An easy guide for meaningful and effective 1:1s with your team
The check-in. This simple often overlooked management practice holds the potential to revolutionize work together in unexpected ways. Here is a fresh structure to help you ROCK check-ins with your team.
It’s not magic, it’s consistency.
Step one for awesome check-ins with your people is CONSISTENCY. You need consistent rhythms to build momentum and accountability with your team. Especially in high-paced, high-stress teams, we need to check in on goals, progress, and issues at regular intervals in order to not run off the rails or lose sight of the important in favor of the urgent. Here are the rhythms I recommend:
- Yearly Review – high level review of contributions and time to set career goals
- Monthly – use one of your weekly check-ins to review and set goals and check-in on career development
- Weekly – utilize the Mastering the 1:1 PDF
Micro *Meaningful* Management
Checking in will not feel like micromanagement if we make the interaction meaningful for our people. This may feel like it takes time we do not have, but in the end this structure can SAVE us time by preventing miscommunication and fueling more engaged and productive work.
The Art of the 1:1
Take the guesswork out of your 1:1s and download AGC’s Mastering the 1:1 pdf for easy to follow prompts for each section. The basic structure and key components are below, spend at least 30 minutes, take notes, and revisit prior to the next check in.
- Connection – How are they outside of work? As the saying goes, people do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.
- Status updates – Where are we at on key projects and what issues have arisen?
- Goal progress – Are quarterly goals on track or off track?
- Issues / Coaching areas – Discussion and coaching around project issues or off-track goals.
- Action items – What will they do? When will they do it? How will you know?
- Development – At the first 1:1 of each month, check in on the employees career development goals
1:1 Secret Sauce
While mastering the WHAT of the 1:1, it is imperative to remember the HOW. The secret sauce of all your check ins = the quality of your presence.
Maya Angelou is famous for saying, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
How you show up with your people will speak volumes to them. Being fully present and listening to understand will make your team feel seen, heard, and empowered.
By Kat Schulte, AG Collaborative
Click here for more News & Resources.