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I rarely have found 1-1s 'effective', and I've experienced them in four different companies. In stints as a manager, I never have them. First: like all managem
by stakkur 5y ago
I rarely have found 1-1s 'effective', and I've experienced them in four different companies. In stints as a manager, I never have them.
First: like all management, their usefulness depends utterly on how effective the manager is. In my experience, most managers just use them to 'chat'. Which is invariably a waste of both our times.
Second: Most things I want to talk to a manager about, I can talk about anytime. We just talk as the need arises. In my experience, most managers schedule them 'just so we have available time', which really means "I don't have time unless you're on my calendar".
To be an effective manager, I need them to be available, to communicate well, to listen, and to give me feedback and guidance based on what they hear. And that has nothing to do with a regular '1-1' meeting.
- AlwaysRock 5y agoBut are most managers available? That is the last word I think of when I think of managers in general. Maybe available in an emergency but what about when I want to ask questions that are relevant to my career/the company/technology but not directly relevant to my/our current task or goal? I wouldnt really expect my manager to drop everything Monday morning to talk to me about that unless I know I had a weekly scheduled time to do so.
- _y5hn 5y agoIf managers are not available to manage the business, what are they really doing??
- AlwaysRock 5y agoI guess the word manage could mean a lot of things but I don't expect my manager to be able to drop everything else to answer any question I have. I don't honestly believe many people think that is what a manager should do. So when should I ask my questions? If urgent, now. If not, during our 1 on 1.