Quarterly Career Conversation Template

The quarterly career conversation template carves out dedicated time to talk about an employee's growth, not their current task list. Most 1:1s get consumed by the urgent, so this is the meeting where the important finally gets attention.

When to use it

Run a deliberate career conversation about once a quarter, separate from your weekly 1:1 and ideally decoupled from performance reviews and compensation so the talk stays honest and forward-looking.

Who attends

The manager and the direct report. Come prepared with genuine observations about their strengths, and ask the report to think ahead of time about where they want to grow.

How to run it

Frame it clearly so they do not brace for an evaluation. Spend most of the time on their aspirations and the skills that will get them there, then translate the conversation into one or two real opportunities. End with a small concrete commitment, not a vague promise to revisit someday.

Questions to ask

• Where do you want to be in two to three years?
• What kind of work makes you lose track of time?
• Which of your strengths feel underused right now?
• What skill, if you grew it, would change the most?
• What experience or project would stretch you well?
• How can I best support your growth from here?

Common mistakes

• Folding it into a normal 1:1 so the urgent crowds out the important.
• Projecting your own ambitions onto their path.
• Talking growth but never creating a real opportunity.
• Leaving with no follow-up and forgetting the whole thing by next quarter.

Keep development on track between quarters. Run it in OrgTP and revisit every growth goal without losing the thread.