In a strategic way by ensuring a direction of development that matches the organisation’s needs and supports the overall strategy at Aarhus University.
In a systematic way by ensuring that employees and managers make agreements and follow up on agreements during the year.
This page contains tools which can be used to conduct a good development dialogue with your employees. You can also download the complete SDD guide.
AU’s SDD concept and related documents are approved by the senior management team and the Main Liaison Committee (HSU).
To conduct a quality SDD which has meaning and impact requires that the employee and the manager make an effort to conduct a dialogue that focuses on the future and on development.
A dialogue that leads to development requires that you listen to each other and try to understand the basis of what is being said by asking elaborating questions instead of arguing against the points that are being made.
Read: How to give constructive feedback.
As a manager, you also play an important role when it comes to following up on whether the individual development activities are on the right track and whether the employee is benefiting as intended.
If some of the activities do not progress as expected, you should discuss why and whether new initiatives should be taken. Experience shows that individual follow-up is key in order for the manager and the employee to feel that the SDD has an effect.
The dialogue guide contains suggestions which means that it is fine to ask supplementary questions, leave out sub-questions and ask the questions in another order than specified in the guide.
The idea is to create a fluent dialogue with both the manager and the employee asking questions which come to them naturally. However, as a minimum, the dialogue should cover the three main themes in the dialogue guide.
1. What has happened since the last SDD? – A good starting point for talking about the future
2. Well-being and job satisfaction
3. Future tasks and competence development
You can find the dialogue guides here:
The SDD should not be seen as a stand-alone dialogue, but as an ongoing process. You will reach the best results if you follow up on an ongoing basis and make notes about the employee’s tasks and challenges throughout the year.
Managers at AU can get advice and assistance on how to conduct SDDs.
HR offers advice and guidance regarding an introduction to the SDD concept, how to start the dialogue process, as well as dialogue management training and techniques. Please contact your HR partner if you have a question or need specific feedback or advice.
Find out more about our other offers of assistance here: