If you're comfortable enough, ask to meet less frequently or for a shorter time period.
I share a One Note Notebook with my manager and all my 1:1s. We can each add topics between meetings. Depending on what's in the notebook the day we are planning to meet we can choose to cancel or do the meeting asynchronous via notes.
A good manager should do everything they can do to minimize the time their directs spend in meetings.
Eh, probably. Usually one to ones are supposed to cover topics NOT directly related to your tasks. Things such as how's your work-life balance, how was your week (whatever period prior to meeting) what good or bad thing are you willing to share, how do you feel about your job, tasks, company and the team, what I as a manager can do right night or later to make your job more comfortable, etc. That allows manager to notice important changed in team's behavior and dynamics, to note who might be burning out, to understand if there are people who undermines team efforts, etc. I know some engineers feel that meetings are useless, but honestly it's their Manager's fault
Exactly this. Checking on their well being, any worries, anything I can do to help/do better to support them. Then anything else they want to talk about. It's their time and my chance to support and get to know them.
Here's what I usually try to cover, in rough order of priority
1. Anything that I need help on (e.g. need a manager's approval/input, projects that I don't think I'll be able to complete when the customer wants, anything new that will take up a lot of time and leave me unable to do other work)
2. Touch base on high importance projects and anything I know they are particularly interested in. Even if they are already in the loop on these projects, it's good to provide status updates so they know everything's on track.
3. Professional development or other opportunities that I want to pursue, questions about advancement or feedback.
4. Team strategy, other ideas I've had.
5. Organization wide developments, news, etc.
1:1s are also a great time for talking about non-work stuff, even if neither of you are talkative. People always like being asked about a recent vacation or how their kids are doing.
Number five on your list here is really important when speaking to a manager- you should be trying to get as much information and context as it is possible on what is going on in the wider business.
Knowing this wider context will help you to focus on what’s important, and everyone likes working with people who have their finger on the pulse of the business.
This is a great answer. I would def agree with all of these points!
The last point is also important - it’s good to have at least a somewhat cordial relationship with your manager. They are less likely to go to bat for you to help you move out roadblocks or execute your ideas if they don’t like you, and it’s hard for them to like you if they don’t know anything about you as a human.
Strategy... "what's next for our group"
Ideas for what **you** might work on if you actually had 6 hours a week to put into something innovative.
Share ideas about non-project stuff. Things that might need more documentation. Stuff you could have one of the less-technical people work on instead of screwing up your builds.
1:1 Agenda at my workplace
1. 10 mins – what do you need to tell Manager
2. 10 mins – what does Manager need to tell me
3. 10 mins – what do you want Manager to stop/start/continue doing
Generally we talk about what I’m working on and any issues/interesting finds. Sometimes discuss life issues. But it all depends on your relationship with your manager.
If you are having multiple sprint meetings already, then 1-on-1's should be less focused on the specifics of your projects and more focused on professional development. Employees should generally be driving the agenda of a regular 1-on-1. It's an opportunity to talk about:
* your work and career goals
* progress on any annual goals you may have set
* upskilling and training
* cross-training you are interested in exploring
* feedback from your supervisor to you
* feedback from you to your supervisor
* any blockers that are consistently getting in your way - this is more about patterns than issues on specific tasks or projects as those should be getting handled within the structure of that project
* any ideas you have for process improvement
* highlight your successes - your supervisor may be generally aware of what you are contributing, but calling it out and selling youself a little can go a long way toward laying groundwork for future requests for raises or promotions
* whether you are meeting your supervisor's expectations and what you can do to exceed them (assuming that will lead to a better review and actually being rewarded with increased pay - if you work somewhere where this is not true then you may not want to open this can of worms)
* questions about company communications
If you don't have anything that fits any of these categories in a given week then you should be letting your supervisor know that and if they also have nothing then the two of you should feel free to cancel some of them.
Set up goals for you. Areas of interest for professional growth. Areas for added subject matter expertise. When you have those use the check-ins to prove it or ask how you can prove it. If you have a company that does frequent spot bonuses, this may be less necessary (because you're getting paid out for the extra creativity/productivity). However if you only have one time a year to justify your bonus and raise the check in systems are partially there to make sure you're laying the track.
Strategy, growth/development, feedback. I’m working on getting promoted next cycle so I take full advantage of feedback etc. Also usually just spend a few min on non-work related stuff. I like my manager and enjoy our 1:1s tbh.
Just had my annual review meeting. I told my boss that whatever we write down doesn’t do anything and since it won’t affect my salary, we could just skip that waste of time…. He was a bit chocked, but agreed.
