Our Employee Development Plans Were a Joke. Here’s the 4-Part Conversation That Fixed Them.

I still remember the awkward silence. I was a new manager, and it was time for the annual “Employee Development Planning” cycle. I was in a meeting with a bright, high-potential team member. I had the official corporate template open on my screen, a sterile form with boxes for “Strengths,” “Development Areas,” and “Action Plan.” I asked the first question on the script: “So, what are your development goals for the next year?” He shrugged and said, “I don’t know, to get better at my job, I guess?”

The rest of the meeting was a painful exercise in pulling teeth. We vaguely populated the boxes with corporate-speak, I clicked “submit” in the HR system, and we both walked away feeling like we had just wasted an hour of our lives. The “plan” was a joke. It was a bureaucratic ritual we performed, a document destined to be forgotten in a digital file cabinet until the same time next year. Nothing ever came of it.

That experience was a wake-up call. I realized that the entire corporate approach to employee development was broken. We were so focused on the document that we had forgotten about the human. A great development plan is not a form you fill out; it is the output of a powerful, ongoing conversation. I threw away the template and designed a new approach, centered on a simple, four-part conversation. It changed everything.

The Big Idea: It’s a Conversation, Not a Form

The goal of employee development planning is not to produce a document. The goal is to unlock a person’s potential. The document is merely an artifact of the real work: the dialogue between a manager and a team member. When you shift your mindset from “completing the plan” to “leading a great conversation,” the entire dynamic changes. It becomes a collaborative, energizing exploration rather than a top-down administrative task.

This conversation happens in four distinct parts.

Part 1: The “Look Back” Conversation (Reflection & Strengths)

You cannot chart a course for the future without first understanding the past. The conversation should not start with a critique of weaknesses. It must start with a genuine exploration of strengths and accomplishments. The goal here is to build confidence and self-awareness.

• Key Questions to Ask:
  • “Looking back at the last six months, what is the work you are most proud of? Why?”
  • “Tell me about a time you felt totally ‘in the zone’ or in a state of flow. What were you doing?”
  • “What part of your job energizes you the most? What part tends to drain your energy?”

This is a conversation about discovering what makes the person tick. It provides the foundational understanding of their unique talents. Starting with strengths makes the entire conversation feel more positive and constructive, building the psychological safety needed for the more challenging parts to come.

Part 2: The “Look Forward” Conversation (Aspirations & Goals)

Once you have a clear picture of the past, you can turn your attention to the future. This part of the conversation is not about asking for a ten-year career plan. It is about getting curious about their aspirations, both big and small.

• Key Questions to Ask:
  • “If we were sitting here a year from now, what would you want to be celebrating?”
  • “What kind of work do you want to be doing more of? What problems do you want to be solving?”
  • “Are there other roles or departments in the company that you’re curious about? What skills do they have that you admire?”

Your job here is not to be a fortune-teller, but a curious coach. You are helping them articulate a vision for their own growth, which may or may not be a straight line up the corporate ladder. This is the part of the conversation that generates the motivation for the hard work of development.

Also read: Your Goal Is Your Motivation

Part 3: The “Bridge the Gap” Conversation (Identifying Skills & Opportunities)

Now you have two key data points: where the person is today (their strengths) and where they want to go (their aspirations). The third conversation is about bridging that gap. This is where you collaboratively identify the 1-3 key skills or experiences they will need to get from here to there.

This is where the famous 70-20-10 model for learning comes into play.

• 70% Experiential: What “stretch” project or on-the-job assignment can we give you that will force you to build this new skill?
• 20% Social: Who is an expert in this skill that you could learn from? Can we set up a mentorship relationship?
• 10% Formal: Is there a specific course, workshop, or book that would provide the foundational knowledge you need?

By framing the plan this way, you move beyond just “sending them to training” and create a holistic development journey that is grounded in real-world experience.

Also read: Why Experiential Learning?

Part 4: The “Create Momentum” Conversation (Defining the First Step & Setting Check-ins)

A plan without a first step is just a dream. The final, and most crucial, part of the conversation is about creating immediate momentum. Before the person leaves the room, you must define the very first, small, achievable action they will take.

• Key Questions to Ask:
  • “This is a great plan. What is the one thing you can do this week to get started?”
  • “How can I best support you in taking that first step?”
  • “Let’s schedule a brief, 15-minute check-in two weeks from now to see how it’s going.”

This does two things. First, it makes the plan real and immediate. Second, by scheduling a check-in, you signal that this conversation is not a one-time event, but the start of an ongoing dialogue.

The 3 Traps That Turn a Development Plan into a Useless Document

1. The “Check the Box” Trap: The manager and employee go through the motions just to satisfy HR, with no real intention of following up.
2. The “Manager’s Plan” Trap: The manager dictates the entire plan without genuinely incorporating the employee’s own aspirations and ideas. This leads to a lack of ownership from the employee.
3. The “Set it and Forget it” Trap: A great plan is created, but there is no follow-up mechanism. It gets filed away and is never looked at again until the next annual cycle. Regular, light-touch check-ins are essential.

The Conversation is the Strategy

That painful meeting years ago taught me that the development plan template was not the product. The real product was the spark of motivation in my team member’s eyes. It was the clarity of their next step. It was the trust built between us.

A great employee development plan is not a document. It is a series of powerful, human-centered conversations. It is one of the most important tools you have as a leader to show your people that you are invested not just in what they do, but in who they are becoming. It is how you turn a job into a journey.If you are looking to equip your managers with the coaching skills to lead these critical conversations, explore FocusU’s manager capability development programs.