A strong career development discussion balances where you want to go with what your team needs now. To keep the conversation practical, focus on goals, the skills required to reach them, the support you need, and how you’ll measure progress together.
Start with the role scope you’re aiming for (promotion, lateral move, leadership track, specialization) and a realistic timeframe. Share what motivates the change—impact, responsibilities, domain interest—so your manager can suggest aligned opportunities.
Ask what “great performance” looks like over the next 3–6 months. Clarify the highest-value outcomes, what to prioritize, and what to deprioritize. This prevents taking on extra work that doesn’t build toward your next step.
Request candid feedback on skills to strengthen (technical, communication, stakeholder management, strategy, execution). Then ask what evidence would demonstrate readiness—owning a project end-to-end, leading a meeting cadence, improving a metric, mentoring, or presenting results.
Turn your development plan into a few clear goals with measurable outcomes and dates. Agree on how progress will be tracked and how often you’ll review it. For a structured approach to alignment, metrics, and recurring check-ins, see this guide on setting goals with your manager.
Discuss what would help you grow faster: stretch assignments, shadowing, cross-functional projects, training budget, mentorship, or exposure to specific stakeholders. Also ask which upcoming initiatives could serve as a development “vehicle” without risking delivery.
Close by agreeing on how you want feedback delivered (live, written, in 1:1s) and what signals should trigger a course correction. This keeps development continuous rather than annual.
Ask for 2–3 specific behaviors to start, stop, and continue, and request examples from recent work. Then confirm what “better” would look like so you can measure improvement.
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