Boss has asked for feedback - three development points!

[realtarmar]

I really like my boss and get on well with them. They are very senior so don't micromanage but also supportive, great attitude and very knowledgeable, and have been a good mentor to me over the last few months.

They want 3 points they are good at 3 points to work on, from me! How do I do the development points?? Honestly, I can't come up with one, let alone three. They are almost too senior as there are a few levels between us so I dont have oversight at this level of detail. The only things I could really say are (clutching at straws), they could provide even more detailed instructions / be even more present but this is actually something they do very very well in spite of the fact theyre very busy... Please help.

What are your objectives for next year?

Development points should help you hit your objectives in one way or another.

Sorry I said that wrongly - they want upwards feedback from me, reflecting their own performance

Eek. Tricky.

How about improving (suggests they are already good at it so less critical sounding) appraisal system or similar with clear pathways for career progression for their teams. Makes it sound more of systems thing then and often firms/managers can let ambitious staff stagnate so that they have to leave to progress .

If they are very senior and knowledgeable , how about suggesting they set up a way for them (and others) to cascade skills and experience to you and others.

That they mentor some junior managers who, let's say, are less well-equipped for management or lead by taking ILM quals and rolling them out across organisation.

Perhaps. They could send you on appraisal training as you have found their task challenging as would pretty much everyone who hasn't been trained for it lol.

Can expand the basic point into many...

they could be clearer & more specific about what they want, project or task requirements

they need to be clearer about timelines & encourage you to be honest if (when) timelines are slipping; nothing worse than them feeling uninformed or making promises they can't fulfill to others

probably be clearer about the wider objectives of why they want some tasks done