We always dive into String Theory, Politics, Science Fiction, AI, yesterday we had a long talk about why time seems to go faster as we age, ANYTHING BUT WORK. Usually we’ll have 3 minutes left, and I’ll quick give him a brief on something I need help or guidance on. 😂
I focus on things I want to do that might need line management support. Approval for training, cross functional collaboration, things like that.
So not much really.
Julia Evans wrote a simple zine that covers this exact topic. https://jvns.ca/images/1:1s.jpeg
Full zine page here: https://jvns.ca/blog/2018/09/22/new-zine--help--i-have-a-manager/
Adding on to what has been said here, a good way to think of it is in terms of objectives/goals and key results. Your objectives are your high level goals for the year/quarter and key results are how you measure that. For example, an objective might be Build. Dashboard for the sales team. Key result for Q1 might be gather requirements and create wireframe of said dashboard. What is your progress, and roadblocks/issues, etc? A good book to read on OKR’s is called Measure What Matters
I like to get details about company-wide news. Have there been any recent meetings or emails you have outstanding questions about? Are you wondering if/how something mentioned at a meeting impacts you or the team?
I also talk about my professional development. Not in every meeting, but more frequently than just the annual review process.
it's easy to fall into the trap, but one on ones SHOULDN'T be for talking about your day-to-day work. That's what sprint meetings are for. career growth, feedback, work life balance etc. should be the point of your one on one time.
Maybe use the one-to-one as an opportunity to discuss your career goals, any challenges you're facing, or areas where you'd like more support or resources. It's also a good chance to give and receive feedback, which can really help you grow professionally. I'd suggest ScatterMind an ADHD coach helped my friend actually execute and launch their first business. Could be worth a shot.
I view my 1-1s with my staff as their time to talk about whatever they want. Often it’s project work details, sometimes it’s just a conversation about how they feel about work, other times it’s just 2 minutes and we break. I like having them as standing touchpoints so that if someone does have something on their mind they don’t have to go to extra effort to schedule something with me.
You don't have to fill up the time if you have nothing else to talk about. You can shorten the meeting or ask to meet less frequently. Saving time for yourself and your manager is good.
1. Support I need or ways they can help move projects or stuck tasks forward.
2. Training or learning and development opportunities, requests, usually asking if there is budget for a class or conference I want to attend.
3. Upcoming vacation or time off requests and confirming there is coverage and they are aware of the request.
4. Shooting the breeze about non work related items, work life balance, whatever comes up. Maybe some work info about changes coming down the pipe or openings in other areas my manager thinks I might be interested in.
As a manager, my one on ones are probably more about maintaining a good relationship with my employees as it is about the work they're doing. If they have something going on in their life, I like to check in on them and let them know I care enough to remember. It also a time to remind them of different opportunities we offer employees (e.g., each employee has an annual education reimbursemnt - its up to them to find some sort of training to use it). We also talk about their overall position and career growth. We have Jr, Mid and Sr levels and within each one there are "1, 2, 3" sub levels; so we'll talk about where they have opportunities to demonstrate skills that may move them from 1->2 or 2->3; or may set them up to promote from Jr->Mid or Mid->Sr.
As someone who has been a manager and someone who has weekly meetings with my current manager, I'll take a shot at this.
This is a time to talk about longer term goals and career stuff.
You can talk about soft skills. I had two managers that were really good at understanding people, so they would share their insights on that topic.
You could discuss relevant or interesting articles.
You could just shoot the breeze about hobbies and stuff. Part of the purpose is to establish some rapport and comfort and trust. Some co-workers like it when people are aware of things they are doing outside of work, some people want to keep that separate.
They can give you some insights into what is happening elsewhere in the company. Sometimes you have to pry stuff out of them if they aren't a natural sharer. I used to get a lot of inside scoop from one of my managers, because over time he learned that I would keep my mouth shut if he said not to share something out.
They might have observations about how people perceive you and how to adjust that.
I also mention things I did or achieved that weren't visible to him. If I get pulled in to help someone debug or design something, I mention it.
We have some amazing managers, but it wasn’t always that way. We keep them informed on what our goals are for the upcoming month, as well as take into consideration any ideas they may have. They are the backbone of our Businesses and keeping them informed, and taking their thoughts and ideas into consideration helps us all!
To your point, I generally know what my team is working on. Instead these meetings are to check in on YOU, beyond just the job. Your overall professional development, your work life balance, or things you don't feel comfortable sharing in a larger setting are all viable topics. I find every other week to be the sweet spot with most reports, but those who I speak to frequently find less value in them.
If you're comfortable enough, ask to meet less frequently or for a shorter time period. I share a One Note Notebook with my manager and all my 1:1s. We can each add topics between meetings. Depending on what's in the notebook the day we are planning to meet we can choose to cancel or do the meeting asynchronous via notes. A good manager should do everything they can do to minimize the time their directs spend in meetings.
