Running an Effective One-on-One
As a manager, it’s your responsibility to ensure that the one-to-one meetings with your team is as productive and valuable as possible. On the face of it, this looks like a simple task, but it’s actually a complex and tricky thing to get right.
That’s why we’ve put this guide together.
We’ll first cover some of the simple logistics, then go into exactly what they should include, and finish with some specific tools to make them as productive as possible.
Logistics
How often?
There’s not a one size fits all answer for this, but usually, once a month is sufficient. Sometimes, you may increase the frequency, for example, if you have a new starter or face some performance issues that you need to address more frequently.
Where to do them?
Face to face is ideal; however, it’s okay if they sometimes need to be virtual (I’d suggest keeping your cameras on to keep some of the personal connection.
Another thing to consider is walking meetings. I like these as it’s an easy way to raise the energy levels and get yourself out of the day to day office environment where you can be easily distracted. However, you still have to ensure note taking still happens for these to be effective. Either on your phone or as soon as you sit back down on your laptop.
Don’t cancel
The goal of your one-on-one is to show your team you care about their development; regularly cancelling or pushing these meetings is a quick way to show the opposite. If you or your team feel like you can move them because there isn’t much to talk about, you need to address how you run these meetings. This guide is an excellent place to start.
Be present
Shut your laptop, and turn off notifications. You should do whatever you need to do to be fully present in these meetings. It’s crucial to display your interest in your team’s development, and keeping one eye on your laptop is another quick way of showing your team they are low down on your priority list, which isn’t a nice feeling for them.
The Meeting Format
The Agenda
The first rule, as always — is to send a freaking agenda. Everyone must know what to expect in the upcoming meeting, and because it’s a recurring meeting, this plan can mostly remain the same once you are happy with it.
Example Agenda
You should feel the freedom to create your agenda for your one on one meetings; however, if you’re looking for some guidance, here is an excellent place to start:
- The “check-in”
- Their priorities
- Your priorities
- Their goals and development
- Recap and actions
The “check-in”
Before you get into the work discussion, take some time to connect with your team personally. Find out how they are with a 10-second or 10-minute chat, whatever you feel you need at that time. You shouldn’t press here if someone doesn’t feel comfortable talking about it, but you may need to work on building a bit more trust if this is the case. Sharing how you feel first may help, and there are more ideas in this guide to connecting with colleagues.
Their Priorities
Now you want to jump into what they are working on currently. Using the collaborative agenda that we’ll discuss later, check up on agreed actions from the previous one-on-one. There will likely be challenges to discuss, and that’s a valuable use of time and an opportunity to show you are there to support. In these cases, make sure you talk about the solutions with them and not just tell them what to do, as that won’t help with their development.
Your Priorities
Even though you are focussing on your team, this is an opportunity to talk about your own needs. Depending on how much input you have on their workload, you may want to make some suggestions or requests here to help you achieve your own goals. You may also use this section to share any negative feedback you would like to see addressed. Lastly, you should also consider sharing what you have going on in your day-to-day so your team is aware of your priorities.
Their Goals & Development
Discussing progress toward objectives is an essential part of this meeting and doing it regularly is the easiest way to ensure goals are not “set and forget”.
Finish with a Recap
To round up the call, always recap the next steps and agreed actions. Setting clear expectations will help everyone stay focussed on what they need to get done. You will build a consistent expectation of being held accountable by checking in on them regularly. This is another benefit of having a shared agenda that we will talk about in the next section,
Collaborative Notes
Once you have reached an agenda you’re happy with, the next consideration is the tool you will use to take notes and record agreed actions. A collaborative process that you both work on before and during your one-to-one works best here. A link to a template for 1on1 notes is at the end of this guide. Here are some reasons why it works well:
- You can both drop talking points in between meetings. This is useful because it means things aren’t forgotten and avoids constant interruptions every time a conversation point comes up. Of course, you need to discuss some things urgently, which should be encouraged. But when you can push things back to your one-to-one, it helps everyone stay a bit more productive.
- If you’re running meetings monthly, you will likely forget exactly what you discussed last time. These notes help you avoid any confusion. If someone in your team is struggling with something and you fail to ask, that can be a real hit to their trust in you.
- If they face a similar situation again, you can look back on past notes and see how you previously tackled it.
You may also consider making separate notes for yourself where you can record your private thoughts to look back on in the future, which will come in handy when running performance reviews and setting new objectives.
Preparing for the meeting
Good preparation can be the thing that decides whether your one on one will be productive and motivating or not. Do not rush into the meeting without getting your head into a suitable space. Take a moment to rest, and remove any other stress, as this is not what your team member will need.
Do your homework. Review your shared meeting doc and remind yourself of the key challenges you can support on. Think about some positive and specific feedback you can share, as this will set the meeting up nicely and encourage them to repeat it. Sometimes you’ll be sharing negative feedback, which is never easy. If that’s the case, take a minute to get yourself prepared for this (and maybe read this guide to delivering negative feedback)
Example Questions to Ask
- What problems do you see in the business?
- What is one of these problems that, if solved, would make your life easier?
- What are the actions to solve this problem?
- What do you want to discuss in this meeting?
- What challenges are you having?
- Do you have any feedback for me or your team?
- Is there anything I could do better as your manager?
- What can I do to support you better?
- What can I stop doing that will make your life easier?
- How can I help you enjoy your job more?
- What are some recent wins or positive stories you’d like to share?
- How’s your workload?
- What skills or professional development would you like to focus on next?
- What do you need from us to work on it?
- How happy are you in your current role?
- What do you love about your job?
- What do you dislike about your day-to-day responsibilities?
- What have you learned recently in your role?
- What career goal(s) would you like to work toward next?
- How are things outside of work?
Example 1on1 Template
Please feel free to use this template, update it to your own needs, or start entirely from scratch. Link Here.
