Diarising consistent meetings with our staff to review and provide support regarding their performance
4. Making time to observe what your team is doing well in order to recognise and affirm this
5. Tailoring the conversation to the needs and communication style of your team – you can find how to do this here
6. Value the experience and contribution of your team
7. Being consistent in our interactions with individuals within our team
8. Upfront and frank – sharing necessary knowledge so that our team feels informed
9. Bringing a positive attitude to work – irrespective of what is going on
10. Being approachable and proactive in our attitude to failure and learning from mistakes
11. Ensuring our conversations are positive and our team is encouraged to bring solutions
12. Defending our team and making sure we have their backs when other’s judge, criticise or lay blame
13. Encouraging self-reflection

Six: five Steps to Having a Positive Performance Conversation

As we come to end of this article, I’ve left the best til last: the five simple steps to creating positive conversations.

It is important to mention that unless we believe in the goodness of our people as well as take the time to role model the values and behaviours we want to see, it can be difficult for our team to believe we have their backs

The following are five simple steps you can take to make sure you focus on the positive and keep your people front and centre of your conversations:

Having regular, positive conversations with your staff will make it a lot easier when you need to have the constructive ones.

Questions to Consider:

I hope I have given you something to mull over in the detail shared.  There certainly is a lot to consider and reflect upon in the search for high performance and positive culture.

Best wishes in stepping up, be sure to leave your comments below and I’ll,

See you at the top!