Jaguar Land Rover bosses get to grips with performance management : Program teaches practical skills for the workplace

Purpose – This paper aims to describe a training program that was designed to underpin the launch of a new behavior framework and performance‐management process at car‐maker Jaguar Land Rover. Design/methodology/approach – Examines the reasons for the training program, the form it took and the results it has obtained. Findings – Reveals that the training program focused on practical‐skills acquisition reinforced by role‐play, using performance‐management‐conversation scenarios designed to reflect the daily business context of the participants, therefore enabling direct transfer of skills back to the workplace. Practical implications – Describes how the impact of the training program was enhanced by allowing participants to practice the techniques being taught, before attempting to apply them in their performance‐management conversations with their respective team members. Social implications – Highlights the ways in which the program supported the pace of organizational change in the face of increasingly competitive market demands. Originality/value – Details a program that will be of value to a wide range of organizations seeking to implement a behavior framework‐based performance‐management process, and needing to increase the skills and effectiveness of line managers in addressing performance issues in their teams.