Running Effective 1-on-1s

#leadership #management

The 1-on-1 is the most important recurring meeting a tech lead has. It’s their meeting, not yours.

Structure

Keep it simple:

  1. Their topics first (10–15 min)
  2. Your topics (5–10 min)
  3. Action items (2–3 min)

Good Questions

  • “What’s the biggest thing slowing you down right now?”
  • “What would you do differently if you were in my position?”
  • “Is there something you’ve wanted to work on but haven’t had the chance?”
  • “How are you feeling about the team dynamics?”

Anti-patterns

  • ❌ Status updates — use standups or async for that
  • ❌ Cancelling regularly — signals it’s not important
  • ❌ Doing all the talking — aim for 70/30 them/you
  • ❌ No follow-through — if you commit to something, do it

People don’t leave companies. They leave managers who don’t listen.