Enhancing the workplace experience, one conversation at a time.

These are 1:1, broad-ranging conversations between employees and managers, focused on understanding and enhancing the overall UC workplace experience.

UC Experience Conversations are recommended to be held at least once a year. The conversations are encouraged, though optional, and ask both managers and employees to discuss a few questions of their choosing. A form of “stay interview,” UC Experience Conversations surface dialogue and action planning via a wide range of topics of importance to the employee, such as:

  • Overall job Experience
  • Retention
  • Wellbeing and work-life balance
  • Career development
  • Inclusion and belonging
  • Manager support

These conversations can be included as part of ongoing 1:1 conversations between managers and employees, and are a valuable way for managers and employees to discuss new or shifted career aspirations and provide employees with an opportunity to discuss areas of importance to them.

Tools to Use for UC Experience Conversations

UC Experience Conversation Testimonials

  • “Though my supervisor and I meet regularly to discuss my performance related goals, this was the first time we spoke about my employment experience as a whole. It was meaningful for me to have a place to explain my thoughts and experiences in this context and know it is tied to a larger goal.”
  • “I thought getting to know what is important to my direct report was a wonderful way to get to know what motivates her and drives her for success. We were able to talk about things we typically don’t cover in our regular check-ins. It was an awesome discussion.”
  • “It was a great opportunity to connect with my manager on my career goals and strategize on the bigger picture for my role and the department.”
  • “My boss took the time to cater the conversation to my world. Life changing conversation. We took an already good relationship to a deeper level of honesty and future building.”

Local HR Support and Resources

Connect with your location HR teams.

Additional Resources for Managers

Below, you will find supplemental tools to further support employees and their development efforts:

10 Ways to Set the Context and Leverage the Process at Your Location

These conversations are intended to be conversations between managers and employees. If you are a unit leader or an HR practitioner, you also have an opportunity to offer the UC Experience Conversations tool aligned with your location processes, practices and culture.

UC locations are encouraged to provide “local” context on how these conversations play a role in enhancing the employee experience and how they fit in or build upon organizational initiatives and goals.

Hold workshops, ask-us-anything sessions and 1:1 opportunities to learn about UC Experience Conversations. Reach out to your HR teams to get support.

Communicate how UC Experience Conversations are not considered evaluative conversations, though they can be used as an approach to take future employee planning conversations to a deeper level.

Frame that a best practice is to offer the conversation as part of a regularly scheduled 1:1. These questions can be revisited or discussed at any time and you do not have to stick to only discussing these types of open-ended questions once per year.

While these are 1:1 conversations between employees and managers, leaders are absolutely encouraged to work with managers to explore conversation themes, trends, concerns and opportunities at the organizational level, in addition to doing their best to support managers follow through on key actions with employees.

Organizational leaders and/or HR might ask for employees' insights on the UC Experience Conversation process.

Make sure employees are comfortable having the conversation. Talk to employees first and use the template for managers to invite employees to the conversation. The template also includes details on preparing and following up.

Discretion rests with leaders and managers. The intent is to offer the conversations to everyone so we facilitate opportunities to enhance employee experience. And, if there are factors that would prevent a productive dialogue, it is recommended to offer the conversation at a different time when conditions are better.

These conversations are not just for high potentials, successor candidates or flight risks. UC Experience Conversations should be offered to everyone on a team if the conditions for a successful conversation are in place.

The design of UC Experience Conversation is to facilitate a two-way conversation between managers and employees.

  1. Manager's manager? The design of the process is to hold the conversation between managers and employees. We encourage employees who are reluctant to address their concern with their manager. Employees can always reach out to their manager’s manager to express concern when elevation is needed. And, situations will need to be handled case-by-case. It’s possible that through the conversation, an action item could be to speak with unit leadership, HR leadership, and/or Learning & Development teams to broaden the career development network, get feedback, and to participate in ongoing succession planning within the organization. Additionally, employees should be reminded of the reporting and confidential resources available at your location.
  2. Multiple managers? If an employee reports to multiple managers, check with the employee on their preferences for meeting with their managers together or separately.
  3. HR and/or Learning & Development? While teams always have the opportunity to invite HR and/or Learning & Development staff into team discussions, the design of this conversation process is set up to be held between managers and employees. HR and/or Learning & Development leaders could work to adapt the process to hold more structured retention or engagement interviews. With any adaptations made, UC locations are responsible for communicating the context and purpose.