By Natanya Rutstein
One-on-one meetings are an essential building block of modern performance management and an invaluable tool for creating high-performance teams. These informal and brief weekly check-ins will provide you as manager with the opportunity to get to know your employees as well as demonstrate your commitment to their performance. You will be able to drive the performance and commitment of your team towards individual, team and organisational goals in a way that annual or bi-annual reviews could never accomplish.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the invaluable benefits of holding weekly 1-on-1s with your employees:
1. Enhanced Relationships
They will promote enhanced communication and will give your employees the much-needed “airtime” to share their own ideas as well as receive the feedback they so desperately crave.
According to a 2015 study by TinyPulse 64% of employees surveyed said they wanted their supervisor to check in with them at least every two weeks and 42% of millennials expressed the need for feedback every week.
2. Maximise Productivity
By condensing feedback and the regular follow-up on objectives into a structured 1-on-1 check-in you will be utilising your time far more wisely. The dedicated time given to listening to your employees is also bound to impact positively on their engagement and productivity levels.
3. Team Building and Commitment
Your commitment to regular check-ins will instill both a sense of loyalty and trust in your commitment to their development and ultimately in your leadership and direction of the team.
4. Goal Achievement and Re-alignment
The continuous follow-up on progress towards the achievement of objectives will ensure that employees are on the right track and if not will provide you with the opportunity to guide and coach the employee in adjusting course in accordance with changing circumstances and priorities. You can then jointly discuss and balance organisational requirements with employee needs and together decide on the re-alignment required as well as the next steps which need to be taken.
5. Continuous Improvement and Development
Weekly 1-on-1’s are the perfect opportunity for managers to work on improving coaching skills and providing team members with feedback on their progress towards development goals. These too can be re- aligned with changing organisational priorities and individual employee needs.
So … don’t delay! Take the first step towards modernising the way in which you manage the performance of your team members and watch the positive impact of your commitment unfold.
References:
1. The Only One on One Meeting Checklist You Will Ever Need, https://www.15five.com/blog/one-on-one-meeting-checklist/
2. How to Conduct One-on-One Meetings: Guide for Supervisors, https://hr.smcgov.org/how-conduct-one-one-meetings-guide-supervisors
3. A Manager’s Guide to Successful 1:1 Meetings with Employees, https://www.saba.com/blog/a-managers-guide-to-successful-11-meetings-with-employees
4. The importance of 1:1 meetings — and what you should discuss in them, https://www.tinypulse.com/blog/-importance-of-11-meetings-and-what-you-should-discuss-in-them
5. The real reason why millennials crave feedback in the workplace, https://www.tinypulse.com/blog/sk-the-real-reason-why-millennials-in-the-workplace-crave-feedback-in-the-workplace
