You have four reviews left, two back-to-back meetings, and a spreadsheet tab called “career plans” that nobody has opened since last quarter.

Your direct report walks in already tense because the rumor mill says raises are frozen.

You want a real development conversation. They want certainty.

This is the moment where good managers either build trust or burn it.

What’s a growth conversation

A growth conversation during review season is a structured, evidence-based discussion where you and your direct report agree on:

• What they should get better at next (skills, scope, behaviors)
  
  
• Why it matters for the business (outcomes, not vibes)
  
  
• What opportunities will build it (projects, coaching, courses, rotations)
  
  
• What support you will provide (time, visibility, feedback, resources)
  
  
• How you’ll track progress (check-ins, proof, timelines)
  
  

The key is separation: performance evaluation (past) is different from growth planning (future). You can connect them, but you should not blend them into one emotional meeting. That distinction is repeatedly emphasized in practice guidance for development conversations.

How to run growth conversations during review season without chaos

Why it matters (the real consequences)

When growth conversations are skipped or handled vaguely, three predictable things happen:

1. Your best people start interviewing quietly. Career development conversations often happen too late, after someone is already halfway out the door.
   
   
2. Managers become the bottleneck. When goals and development are undocumented, every “promotion” discussion becomes politics and memory.
   
   
3. You lose leverage as an organization. If you cannot explain how someone grows here, you overpay to hire skills you could have built internally.
   
   

Also, the “manager problem” is not theoretical. Gallup’s work repeatedly shows the manager has outsized influence on engagement, and engagement is tightly tied to performance outcomes.

Constraint acknowledgements (because Africa ops reality is not a case study)

Let’s name the constraints upfront so your plan is usable:

• Time constraint: review season compresses everything into short windows. You need a repeatable structure.
  
  
• KPI constraint: in many teams, success metrics are partial, inconsistent, or not documented, so “development needs” becomes subjective.
  
  
• Budget constraint: training budgets are thin, FX rates are unstable, and people still need growth paths that do not require expensive external programs.
  
  
• Culture constraint: some employees have learned that “development talk” is fake if pay decisions feel opaque.
  
  

Your job is not to pretend these don’t exist. Your job is to design a conversation that works anyway.

Common mistakes (and what they cost you)

Here are the mistakes I see most in growth conversations during review season, especially in fast-moving teams.

• Mistake 1: You start with compensation.
  The meeting instantly becomes adversarial, and development becomes bargaining.
  
  
• Mistake 2: You speak in adjectives instead of evidence.
  “You need to be more strategic” without examples is a trust killer.
  
  
• Mistake 3: You propose development that requires money you don’t have.
  People interpret it as stalling: “Grow, but with no support.”
  
  
• Mistake 4: You promise a promotion timeline you cannot control.
  This creates future resentment and perceived betrayal.
  
  
• Mistake 5: No post-review action plan.
  This is explicitly called out as a common appraisal failure: meetings end, nothing changes.
  
  
• Mistake 6: You treat development like a one-off annual event.
  Development planning works best when it is scheduled and revisited.
  
  
• Mistake 7: You don’t define “proof.”
  The employee does work, but you cannot translate it into promotion readiness because the bar was never stated.
  
  

A quick comparison table (performance vs growth)

Step-by-step process (with a Step 0)

Step 0: Decide the frame before you walk into the room

You need a one-sentence frame that you will repeat calmly:

• “Today is about growth planning for the next cycle. We’ll handle compensation decisions separately through the company process.”
  
  

This is not corporate theater. It protects psychological safety and makes the meeting productive.

Step 1: Pre-work (15 minutes, manager side)

Pull together a one-page review packet:

• 3 wins (with proof)
  
  
• 2 misses or risks (with proof)
  
  
• 1 pattern you want more of
  
  
• 1 pattern you want less of
  
  
• The role expectations you are using (even if informal)
  
  
• A draft of “next scope” (one level higher than current work)
  
  

If you are operating with weak documentation (common), write down the examples anyway. “No documentation” is a known appraisal failure mode.

If you run reviews in a tool (instead of spreadsheets), this is where it helps. For example, Talstack Performance Reviews can store structured self, manager, and peer inputs in one place so your “evidence hunt” is not a last-minute scramble. (If you have done this in spreadsheets, you already know how fragile the trail becomes.)

