The 4 keys to running effective One on Ones
As the company passes 25 employees something happens, there are changes in how people communicate, how processes work and how people deal with a more structured organization. Creating a communication architecture that keeps the company efficient should be the priority of a G-CEO (Gazelle CEO). Effective One on One meetings are structured meetings that allow any manager to know the day to day frustrations, biggest problems, and inefficiencies stopping the employees from performing their best work while also hearing the ideas and improvements the company should be implementing.
Without One on Ones and other communication tools, it is very easy for employees in a company to spend their time fighting bureaucratic systems, broken processes, become demotivated, and not have a clear idea of what is required of them and how they can succeed in the organization. Unless effective One on Ones are implemented most organizations will spiral down this path until they are bad places to work. A G-CEO needs to prevent this.
How to run an effective One on One meeting?
1. It´s the employees meeting
The objetive on an effective One on One is to give an employee the opportunity to share his thoughts and concerns with his manager. It is not the time for the manager to give feedback or go on the offensive. A good One on One meeting has the manager talking 10% of the time and 90% of the time taking notes, probing, understanding and listening.
2. The employee should create an agenda
Any productive meeting requires an agenda. An effective One on One is no different. The employee should prepare the meeting’s agenda beforehand and send them to the manager with enough time to review and prepare for any of them.
3. If the employee does not take the lead, be prepared
In case the employee is not prepared for the meeting the manager should take the initiative in order to draw the key issues like: concerns, frustrations and ideas. As a manager be prepared for One on Ones with a list of optional questions you can ask to draw these key issues.
4. Set a follow up or deliverable if necessary
Many times during a One on One the employee will raise issues that the manager can’t answer during the meeting or issues that give the manager a task or a deliverable. It is very important that after the One on One is finished the manager review these follow ups and deliverables and assign dates for them. Creating dates and setting milestones will make the manager accountable to the employee.
Effective One on One are at the cornerstone of a good communication architecture. Implement effective One on Ones and create a great company.
