Run 1-1s
Approach
- Meetings should have agendas. This document is our place to create a relevant agenda for our 1-1 time each \
- I want you to derive as much value as possible and I am here having these meetings to support you and help you be maximally successful
Default Agenda
- Discuss whatever is on your mind
- There isn't always a formal forum for certain kinds of contributions. You have the floor. You and everyone on our team should feel and be heard
- Share organizational updates and provide any new context we have on our business
- Gather and share feedback on people, processes
- Address any problems we're detecting
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Rotating Topics:
- Goal Setting & Career planning
- Process improvement, blue sky and blindspot brainstorming
- Feedback for me
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This particular meeting is a dedicated place for
- You to:
- Highlight challenges you’re facing
- Discuss personal issues like career development or interpersonal friction
- Bring up bottlenecks, risk areas, and new ideas
- Show off personal wins
- Express whatever else is on your mind
- Provide candid feedback to me:
- What can I be doing better for you? For the org? For anything?
- What would best enable you?
- Me to:
- Learn about problems from the front lines
- And hopefully help resolve them
- Express concerns
- Get to know you, your goals, and help you as best I can
- Define areas for professional growth
- Management (people, time, etc)
- Communication
- Ownership (mistakes, deliveries, etc)
- Skill gaps
- Risk taking (too much, too little)
- Keep you in the loop on major developments
- Facilitate alignment
- Share context
- Learn about problems from the front lines
- You to:
- Do not feel like you should wait for this meeting to discuss any of these items, I’d prefer issues be discussed immediately.
Why do we need to do this?
Happiness, Retention
You're working for our company, but our company should also be working for you. I want this to be a place you want to be, somewhere you can thrive. This meeting drives that agenda.
Alignment
Keeping everyone running the same direction by providing context
Pushing for greatness
Constant feedback and improvement cycles
Getting to know you
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What are your personal goals and aspirations?
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What are your goals in your current position?
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How do you like to receive praise? What's the most meaningful recognition you've ever received?
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How do you learn? Have you had mentors or coaches you've loved before? What worked for them? Are there specific things you'd like to learn?
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What motivates you?
Some sample topics we might discuss
Sample topics:
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Work habits and employee performance
- Which time of day do you feel most productive?
- What changes could be made so you can optimize your day?
- What are your biggest time wasters right now?
- Are you encountering any roadblocks and if so, what are they?
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Team collaboration
- Who inspires you in the team? Why?
- Would you like to receive more feedback from other team members?
- Do you feel comfortable giving feedback to others?
- Do you have any suggestions for improvement in the way we work together?
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Levels of engagement
- What in particular do you enjoy about working here?
- What do you least prefer doing and why?
- What keeps you engaged and inspired at work?
- Do you have any concerns when it comes to your role or career opportunities?
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Short & long-term performance goals
- How are you progressing on your goals? Do you need any help?
- Are you facing any bottlenecks? What might help remove them?
- How have you determined your longer term goals?
- Which part of your job do you feel is the most relevant to your long-term goals?
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Professional development goals and plan
- How do you like to learn?
- What are some skills you would like to develop?
- Do you find feedback helpful for your personal development?
- Would you benefit from more coaching?
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Manager improvement
- How can I better support you in your job?
- What would you say are key qualities of my management style?
- On the other hand, what qualities do you think I should improve as a manager?