Step 2: Start with the employee’s narrative (5–7 minutes)

Ask for a tight self-assessment:

• “What are you most proud of this cycle?”
  
  
• “Where do you think you fell short, and why?”
  
  
• “What kind of work gave you energy?”
  
  

This aligns with the practical recommendation to ground development in actual performance notes and observed strengths.

Watch for a common trap: employees try to list tasks. Bring it back to outcomes:

• “What changed because you did that work?”
  
  

Step 3: Name strengths and gaps using specific examples (10 minutes)

Your language should be observable:

• “In Q3, when the client escalated, you de-escalated quickly and documented next steps. That’s strong stakeholder management.”
  
  
• “On the weekly reporting, the numbers were correct but the insight was late. That limits decision-making speed.”
  
  

Culture Amp’s guidance is blunt here: avoid general statements, use specific examples, especially when perspectives differ.

Step 4: Translate “development” into a capability target (10 minutes)

A growth conversation fails when “development” is a vibe. Make it a capability:

• Capability: “Own a workstream end-to-end with minimal supervision.”
  
  
• Behaviors: “Writes a plan, surfaces risks early, updates stakeholders weekly.”
  
  
• Proof: “Delivers X project with Y metric by Z date.”
  
  

If KPIs are unclear (constraint acknowledgement), you can still define proof using:

• Cycle time (how fast deliverables ship)
  
  
• Quality (rework rate, error rate)
  
  
• Stakeholder satisfaction (simple 3-question pulse)
  
  
• Scope handled (bigger projects, more ambiguity, more cross-functional work)
  
  

Step 5: Use a coaching structure to generate options (10–15 minutes)

A simple coaching model that works in review season is GROW: Goal, Reality, Options, Will. A concise question set exists specifically for leadership development conversations.

Here’s how it sounds in a manager voice:

• Goal: “What do you want to grow into over the next 6–12 months?”
  
  
• Reality: “What’s happening now that makes that hard?”
  
  
• Options: “What are three ways we can build that capability here?”
  
  
• Will: “What’s the first step, and when will you do it?”
  
  

Keep the options grounded in your constraints:

• No budget? Use internal projects, job shadowing, peer teaching, stretch assignments.
  
  
• Limited headcount? Use rotation within the team rather than formal transfers.
  
  
• Remote/hybrid? Use visible artifacts (docs, demos) to reduce “invisible work.”
  
  

Step 6: Commit to a 90-day growth plan (10 minutes)

Make the plan short enough to execute:

• 1 capability goal
  
  
• 1 delivery goal
  
  
• 1 learning goal
  
  
• 1 visibility goal
  
  
• 1 support commitment from you

If you want this to scale beyond your best managers, you need a system. This is where Talstack Goals (OKR-style alignment) can remove ambiguity by connecting individual goals to team and company outcomes, then tracking progress without spreadsheet chaos.

Step 7: Decide cadence and documentation (3 minutes)

This is the difference between talk and change:

• 15-minute check-in every 2 weeks
  
  
• One mid-point review at day 45
  
  
• A short written update from the employee before each check-in (3 bullets)
  
  

Development conversations should be kept “front and center” through agreed check-ins.

If you’re running this across a team, Talstack Analytics can show completion rates, goal progress, and whether managers are actually doing follow-ups, which is usually the first thing to break under pressure.

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Tools: examples, a development menu, and a lightweight agenda

A practical agenda you can reuse (45 minutes)

• 5 min: Frame and purpose (growth, not pay debate)
  
  
• 10 min: Employee self-assessment
  
  
• 10 min: Manager evidence and feedback (examples)
  
  
• 10 min: Capability target + options (GROW-style)
  
  
• 7 min: 90-day plan + support
  
  
• 3 min: Cadence + close
  
  

Development menu when budgets are tight

If you have no external training budget, you still have options. You just need to be honest about what you can support.

If you do have a training platform, this is where it should map cleanly to the plan. For instance, Talstack Learning Paths plus Assign Courses can bundle the “targeted courses” option into a track tied to the employee’s capability goal, then you can see progress without chasing updates.

Where 360 feedback fits (and where it backfires)

360 feedback can improve accuracy and self-awareness when used carefully. It is also easy to mishandle.

