Despite an organization’s best efforts to set managers up for success for performance reviews, one of the most crucial pieces is often overlooked-the relationship between a manager and their employee.

If the goal of a performance review is to improve your employees’ performance, you need managers who understand their employees’ individual strengths, motivations, and values.

This guide was developed to provide managers with a framework to conduct performance reviews in a meaningful way, and that shows they care about their employees’ growth and wellbeing. In it, we provide 6 things managers can do all year long and in the days leading up to a review to cultivate a healthy relationship and review process:

• Defining your (healthier) purpose
• Preparing a thoughtful agenda and scheduling in advance
• Focusing on the relationship
• Choosing your communication style wisely
• Setting goals and following through
• Creating a frequency that lasts all year