When I think back to my early days as a manager, I wish someone had told me how powerful career conversations could be. Supporting an employee’s career isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s a game-changer for engagement, loyalty, and performance.
As I share in my book, Confident Career Conversations, “There is a three-way partnership involved in career development. It involves the employee, the manager and the organisation”. While employees must take ownership, managers have an essential role in enabling these conversations even in busy, fast-paced environments.
In this post, I’ll share practical ways you can create career growth opportunities for your employees, drawing from my experience working with organisations of all shapes and sizes.
Why Career Conversations Matter
One client once told me, “We thought a good salary was enough to keep people.” It wasn’t. Without regular, open discussions about career aspirations, you risk losing your best people. They either quit physically and leave or quit psychologically and stay. Neither is good for business!
As I explain in Confident Career Conversations, “It’s like any relationship. People show they care through conversation”.
Regular career conversations:
- Strengthen engagement and loyalty
- Boost motivation and performance
- Help align business needs with personal aspirations
- Reduce turnover and save substantial recruitment costs
The Manager’s Responsibilities in Career Conversations
Managers can boost growth and enhance performance by:
- Providing support and opportunities: Help employees explore their aspirations and align them with business needs.
- Asking powerful, open-ended questions: Help employees clarify their goals and reflect on their skills.
- Offering developmental feedback: Stretch employees outside their comfort zone.
- Sharing knowledge and insight: Help employees navigate the internal landscape.
- Encouraging self-ownership: Empower employees to drive their own development.
Practical Steps for Managers
1. Initiate Career Conversations Regularly
Don’t wait for annual reviews. As I often say to clients, “If you only talk about careers once a year, it’s already too late.”
Tip: Schedule quarterly career check-ins. Focus on aspirations, experiences, and opportunities, not just KPIs.
2. Ask Solution-Focused Questions
Career conversations aren’t about giving instructions — they’re about unlocking insights. The Career Conversation Toolkit gives you a wealth of questions to choose from. For example:
- What are you most proud of recently?
- What would success look like for you in 12 months?
- What steps can you take to move closer to that vision?
3. Support Development, Even When Budgets Are Tight
Career development doesn’t always mean courses or conferences. As I share in the book, and in my blog post Four Ways to Develop Employees When Budgets are Tight. Development opportunities are not just found in training classes and seminars. You can have a significant impact through the responsibilities in an employee’s current job.
Ideas include:
- Assign stretch projects
- Offer shadowing opportunities
- Encourage peer mentoring
- Involve employees in cross-functional initiatives
One Financial Services client found that offering “lunch-and-learn” sessions led by internal experts revitalised learning without breaking the bank.
4. Share Your Own Career Experiences
Storytelling builds connection. When managers share their career stories, it makes career development real and accessible.
Tip: Share a story of a challenge you overcame or a mentor who made a difference. Employees value knowing you’ve faced crossroads too.
5. Manage Expectations with Honesty and Care
Sometimes employees aspire to something that isn’t possible right now. Focus on shared interests, explore alternative paths, and be honest about current opportunities.
Tip: Help employees see that career success isn’t only about moving up; it can mean broadening skills, leading projects, or deepening expertise.
As a manager, you are a catalyst in your employees’ career journeys. You don’t need all the answers, just the curiosity, courage, and care to ask the right questions and support their exploration.
By making career conversations a regular part of your leadership, you help employees feel valued, motivated, and loyal. You also strengthen your organisation’s future resilience and success.
Ready to transform your career conversations?
Get a free copy of my book, Confident Career Conversations, and get practical tools to start empowering your employees today!