Use it when:

• The employee’s work is cross-functional and you do not see enough directly.
• The capability goal involves collaboration, communication, or leadership.

Avoid it when:

• Trust is low and your culture treats feedback as punishment.
• You have no time to synthesize themes and translate them into development actions.

A lightweight approach is 6 questions, 3–5 raters, and theme extraction. Tools like Talstack 360 Feedback can standardize collection and reduce bias from informal hallway commentary.

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Quick Checklist (near the end, as promised)

Use this right before the meeting.

• I sent the invite titled “Growth Conversation” (not “review feedback”)
• I prepared 3 wins + 2 gaps with specific examples
• I wrote the one-sentence frame separating pay and growth
• I defined one capability target for the next cycle
• I have at least 3 budget-aware development options ready
• I can name what “proof” looks like in 90 days
• I scheduled the first follow-up check-in before ending the meeting

Copy-paste scripts (dedicated section)

Script 1: Opening frame (60 seconds)

“Thanks for making time. Today is a growth conversation for the next cycle. We’ll talk about what you should build next, what support you need, and how we’ll track progress. Compensation decisions follow the company process and will be handled separately. I want this meeting to be useful even if budgets are tight.”

Script 2: Turning vague feedback into evidence

“I’m going to be specific so this is actionable. Here’s what I observed, here’s the impact, and here’s what ‘better’ looks like next time.”

Script 3: When the employee asks, “So will I be promoted?”

“I can’t promise a title change on this call. What I can do is define the promotion bar clearly and help you build proof against it. If we agree on the scope and the proof, I’ll advocate for you with real evidence when decisions are made.”

Script 4: Closing with commitments

“Let’s lock the plan: one capability, one delivery outcome, one learning action. I’ll support by removing one blocker and giving you visibility on one project. We’ll check in every two weeks. I’m putting the first check-in on the calendar now.”

FAQ 

1) How long should a growth conversation be during review season?

Aim for 45 minutes if possible. If time is the constraint, do 30 minutes but do not skip the “proof” definition. Development conversations are most useful when they result in a real plan and follow-up cadence.

2) Should growth conversations happen in the same meeting as the performance review?

You can do them back-to-back, but keep them distinct: close performance first, then explicitly switch to growth. Mixing them increases defensiveness, especially if pay pressure is in the air.

3) What if our company has no clear career ladder?

Then you build a capability ladder inside the team:

• “More autonomy”
• “More ambiguity”
• “More cross-functional ownership”
• “More coaching of others”

This is often more realistic than titles in flat organizations.

4) What if the employee’s goals were unclear all year?

Say it plainly (without blaming):

“We didn’t set clear measures early enough. For the next cycle, we’ll define 3 success measures upfront.”

Then use a goal system. This is exactly where something like Talstack Goals can force clarity: owner, metric, target, timeline.

5) How do I run growth conversations when budgets are frozen?

Use the development menu above: stretch projects, shadowing, peer teaching, targeted short courses. Also be transparent: “We’re not funding external certs this quarter, so we’ll build capability through work opportunities and internal learning.”

6) How do I handle employees who only want to talk about salary?

Acknowledge, separate, return:

“I hear you. Pay matters. Today’s goal is growth planning so you have a clear path and proof. Pay decisions have a separate process. I’ll tell you what I can control and what I cannot.”

This reduces spiraling.

7) Is there research-backed structure I can use for these conversations?

Yes. The GROW model is a widely used coaching structure and has a practical question template you can adapt for leadership development conversations.

8) What’s the minimum documentation I need to make this fair?

At minimum:

• Two concrete examples for strengths
• Two concrete examples for gaps
• A written 90-day plan
• A check-in cadence on the calendar

Organizations that end appraisals without a post-review plan often fail to convert meetings into improvement.

One simple next step

Pick one direct report you care about retaining this year. Schedule a 45-minute growth conversation with a separate calendar title, and walk in with a one-page packet plus a 90-day plan draft. Then repeat the template.

If you want, paste your current review form (or your spreadsheet headings), and I’ll convert it into a growth-conversation packet plus a 90-day plan template that fits your exact workflow (and includes Talstack-ready fields for Goals, Reviews, Learning Paths, and Analytics).

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