Team member one-on-ones (also called one-to-ones and 1:1s) are the most direct contacts that managers will have with their direct reports. As regular meetings, one-on-ones give managers a tool they can use to effectively guide their direct reports and improve employee engagement. However, if not properly utilized, one-on-ones can seem like a considerable waste of time.
Using a Coaching Leadership Management (CLM) approach to one-on-ones helps to make sure that you are using the time properly. CLM means emphasizing the development of your employees as individuals, not just as team members. It means prioritizing their personal growth. This will have benefits within the organization and for your employees’ entire lives. Here’s how to utilize CLM to improve your one-on-ones.
All effective meetings depend on proper preparation. If you’re not doing your homework in advance of the meeting, you can’t expect it to go well. This means more than cribbing for 15 minutes before the meeting. Here are the steps to take before your one-on-ones.
To make one-on-ones an effective managerial tool, you need to conduct them regularly. How regularly? The conventional wisdom is that you should have a 30-minute one-on-one with each employee each week.
However, the best timing of one-on-ones depends on the specifics of your organization and its workflow. For example, if your team uses scrum or another agile framework that has a regular cadence, it might make sense to schedule your one-on-ones according to that cadence.
In CLM, the goal is that each one-on-one should build on the previous work, encouraging growth in your direct reports meeting by meeting. To make sure you’re doing this, take the time to go over your notes from the previous meeting. This should include both the notes you share with them and your personal notes. That way, you can remind yourself of the progress you have made and hope to make in the future.
Effective one-on-ones are structured. This means that there should be a clear agenda for each meeting. Check the next section for suggestions about what to include. However, make sure you’re not scheduling every single minute of the meeting. Leave time for spontaneity but also make sure that there is scheduled time for both people to speak.
One common recommendation is that one-on-ones should be employee-led. This can be an important CLM milestone. You initially run the meetings yourself but turn over the agenda-setting to your direct reports when they are ready. Having authority over the meeting can improve employee engagement both in the meeting and outside of it.
Once you get into the meeting, proper execution will help you achieve your goals. It’s important to strike a tone that is professional, but more personal than most interactions between a manager and a direct report. Even if you are setting the agenda for the meeting, make sure that you are giving enough space during the meeting for your employee to speak their piece.
As we noted above, one-on-ones should be more personal interactions than most. In CLM, the goal is to see individual, personal development from your direct reports, and that means interacting with them at a human level. Connecting with them at a human level will improve employee engagement, but also make sure the conversation remains professional.
One of the critical strategies for maintaining growth among employees is to set measurable goals with specific time frames. You should always follow up on goals from previous one-on-ones. However, it’s not always critical to follow up on every goal at every one-on-one. Set time frames that make sense for the project. For example, if a goal has a completion timeframe of six months, you might check in once a month to make sure they’re making progress.
If your direct report has made a significant achievement since the last one-one-one, make sure you acknowledge that. CLM means not only encouraging your direct reports to do their best, but also giving credit when they make noteworthy achievements.
One important aspect of the one-on-one is giving your direct reports an opportunity to offer feedback on the company’s performance. This should include feedback on your performance. It’s a great opportunity to lead by example, accepting criticism in an honest, open-minded way. In your one-on-ones, you should encourage feedback about the entire organization and develop an atmosphere of trust where people know that the comments they make won’t be attached to them or lead to reprisals.
Encouraging feedback and acting on it can improve employee engagement as well as introduce suggestions that improve the entire organization.
Before you end the meeting, you need to set goals for future progress. Proper goals should be 1) measurable and 2) time stamped. Along with the date for achieving the goal, you should talk about what time frame makes sense for subsequent follow-ups.
The work isn’t done once the meeting is complete. There are still a few things to do to make sure you have gotten full value from this one-on-one.
During the one-on-one, you should take notes. If you find that taking notes is too distracting, ask permission to record the conversation and take only minimal notes during the meeting, fleshing them out afterwards.
Some of the notes are for your reference, but some of them should be shared with your direct report. Make sure the shared notes include all assessments of progress and any goals you set during the meeting. Ask your direct report to confirm that the notes are accurate and complete.
At some point between this one-on-one and the next, make a personal follow-up with your direct report about some non-work-related item from your meeting. It could be a plan they were looking forward to, for example, or a family difficulty, for example. Following up shows that you listened and that you care, and this can make a big impact on employee engagement. This should be a brief, casual interaction.
In addition to a personal follow-up, you should schedule one or more follow-ups related to goals you established during the meeting. This can either be scheduled during one of your one-on-ones or it can be a separate meeting, if appropriate.
While the advice above is relatively practical and straightforward, it can often be challenging to implement with your management team. Effective employee one-on-ones can often be difficult for many managers, and the proper coaching is required to ensure these meetings are productive for everyone involved and help facilitate their intended growth. Often, it can be helpful to work with a third party who can help coach you on the employee one-on-one process.
PassioHR is a PEO company providing comprehensive services to small and medium-sized businesses. As part of our robust employee engagement services, we regularly help our clients structure and refine their employee one-on-ones, ensuring they are beneficial to your managers, your team and the overall success of your business.
With our unique Elevated Engagement Plus™ Approach, we can help your company create an effective employee engagement program that includes numerous effective elements, including one-on-ones focused on CLM. We start by assessing your needs and discussing your company’s unique culture and workforce dynamic in detail. This helps us to develop a customized package of services that is ideally suited to your company’s current needs, workflow, and growth goals.
Passio HR can be your one-stop shop for all your HR-related services. To learn how we can help your company succeed, please contact us today for a consultation.
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