1-2-1 Meetings: How and why

“Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people”

-William Butler Yeats

Those Yeats words always pop into my head when I am holding a team meeting or a
1-2-1. In these meetings, what is the message that I want to communicate to the
team or an individual? Managers have a tenancy to think large scale, so when
communicating with your people keep it simple in a language they will understand.

In order to effectively communicate and develop a team, a manager needs to set-up

regular team and 1-2-1 meetings. The focus of this article will be on the 1-2-1
meeting.

All the management books and management experts will tell you the benefits of 1-2-
1’s - that a 30-minute 1-2-1 session will allow you to give feedback on the employee’s
performance, provide them with encouragement in their work, discuss the
employee’s career and finally the employee can provide feedback to you on your
performance as their manager. Also, these 1-2-1 sessions can uncover conflict or
unhappiness with fellow colleagues or their work.

 So why do managers resist these 1-2-1’s? Some of the excuses HR regularly hear
from managers for not having 1-2-1 meetings are:

 “I don’t have enough time to complete those 1-2-1’s”

 “My client meeting and objectives are more important than
these 1-2-1 meetings”
 “The employee never takes notes or appears uninterested”
 “I am always speaking to my team”

In order to overcome those common complaints, there are the 5 golden rules I give
to managers to assist them with conducting 1-2-1’s with their employees:

1. Schedule them regularly.

2. Agenda
3. Two-way conversation.
4. Accountability
5. Don’t Cancel.
To be an effective manager, it is necessary to schedule those pesky 1-2-1 meetings.

1. Schedule them regularly:

Like a good exercise regime, you must stick to the plan for it to be effective. This
applies to 1-2-1’s too. So, plan, depending on the size of your team, to either
schedule them bi-weekly or once a month. Send out the calendar invite to your
employee and put a reminder on the invite.

The meeting length is up to you, an effective 1-2-1, usually will last 30 minutes
approximately. If the employee and you stick to the schedule, it will result in items
being progressed efficiently.

2. Agenda:

An agenda is critical for the 1-2-1 to be structured and effective for both parties. The
agenda ensures both parties in the meeting know what their respective role is, and
what the action points for discussion are during the meeting. A sample agenda
could be:

 Review action items from previous 1-2-1;

 Employee to discuss one success;
 Employee to discuss one challenge (and how they overcame
it);
 Review current projects – discuss blockers and actions;
 Employee AOB; 

3. Two-way conversation:

The purpose of the 1-2-1 is a conversation about the person’s performance and
career. The 1-2-1 is a safe space where you can get to know the employee. Who is
this person reporting into me? What are their goals and aspirations with work?
What training do they require, if any? During the 1-2-1 you need to be open to
feedback from your employee. It is a two-way conversation.

My old boss told me that a good 1-2-1 is like a conversation. In order for the
conversation to flow, think about what you would like to say to the employee and
prepare a list. The employee will take your lead. So, if you are prepared the
employee will (hopefully) come prepared and ready too.
During the 1-2-1, you need to provide the employee with opportunity to speak. Tell
your employee that the meeting is a safe environment and encourage them to be
open and honest with you. This may take time but the investment will be worth it. 

4. Accountability:

In order for a 1-2-1 to be successful, both parties will need to ensure they follow up
on their action points. If both parties are prepared and have done their homework it
will result in a powerful and a productive meeting.

As a manager if you have follow-up action items from the 1-2-1, get them done and
ensure you update the employee. This will show the employee you are serious about
the 1-2-1. A good practice is to have a 1-2-1 folder on a shared drive, both parties can
access the action items and minutes of the meeting. After each meeting, send a
meeting summing up the meeting and the link to the action items on the shared
drive. 

5. Don’t cancel:

It is essential that managers do not cancel these meetings. As a manger, there will
be multiple priorities screaming for your attention. However, the 1-2-1’s are critical
to building a relationship with your employee. If you have to cancel, ensure that you
reschedule the meeting to the following day. A frequent complaint I have heard
from employees is that “my manager is always cancelling my 1-2-1 meetings” or “my
manager is not serious about the meeting”. 

The 1-2-1 is just as important as managing a client, invest the time so you can reap
the benefits in the long-term.

If you are a manager and you have employees reporting into you will find that
following these 5 golden rules that it will become easier to provide constructive
feedback and to address issues before they become big problems as you have set
aside time for the discussion. So get scheduling those 1-2-1 meetings.