1-on-1 meetings

You should read some of our guides like common 1-on-1 mistakes & best questions to get into details. But in summary, it really boils down to a few tips that you should always keep in mind.

Tips for effective one on one meetings (detailed guides below)

• Ensure proper documentation - Note down the minutes of the meeting in an exhaustive manner. This not only removes any confusions, but is also a good remote work practice
• Always follow up - A good manager ensures that any action items from the last meeting are discussed and resolved! Not doing so is a sure shot way to break trust with your team members.
• Pre book the calendar - Set up recurring calendar events to ensure that other priorities do not take over! The manager cancelling the meeting is never a good show.
• Do them at least once in two weeks - Please ensure that you do 1-on-1 meetings at least twice a month.
• It's the reportees meeting - Encourage the team member to setup an agenda for the meeting by sending talking points in advance.

What is a one on one meeting

The definition is pretty obvious here, right? But if you are a newly promoted manager, the prospect of doing 1 on 1 meetings can be daunting! In theory it's pretty simple - this is a meeting you do with every individual team member who reports to you!

The purpose of one on one meetings

As a leader, you should utilise this meeting to:

• Align the team member - with current projects, goals and progress of the company. Remove any roadblocks they might have, inspire them about the larger vision and ensure that they have full clarity on their work.
• Find signals of low morale - Identifying low employee motivation is an important way to find out if anyone is feeling down! 
• Build trust - resolve any past feedback they have given you, and remove roadblocks in their current work
• Build their career development plan - I have seen that a lot of managers skip out on this, but it can be the difference between being a good vs a great leader. By helping your team members visualise their future, and how it fits into your company / team is a great way to build a happy team