Making minor tweaks to how you approach performance reviews can have a major impact.

There are two kinds of performance reviews: the perfunctory ones, and the type that lead to real change. Atlanta designer Theresa Ory makes a point of giving her employees the latter every time. “For a review to be genuinely meaningful, it can’t consist of fluff,” she says. “There must be something to build on that I [as a leader] am brave enough to address directly and kindly.”

The high standards Ory sets for herself are a result, in part, of an early-career stint in human resources—a three-year period when she was an HR assistant at a Fortune 500 company. From that job, Ory drew various communication techniques that she still uses today. One strategy she applies during biannual performance reviews is to sandwich critical feedback between upbeat, complimentary remarks. “Constructive criticism is best received when you lead with a positive, provide the building opportunity in the middle and close with a positive again,” she says. After all, unless you prime an employee to be able to accept and appreciate your feedback, your criticism—no matter how well-intended—may go unheeded.