The Insurance Industry is currently witnessing a striking change in the practices of performance management.　 The traditional annual performance appraisal process that has been deeply ingrained in organizations for decades is giving way to more frequent conversations between managers and staff members. 　Ratings are being abandoned and replaced with dialogues about performance; rather than a review of the past, the most progressive organizations are switching to discussions about the future.　 In place of a manager writing a detailed performance analysis to be presented and discussed with a staff member, they are working together setting stretch goals for the future.