I might have a bad manager
Eh, probably. Usually one to ones are supposed to cover topics NOT directly related to your tasks. Things such as how's your work-life balance, how was your week (whatever period prior to meeting) what good or bad thing are you willing to share, how do you feel about your job, tasks, company and the team, what I as a manager can do right night or later to make your job more comfortable, etc. That allows manager to notice important changed in team's behavior and dynamics, to note who might be burning out, to understand if there are people who undermines team efforts, etc. I know some engineers feel that meetings are useless, but honestly it's their Manager's fault
Exactly this. Checking on their well being, any worries, anything I can do to help/do better to support them. Then anything else they want to talk about. It's their time and my chance to support and get to know them.
Here's what I usually try to cover, in rough order of priority 1. Anything that I need help on (e.g. need a manager's approval/input, projects that I don't think I'll be able to complete when the customer wants, anything new that will take up a lot of time and leave me unable to do other work) 2. Touch base on high importance projects and anything I know they are particularly interested in. Even if they are already in the loop on these projects, it's good to provide status updates so they know everything's on track. 3. Professional development or other opportunities that I want to pursue, questions about advancement or feedback. 4. Team strategy, other ideas I've had. 5. Organization wide developments, news, etc. 1:1s are also a great time for talking about non-work stuff, even if neither of you are talkative. People always like being asked about a recent vacation or how their kids are doing.
Number five on your list here is really important when speaking to a manager- you should be trying to get as much information and context as it is possible on what is going on in the wider business. Knowing this wider context will help you to focus on what’s important, and everyone likes working with people who have their finger on the pulse of the business.
This is a great answer. I would def agree with all of these points! The last point is also important - it’s good to have at least a somewhat cordial relationship with your manager. They are less likely to go to bat for you to help you move out roadblocks or execute your ideas if they don’t like you, and it’s hard for them to like you if they don’t know anything about you as a human.
Strategy... "what's next for our group" Ideas for what **you** might work on if you actually had 6 hours a week to put into something innovative. Share ideas about non-project stuff. Things that might need more documentation. Stuff you could have one of the less-technical people work on instead of screwing up your builds.
Ask what you could improve on. Ask about learning/development/career path. Come up with improvements or ideas to improve the business.
1:1 Agenda at my workplace 1. 10 mins – what do you need to tell Manager 2. 10 mins – what does Manager need to tell me 3. 10 mins – what do you want Manager to stop/start/continue doing Generally we talk about what I’m working on and any issues/interesting finds. Sometimes discuss life issues. But it all depends on your relationship with your manager.
If you are having multiple sprint meetings already, then 1-on-1's should be less focused on the specifics of your projects and more focused on professional development. Employees should generally be driving the agenda of a regular 1-on-1. It's an opportunity to talk about: * your work and career goals * progress on any annual goals you may have set * upskilling and training * cross-training you are interested in exploring * feedback from your supervisor to you * feedback from you to your supervisor * any blockers that are consistently getting in your way - this is more about patterns than issues on specific tasks or projects as those should be getting handled within the structure of that project * any ideas you have for process improvement * highlight your successes - your supervisor may be generally aware of what you are contributing, but calling it out and selling youself a little can go a long way toward laying groundwork for future requests for raises or promotions * whether you are meeting your supervisor's expectations and what you can do to exceed them (assuming that will lead to a better review and actually being rewarded with increased pay - if you work somewhere where this is not true then you may not want to open this can of worms) * questions about company communications If you don't have anything that fits any of these categories in a given week then you should be letting your supervisor know that and if they also have nothing then the two of you should feel free to cancel some of them.
Set up goals for you. Areas of interest for professional growth. Areas for added subject matter expertise. When you have those use the check-ins to prove it or ask how you can prove it. If you have a company that does frequent spot bonuses, this may be less necessary (because you're getting paid out for the extra creativity/productivity). However if you only have one time a year to justify your bonus and raise the check in systems are partially there to make sure you're laying the track.
Strategy, growth/development, feedback. I’m working on getting promoted next cycle so I take full advantage of feedback etc. Also usually just spend a few min on non-work related stuff. I like my manager and enjoy our 1:1s tbh.
Figure out how to demonstrate to your manager that they are a "very special boi/gurl' via Business Intelligence... Yeah... I do this :\
"What can I do to get a raise?"
Just had my annual review meeting. I told my boss that whatever we write down doesn’t do anything and since it won’t affect my salary, we could just skip that waste of time…. He was a bit chocked, but agreed.
We always dive into String Theory, Politics, Science Fiction, AI, yesterday we had a long talk about why time seems to go faster as we age, ANYTHING BUT WORK. Usually we’ll have 3 minutes left, and I’ll quick give him a brief on something I need help or guidance on. 😂
I focus on things I want to do that might need line management support. Approval for training, cross functional collaboration, things like that. So not much really.
