Nat Royston,
Director of Customer Engagement
“It’s no longer just about performance, it’s about potential.”
As people leaders in the Customer Engagement team, we wanted to look at the impact of our performance conversations. Too often, these discussions can feel like a formality, focused on metrics and gaps rather than growth and motivation. Inspired by the strengths-based approach of Appreciative Inquiry, I saw an opportunity to make these moments more meaningful and energising.
During our recent People Leader Community meeting we explored the 4D Cycle of Appreciative Inquiry, Discover, Dream, Design and Deliver, to rethink how we approach performance conversations across the employee lifecycle.
In the Discover phase, we began by defining what a great performance conversation looks like. The team shared ideas around feeling heard, being inspired, and leaving with clarity and purpose, sharing stories of conversations that had left us or others feeling valued. One colleague shared how a simple moment of recognition during a one to one had reignited their colleague’s confidence. We unpacked what made these moments powerful, being truly present, providing strengths-based feedback, and having a future focused dialogue.
In Dream, we imagined the ideal performance conversation held in a calm, welcoming space, with a tone of partnership and possibility. We envisioned conversations that felt like coaching, not critique, where aspirations were nurtured and achievements celebrated.
Finally, we moved into Design and Deliver. We co-created actions to bring our dream conversations to life: using appreciative questions, strengths-based templates and prompts that encourage growth. Each leader made a personal commitment. Mine was to ensure that I always check in with members of my team that the environment, and structure of our one-to-one conversation is working for them, to allow for individuality and to create a consensus.
Our intention as a team is that moving forward conversations feel more authentic, and an environment is established where colleagues are engaging more openly, setting goals that align with their strengths, and leaving interactions with renewed energy. It’s no longer just about performance, it’s about potential.
Appreciative Inquiry reminded me that when we focus on what gives life to our teams, we unlock something powerful. By reframing performance conversations as opportunities to discover and dream and identifying other topics that we can use Appreciative Inquiry to explore, we’re establishing a culture of growth, trust, and shared purpose.