I know, I know, manager one-on-one’s can feel awkward and pointless. The thing is, when done right, they’re one of the most powerful tools for accelerating your career.

Here’s a guide on how to use them affectively. But first…

Things to remember about manager one-on-ones

It’s the employees meeting. Meaning, it’s their time to discuss whatever they would like to discuss. It’s not the managers time to get updates on the status of projects. Manager feedback and questions are fine if there’s time, but the employees agenda should come first.
The cadence should depend on the situation. I do weekly one-on-ones with new hires for the first 2-3 months. After that, I typically move to every other week. Every three weeks can work in some situations with more senior level employees. Longer than that feels like too long.
For most employees, their one on one with their manager is the best way to create change. Both change for themselves and change within the company. Whether you want a pay raise, a different role, or better on-site snacks, the odds of it happening are much better if you can convince your manager that it should happen. And the one on one is a great place to do that. Moving into product management, being promoted to Senior Product Manager as well as Head of Product are all things that happened as a direct result of conversations that happened in a one on one with my manager.

What and How Often

Inform - Every One on One

Share all the ways you’re contributing and making the company better. If you’re concerned about sounding like you’re boasting, use “we” rather than “I”. Talk not only about work that’s getting done, but what you’re learning and how you’re improving. If your manager has more than a few direct reports, it’s likely a lot of what you’re doing is going unnoticed.

Communicate the roadblocks you’re currently facing and/or any challenges preventing you from doing your job well. And not only your job, bring up issues you see with the team or the company. However, in addition to the problem, always bring a solution to propose. Without it, you’ll come across as a whiner rather than a problem-solver.

Ask for feedback. This is the best way to improve the way you’re perceived by your manager. It signals so many good things including humility and a desire to grow. You can then share in your next one on one how you implemented the feedback for the extra “wow” factor.

Align - Quarterly

What does succeeding in your role look like as far as your manager is concerned? Is it about delivering certain projects? Is it about reaching certain numbers? Is about sharing the best memes in Slack? Whatever it is, make sure not only that they define it for you, but that you and your manager agree on it.

Once you have success defined, make sure you get an understanding of how you’re measuring up to that. Are you nailing it? Adequate? Falling short? Get specifics. If you’re not currently viewed as an all-star, how can you get there? Good employees get cost-of-living raises, all-stars get a 20% increase and a promotion.

Career Planning - Annually, then re-visit half way through the year

You’re manager is the person best position to help your career progress. They have the strings to pull. Are they willing to help you get to the next phase of your career? Most likely. Are they thinking about it near as much as you are? Definitely not. That’s why you need to take initiative to make sure these conversations happen. Here’s some things to figure out when you talk career growth:

When will you next be evaluated for a pay raise?
What are all the factors that will come into play when evaluating if you should get a raise and how much it will be?
What are your possible paths for career advancement? Are you interested in management or would you prefer to stay on the individual contributor path?
Whatever the next job is, what skills do you lack that said job requires? How can your manager and the company support you in developing those skills?
What would stress your manager out about you moving on from your current role? How can you support them in having a solid succession plan?

Reminder, these career growth conversations will go much better if you nail the first two things, align and inform.

Conclusion

Manager one-on-ones are more than just a check-in, they’re pivotal for navigating your current role and getting to the next one. Come prepared to put your best foot forward so that when the meeting ends, your manager can’t stop thinking about how amazing you are.