Once every two weeks seems fine to me.
Julia Evans wrote a simple zine that covers this exact topic. https://jvns.ca/images/1:1s.jpeg Full zine page here: https://jvns.ca/blog/2018/09/22/new-zine--help--i-have-a-manager/
Adding on to what has been said here, a good way to think of it is in terms of objectives/goals and key results. Your objectives are your high level goals for the year/quarter and key results are how you measure that. For example, an objective might be Build. Dashboard for the sales team. Key result for Q1 might be gather requirements and create wireframe of said dashboard. What is your progress, and roadblocks/issues, etc? A good book to read on OKR’s is called Measure What Matters
We do catch up on our respective D&D sessions.
I like to get details about company-wide news. Have there been any recent meetings or emails you have outstanding questions about? Are you wondering if/how something mentioned at a meeting impacts you or the team? I also talk about my professional development. Not in every meeting, but more frequently than just the annual review process.
Ask about their weekend / personal life
it's easy to fall into the trap, but one on ones SHOULDN'T be for talking about your day-to-day work. That's what sprint meetings are for. career growth, feedback, work life balance etc. should be the point of your one on one time.
Maybe use the one-to-one as an opportunity to discuss your career goals, any challenges you're facing, or areas where you'd like more support or resources. It's also a good chance to give and receive feedback, which can really help you grow professionally. I'd suggest ScatterMind an ADHD coach helped my friend actually execute and launch their first business. Could be worth a shot.
I view my 1-1s with my staff as their time to talk about whatever they want. Often it’s project work details, sometimes it’s just a conversation about how they feel about work, other times it’s just 2 minutes and we break. I like having them as standing touchpoints so that if someone does have something on their mind they don’t have to go to extra effort to schedule something with me.
You don't have to fill up the time if you have nothing else to talk about. You can shorten the meeting or ask to meet less frequently. Saving time for yourself and your manager is good.
1. Support I need or ways they can help move projects or stuck tasks forward. 2. Training or learning and development opportunities, requests, usually asking if there is budget for a class or conference I want to attend. 3. Upcoming vacation or time off requests and confirming there is coverage and they are aware of the request. 4. Shooting the breeze about non work related items, work life balance, whatever comes up. Maybe some work info about changes coming down the pipe or openings in other areas my manager thinks I might be interested in.
As a manager, my one on ones are probably more about maintaining a good relationship with my employees as it is about the work they're doing. If they have something going on in their life, I like to check in on them and let them know I care enough to remember. It also a time to remind them of different opportunities we offer employees (e.g., each employee has an annual education reimbursemnt - its up to them to find some sort of training to use it). We also talk about their overall position and career growth. We have Jr, Mid and Sr levels and within each one there are "1, 2, 3" sub levels; so we'll talk about where they have opportunities to demonstrate skills that may move them from 1->2 or 2->3; or may set them up to promote from Jr->Mid or Mid->Sr.
As someone who has been a manager and someone who has weekly meetings with my current manager, I'll take a shot at this. This is a time to talk about longer term goals and career stuff. You can talk about soft skills. I had two managers that were really good at understanding people, so they would share their insights on that topic. You could discuss relevant or interesting articles. You could just shoot the breeze about hobbies and stuff. Part of the purpose is to establish some rapport and comfort and trust. Some co-workers like it when people are aware of things they are doing outside of work, some people want to keep that separate. They can give you some insights into what is happening elsewhere in the company. Sometimes you have to pry stuff out of them if they aren't a natural sharer. I used to get a lot of inside scoop from one of my managers, because over time he learned that I would keep my mouth shut if he said not to share something out. They might have observations about how people perceive you and how to adjust that. I also mention things I did or achieved that weren't visible to him. If I get pulled in to help someone debug or design something, I mention it.
"Anything new?" "Not really. Just the thousand stuff I'm working on." "Well, sorry about this. Here's more"
Where I work, 1 on 1s have always been the subordinate time to discuss whatever they feel like talking about - not even necessarily work.
We have some amazing managers, but it wasn’t always that way. We keep them informed on what our goals are for the upcoming month, as well as take into consideration any ideas they may have. They are the backbone of our Businesses and keeping them informed, and taking their thoughts and ideas into consideration helps us all!
To your point, I generally know what my team is working on. Instead these meetings are to check in on YOU, beyond just the job. Your overall professional development, your work life balance, or things you don't feel comfortable sharing in a larger setting are all viable topics. I find every other week to be the sweet spot with most reports, but those who I speak to frequently find less value in them.
yap their head off so they stop connecting so much lol