A goal-setting meeting can be a form-filling exercise or a genuinely useful conversation. The difference is usually the questions the manager asks. Good questions help people think, reveal what motivates them and produce goals they actually want to pursue.
Questions to understand the person
- What part of your job do you enjoy most right now?
- What would you like to be doing in two or three years?
- What skills would you like to build this year?
- What is getting in the way of doing your best work?
These build the foundation for development goals that matter to the individual.
Questions to connect to the team
- Here are our team's priorities this year. Where do you think you can contribute most?
- What do you see that we should be doing differently as a team?
- Which of our goals do you feel most connected to?
Questions to shape the goal
- What would success look like at the end of the year?
- How will we both know you have achieved it?
- What is a realistic target, and what would a stretch look like?
- What is the first step?
See how to know if a goal is achievable for more on setting the right level.
Did you know? Google's Project Oxygen, which studied what made its best managers effective, found that "is a good coach" topped the list of behaviours. Asking questions, rather than dictating goals, is at the heart of coaching.
Questions to plan support
- What do you need from me to make this happen?
- What training or resources would help?
- What might get in the way, and how will we handle it?
- How often would you like to check in on progress?
Questions to close the conversation
- Are these goals ones you genuinely feel committed to?
- Is there anything we have missed?
- What will you do in the next two weeks?
Tips for new managers
If you are new to management, resist the urge to write goals for people. Ask first, listen more than you talk and summarise what you heard before agreeing goals. Our article on team goals vs individual goals covers the structure, and how to communicate goals to your team covers the rollout.
The bottom line
The best manager questions explore the person, connect to the team, shape the goal, plan support and confirm commitment. Ask them, listen carefully and let people own their goals. For goal frameworks to use in these conversations, see our Business Planning and Goal Setting course. For leadership skills that make them easier, see our Practical Leadership Skills and Performance Management of Workers courses.