One to One Meeting With Software Engineering Manager

[1] Basics of One to One Meetings?

These meetings can involve going through feedback for projects, sharing ideas, and sometimes just catching up.

How to run an effective One-on-One meeting?

1. Plan and structure properly

Predetermine the kind of questions you should be asking at the meeting. Create an agenda of questions to lead the conversation.

Example questions:

• How is Project X progressing?
• How can we make working on projects easier?
• How can I strengthen my communication pattern?

Example topics:

• Career goals
  • The direction of the career.
  • What can be enhanced?
  • How can we collaborate on career goals?
• Business-related topics.
• Personal conversations to get to know each other.
• Development workflow
  • Workload problems
  • Questions related to active tasks
  • Area of responsibility
  • Level of complexity
• Team
  • Team progress

2. Don’t cancel, but reschedule one-on-ones

3. Keep it short (but not too short)

5. Take notes

[1]

“How to Run a Successful 1-on-1 Meeting with a Developer: Tips and Examples,” Relevant Software, Sep. 03, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://relevant.software/blog/successful-1-on-1-meeting-with-developer/. [Accessed: Nov. 14, 2022]

[2] How to start?

Deepen Focus with the 3Ps

The 3P model is a framework for choosing what to focus on in a coaching
conversation—for deciding which aspect of a challenge might be at the
heart of a difficulty that the person is working through. A challenge might
typically be centred on a project, a person or a pattern of behaviour.

Putting the 3Ps to Use

“What’s on your mind?” you ask.

• “The [insert name of thing they’re working on],” they say.

“So there are three different facets of that we could look at,” you offer.

• “The project side—any challenge around the actual content. “
• “The people side —any issues with team members/colleagues/other departments/bosses/customers/clients.”
• “And patterns—if there’s a way that you’re getting in your own way, and not showing up in the best possible way. Where should we start?”

[2] The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More By Michael Bungay Stainer

One to One Meetings

Topics to discuss:

• Responsibilities of the direct report in his domain.
• States of the resources the direct report manage.
• Progress of the projects.
• Performance

Additional topics to discuss:

• Events happened since the last meeting
• Organizational problems
• Plans for the future
• Possible future problems

Important Points

• The manager should try to become a better coach and problem solver. By asking more question, the manager should try to find the not mentioned critical problems.
• Both manager and direct report should have a copy of the topics to be discussed.
• Writing helps to focus and digest the critical points.
• When the manager take notes, it is easy to keep track of the problems in the following one-on-ones.
• When the direct report take notes, it symbolizes the direct report will take actions until next meeting.
• Low priority topics should be taken into backlog, reviewed and discussed in the following meeetings.