HOW WE DEFINE CONVERSATIONS VERSUS FEEDBACK There are many ways managers can talk with employees about their work, performance, goals, and careers. All communications and dialogue about work and career — whether planned or spontaneous, structured or free-form, verbal or written — could fairly be classi昀椀ed as feedback, a conversation, or both. Unpacking the terms At Betterworks, we follow the lead of organizational psychologists and bucket these interactions into two general categories: conversations, which are the topic of this guide, and feedback — which is something we will unpack in our upcoming companion piece. The goal for both types of interactions is to drive consistency, readiness, immediacy, and actionable outcomes. It’s important to have these interactions in real time to better understand the needs of your direct reports and o昀昀er guidance that is meaningful, as well as better enable growth, learning, and connectedness. — Caitlin Collins | Organizational Psychologist & Program Strategy Director, Betterworks THE MANAGER’S ULTIMATE GUIDE TO GREAT CONVERSATIONS 7