The 1:1: The Most Important Meeting You're In

At the heart of every business there are relationships that are essential for a business to function properly. Without strong relationships between managers and their reports, productivity and retention suffer and so does the business.

So, what’s the most effective way to communicate and build a strong working relationship? It’s the 1:1.

Sure, there are team meetings, group emails, individual emails, and instant messaging. Now more than ever there more ways for us to communicate with each other. However, the value of these connections isn’t equal. None of these have the impact of a good 1:1 meeting.

In my experience working with leaders at all levels, these meetings tend to default into a casual check-in. They'll talk with their direct report about their to-do list but not much else. This isn’t enough. With your 1:1s, you need to have a standard mechanism to align on goals, drive performance, and unlock potential.

1:1s Are Ideal for Career Development

The data shows a major reason valued employees leave their organization is lack of development opportunities. When an employee feels like they don’t have development options, leaving becomes the obvious solution to career advancement. When managers aren’t discussing goals and advancement opportunities in their 1:1s, they’re leaving it up for interpretation. This means that they might not know about their report’s goals, resulting their report missing out on development opportunities.

When it comes to managing someone effectively, it’s essential you understand their goals and what’s driving them. This conversation shouldn’t just be once a year during their performance review—it should be ongoing during your 1:1s.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wPeCtYZ3CA&t=1s

Great 1:1s Involve Feedback

A complaint I've been hearing a lot recently is from employees getting put on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) when they didn’t know they were underperforming. What I've witnessed is that most managers only talk about development or performance when it’s the month of annual performance reviews mandated by HR.

In most cases, someone being surprised by being put on a PIP is a managerial issue. When a manager and their report are having effective 1:1s, there is no mystery surrounding how they’re performing.

Constructive feedback should be a part of all your 1:1s, even if there aren’t major performance issues. This is how you empower your employees to improve and grow in their position. When combined with understanding their goals, your 1:1s will be much more impactful.

Imagine this: In your 1:1 you define what success looks like for their role and where they are against that definition. Now you can have an objective conversation on performance throughout the year. If they're doing great, they know it. If they're not doing great, it’s not a surprise. These conversations now become less stressful for everyone. This also leads to great conversations on how you can help each other, remove roadblocks, and find new opportunities for growth.

Redefining Your 1:1s

Taking a moment to zoom out, these little changes to your 1:1 meetings tell your team members that you prioritize growth, development, and performance. The result of this over a long period is a growth mindset culture.

There are a lot more tips and techniques for evolving your 1:1s to focus on positive growth. If you'd like to discuss 1:1s or other leadership and communication training options, reach out to us here. We’d love to hear from you.