3 elements you should be sending your manager before your 1-on-1 to better utilize your time together
Over my 13+ years of coaching, I've had the opportunity to help coach new managers and leaders. One of the most effective tools in a manager's toolbox is their one-on-one's with their team. This approach can also be used to maximize your time with your manager.
I recommend that my clients prepare for their 1-on-1s by documenting the following and sending it to their manager prior to their meeting. This allows the time spent together to be most effective. It also provides documentation of what you've done that can be later referenced for performance reviews. For my team, I just ask them to send me a quick email with bullets. It doesn't have to be pretty - just fulfill the purpose.
1) Accomplishments. I think often people believe that their managers know what they are doing. But realistically, managers direct their attention where it's needed. The squeaky wheel gets the attention. So, if your projects are going well, your manager may not be aware of everything you are doing. Take the time to summarize the work you have accomplished. If you received kudos from someone, share it with your manager.
2) Next steps. Share with your manager what you will be focused on next. This provides transparency of where you will be spending your time. This is also where you can share with your manager if you expect to have some capacity to take on new work.
3) Risks and issues, escalations, or decisions - needed. "No surprises." This is probably the number one rule of managing up. Your manager does not want to be surprised in a meeting. Imagine being in a meeting when someone brings up something going wrong in one of your projects and your manager was not aware of it. Depending on the urgency, you may need to drop your manager a note immediately. However, if it's just something that could go wrong, you can use your weekly report to inform your manager of it. It shows your manager you are thinking ahead and also gives them a heads up.
You can also highlight places that you need your manager's input or action. This section is what I use with my team as the agenda for the conversation. I focus on making sure I address that list first, before I go into items on my list.
It can be frustrating when you have 30 minutes with your manager and you spend 25 minutes getting them up to speed and you're not able to get what you need. This can include important things related to your career development.
As a manager, developing my team is important to me. One of the reasons I love these type of reports being sent to me before my meeting is it allows me to spend more time on important discussions with my team about their development and opportunities they're looking for. Otherwise, it's really easy to use up all of the time on an info share - not the best way to use time.
