Year-end interviews: how to make 2026 a year that really works

Maybe that's not so strange. Many end-of-year conversations linger on the level of behavior: what did someone do or didn't do? Where did it go well, where could it be better?

But behavior only tells part of the story. The most valuable insights lie just below, about what really motivates someone, what gives them energy and what they need to function properly. That's why an end-of-year interview can be much more effective when you look not just at what someone did, but especially at why someone did it that way.

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Why motivation makes a difference

Employees perform better when their work matches their natural motives: the things that intrinsically motivate them, give them direction and provide them with energy. But in reality, many conversations get stuck on well-intentioned but superficial questions such as:

• “What went well?”
• “What do you want to do differently next year?”
• “Where do you see development points?”

Without insight into motives, the answers often remain general, vague or defensive. While the question that does lead to movement is actually:

“What do you need to look better next year?”

That question opens a completely different conversation: a conversation about motivation, job satisfaction, energy, sources of stress and personal rhythms.

Motives as a starting point for another conversation

A motive analysis that has been scientifically researched and independently assessed shows why someone reacts the way they do.

It brings out these kinds of insights:

• Why one person is looking for structure and the other needs space.
• Why someone shuts down faster under pressure, or, on the contrary, speeds up too much.
• Why some tasks energize and others consume energy.
• Why one employee thrives on autonomy while another performs better with clear frameworks.

When you know that, the whole conversation changes.
Not because the analysis provides the answer, but because it language offers to discuss issues that otherwise remain unspoken.

Three ways to use motives in advance in your year-end interview

1. Don't start with performance, start with energy

Just ask:

• “What gave you energy this year?”
• “When were you at your best?”
• “Which situations cost you a lot more power unnoticed?”

People can only really answer this properly if they understand what drives them. You'll get surprisingly clear answers that provide immediate guidance for 2026.

2. Connect goals to personal motivation

Goals only work when they're right for someone.
For one, the goal must be logical and substantiated.
For the other, it must be challenging.
For yet another person, it must be about cooperation or meaning.

By linking goals to motives, you create real ownership.

3. Use motives to describe stress and resistance

A lot of “hassle” in organizations is not caused by capacity problems, but due to a mismatch between work context and motives.
Motives show why someone gets stuck and what helps them get moving again.

This not only makes the end-of-year interview safer, but also fairer and more effective.

The profit for 2026

Organizations that include motives in their conversations with employees notice:

• more openness and less cramping
• better cooperation
• more focused development discussions
• better distribution of tasks and responsibilities
• more motivation and less unnecessary tension
• a better start to the new year

Because when people understand why they do what they do, they also know what they need to grow.

Lastly

End-of-year interviews have the potential to be much more than a mandatory review.
With motives as a basis and a measurement tool that has been reliably and independently assessed, it will be a conversation that provides direction, provides energy and really changes something.

2026 does not start with planning, but with understanding.

Wondering how this can work for your organization? Feel free to get in touch.