Keys to Planning a Dynamic One on One Employee Meeting
“Treat employees like they make a difference and they will” - Jim Goodnight
Annual employee reviews are like a two-sided coin. On one hand, I love how those special meetings allow you to really dig into the technical and soft skill growth of employees. On the other hand, why do we do them so infrequently? Isn’t this type of personal connection something managers should be doing on an ongoing basis?! 😟
I fully believe that employees are the most important piece to the success of a company. Therefore, the growth and fulfillment of those employees should be a TOP priority. If you treat employees with respect and invest in their growth, they’ll know they are valued for more than just another cog in the wheel.
If you want to have a truly awesome company culture, implementing a regularly scheduled check-in is way better than a once-a-year review. One doesn’t necessarily replace the other but the check-ins should be a way to slowly work toward growth outlined in the reviews.
How to Execute Excellent One-on-Ones
➡️ Frequency - Have regularly scheduled 1:1’s. I recommend every other week, although it depends on the employee and their needs. Don’t just spring them on a person! Having them regularly will set the expectation for the employee that they’ll have the opportunity to connect with in a set time frame.
➡️ Commit - Try your best not to reschedule these meetings or even worse, cancel them. These are such important touch points and by canceling you are sending a message that the time spent investing in your team member is not worthwhile. This is the exact opposite message of what you’re trying to get across.
➡️ Remember the purpose - These meetings are to connect with the employee on a personal and professional level. If the manager is also overseeing projects for this employee, have a separate meeting to focus on those projects. These are not status update meetings.
➡️ Create an agenda - Some topics to consider: wins, areas for improvement, goals and progress on those goals from the last meeting, roadblocks, embodiment of company values, or working relationship with teammates. Use a shared doc to draft the agenda and provide space to establish the topics beforehand.
➡️ Ask for upward feedback - This is a great opportunity for YOU to get feedback from your team members. Ask your report to come prepared with a couple things they’d like to give you/ the organization feedback on. You don’t want to have to wait until someone’s exit interview to get valuable information to improve the organization.
➡️ Be present and really listen - Don’t check your phone, don’t work on email or other projects. Seriously, turn it off. It will communicate your personal investment in the employee and it won’t go unnoticed.
➡️ Tie it up with a bow - Possibly the most important piece is to create an action plan together. Take stock in all the things you discussed and create next steps for each person. It’s also important to document these, perhaps in your agenda doc, so you can reference them at the next check-in. Both people should wrap up the meeting by saying what they’re committing to and by when.
What’s at stake here?
Remember that being a manager isn’t just a title. Managers are trusted to take their employees to the next level, individually and as a team. A manager’s main goal is to help remove barriers as well as encourage the growth of their team. 🌱
How have you removed barriers for someone on your team? How can you ask for some of these things from your manager?
