| Title | Strengths-based performance conversations: a randomised trial in the UK civil service |
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| Type | Journal article |
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| Authors | Gifford, J., Urwin, P., McCracken, M., Augusto Cerqua, A. and Gould, M. |
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| Abstract | This study evaluates impacts of training managers in a strengths-based approach to performance conversations on the perceived utility of one-to-one meetings. It also investigates changes in meeting content and subjects’ experiences to shed light on causal mechanisms of the intervention. A cluster randomized trial was conducted in two UK civil service organizations and a non-controlled before-after-study in a third civil service organization. The trial involved 8,843 managerial and non- managerial subjects; the impact evaluation uses data from 2,903 responses across two waves. Sixty-three intervention group subjects provided additional qualitative data. The intervention positively affected employees’ perceptions of the usefulness of performance conversations for learning and development. Evidence of a similar impact on job performance is weak. The content of conversations changed partly as hypothesized, increasing the focus on employee development and managerial support, but did not reduce emphasis on performance objectives. Improvements appear to be due both to mechanisms proposed by strengths-based theories and generic improvements in line-management relationships, supporting LMX theory. Strengths-based conversations can add value in public sector contexts by focusing managers and their reports on how the latter optimally perform and foster supportive and developmental relationships. The strengths-based approach did not prompt a less target-driven approach, which may allay managerial concerns about adopting it. The study suggests a discrete training intervention is viable, but an integrated change program is likely to be more effective. |
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| Keywords | Performance appraisal, performance conversations, performance management, strengths-based approaches, feedforward Interview |
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| Journal | Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance |
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| ISSN | 2051-6622 |
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| 2051-6614 |
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| Year | 2026 |
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| Publisher | Emerald Publishing Limited |
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| Accepted author manuscript | File Access Level Open (open metadata and files) |
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| Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1108/JOEPP-11-2024-0562 |
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| Web address (URL) | https://www.emerald.com/joepp/article/doi/10.1108/JOEPP-11-2024-0562/1351071/Strengths-based-performance-conversations-a |
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| Publication dates |
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| Published online | 24 Mar 2026 |
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