44. The One Meeting You Can't Afford To Do Poorly

A few episodes ago in episode 41, I discussed some practices to hold better 1:1 meetings. On today’s episode, I want to touch on an unintended outcome that could cause you a lot of stress and disruption to your business.

That unintended outcome is what I’m about to share with you regarding the manager and employee meeting.

Let’s say you have a standing 1:1 meeting with one of your team members. 

It’s on the calendar at the same time month after month and perhaps it’s been going for the better part of a year or more.

You hear that other managers are scaling back their 1:1 meetings because we need to be more productive with our time.”

You’ve been a manager for several years and you think you’re pretty much up to speed on what’s going on… and the number of meetings you’re required to be in with upper management keeps increasing.

You hear from your team that they also feel like 1:1 meetings have become stagnant. One of them even called them pointless.

You reflect on how this time used to be more productive, however, over the past six-plus months it’s been very routine… another box to check off.

The update part of your meeting is over in 5 minutes because your questions have boiled down to:

“How is the project coming?”

And you get answers like, “It’s going good.”

You ask, “Is there anything you need from me?”

“Nope. It’s all good.”

So it seems that the two of you are both satisfied with the overall progress. Everything is fine and good…

and since you’re all “so busy with the work,” like the other managers, you make decision to end regular 1:1 employee meetings. 

Everyone agrees that, “We’ll meet when we need to. 

Weeks go by. There are no scheduled meetings but you do an occasional fly-by to check-in. 

How are things going? Anything you need from me? 

You get mostly the same short answers. 

It appears that things are going well. You hear a few small ideas and suggestions around great flex time and ideas for the next company party.

One day, your best employee schedules a meeting with you. You accept the meeting request for tomorrow afternoon, 

And that’s when they drop the bomb.

“I wanted you to know that I’ve accepted a new position with company XYZ and I start next month on the 10th. This is my 2-week notice. I’m leaving.”

You’re surprised. Caught off guard.

You ask them why and what you hear rocks you a little.

“I have an opportunity to do some really important work, and they’re looking for someone like me to develop that position into a bigger role.” 

You feel betrayed because you’ve been talking about that scenario with them for the past 6 months here.

You’re gracious, however. Wish them well. Really gonna miss you. 

You go to your closest peer and learn that they just lost two people last week in a similar fashion.

This might be hitting home with you right now because this exact scenario is common in business. 

Is it because of a lack of opportunity?

Is it the result of disengaged employee who only want better pay or more benefits? 

Or is it something else? Something bigger? Deeper?

Have you considered that the reason people are leaving has little to do with pay, benefits or even opportunity? 

Could the old adage of people don’t quit companies, they quit bosses actually be true? 

That is true… but sometimes managers take the fall when it’s actually a series of small things that have been allowed to occur consistently over time that eventually lead to a formerly great employee wanting to leave? 

I would tell you that you don’t have an employee engagement or comp package issue.

You have an execution issue.