I’ve always thought about how challenging it must be to lead a group of high achievers. When you have managers as direct reports, your achievements hinge on their achievements. This is the part where learning to manage managers becomes critical. It is not about micromanaging. It is about giving them the power to manage their own teams. In this article, we will discuss how to manage managers for better outcomes.
One of the most critical components of this process is the trust one builds during one-on-one meetings. These meetings are integral when it comes to building trust and setting expectations and trust while balancing a proactive approach to problem-solving. This guide will help you structure these conversations as you help your managers become strong leaders.
Understanding Your Role as a Leader of Leaders
The transformation of your role is undeniable. You are no longer managing individual contributors. You have become a coach, strategist, and safety net for your managers. You aim to develop the ecosystem in which they operate. This calls for an emphasis shift from daily activities to strategic intent.
Consider yourself a gardener. In your garden, describe each of your managers as a main plant. If you provide them with the right amount of sunlight, water, and food, they will grow and become stronger.
As a result, they will help the smaller plants around them grow. Your support helps your managers cultivate various leadership styles. It also ensures alignment across the company towards common objectives.
This shift from task management to coaching reflects what constitutes a great leader in modern organizations.
How to Manage Managers: The One-on-One Meeting
Managing your managers’ one-on-one meetings is one of the most important things you can do as a manager. These do not include status updates. These meetings should be dedicated to connection, coaching, and collaboration. A productive one-on-one meeting makes your managers feel appreciated and supported.
These meetings should not feel like they face judgment. Your managers should be able to speak about their challenges and wins as well as their ideas freely. Establishing trust in your manager is needed in order to have a positive and efficient working relationship. It also helps you manage your managers better without doing their jobs for them.
How to Structure Your One-on-One Meetings
The value of creating a consistent structure for your meetings is that all important aspects are covered respectfully. Meeting managers value this because it shows time is appreciated. Below is a suggested structure that is both simple and effective for your one-on-one meetings.
Allow Your Manager to Take Control of the Meeting
After the personal questions, allow your manager to navigate the meeting. Let them set the agenda, which will empower him/her to discuss the most pressing team challenges. Your role is to listen and help to remove any obstacles that are in the way.
Focus on Their Team, Not Just Their Tasks
The discussion should center around their leadership role. Rather than inquiring about their tasks, shift the focus to their team. Here are some examples:
- Who in your team stands out in terms of performance?
- Is there someone in your team who needs help?
- What’s the current morale of the team?
- Do you have the right people in the right positions?
All these questions provide insight into the status of their team. It also encourages them to view their people more holistically. This is fundamental in the art of managing managers. You are helping them improve their leadership.
Discuss Goals and Development
Dedicate some time in the meeting to discuss progress towards larger objectives. This spans team objectives and the manager’s individual development objectives. What’s going well, and what are the barriers? This is the time to provide resources, suggestions, or assistance.
Inquire about their aspirations. What skills do they wish to acquire? Putting effort into their development communicates that they have a future within the organization. This enhances their commitment and confidence in the organization. It also fortifies the entire leadership pipeline.
Advanced Tactics for Effective Meetings
Now that you understand the basic structure of your one one-on-one meetings, there are more advanced techniques that you can incorporate that will enhance the power of these meetings while developing your exceptional leaders even further.
Work On Your Active Listening Skills
Listening is a very important skill to have in meetings. Hence, you need to work on your active listening skills. Active listening means that you are focused on your manager’s words. This means that you should put your phone away and close your laptop. Look your manager in the eyes, and show you are paying attention.
Use Open-Ended Questions
Great leaders ask great questions. Rather than providing answers to your managers, ask them questions that guide them toward the answers in order to help them build the necessary skills to be problem solvers.
As an example, suppose a manager is handling a conflict within a team. Don’t just say what to do. Rather, you could frame it like this:
- What have you done up to this point?
- In your view, what is the root cause of the conflict?
- What do you consider to be the best possible scenario as an outcome?
- What assistance do you require from me to get this resolved?
This is the way to guide how to manage managers, and it helps refine their thinking and build their leadership skills.
Final Thoughts
Always conclude each meeting with a definitive outline of what was discussed and what needs to be done. Recap the important questions answered and the outcomes of those questions. You and your superior should be clear on what tasks need to be completed. This cultivates a sense of responsibility and guarantees that your dialogue produces tangible outcomes.
When you do one-on-one meetings regularly and with a clear purpose, you will drastically enhance your rapport with your leadership team. It will enable you to create a great organization at every level.
Regular one-on-one meetings also reinforce ownership and follow-through, which is essential when learning how to hold people accountable without damaging trust.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How frequently should I schedule one-on-ones with my supervisors?
Weekly or biweekly is ideal. It’s more about consistency than it is about duration. A consistent 30-minute meeting is better than an inconsistent 60-minute meeting.
2. What if my supervisor says everything is okay?
If your supervisor doesn’t mention any problems, try to formulate questions to dig deeper. Ask about the most significant wins for the team or what obstacles they foresee in the next month.
3. Should I omit a one-on-one if we are both occupied?
Do your best not to skip these meetings. If need be, reschedule, but canceling is a signal that your supervisor is not important. Keeping these meetings shows that you are committed.
