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“Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

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Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#41

Post by ams6110 »

elliottcarlson wrote: post #39
ams6110 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. I've had managers who like to do the weekly 1:1 and in every case I've ultimately left those jobs. It's too time-consuming, too intrusive, too personal, for no benefit that I ever saw.

Out of curiosity, did you mention that to them?

I would try to say that I really had nothing new to discuss this week, but the meetings were not optional. And to be clear, the meetings weren't the main reason I left those jobs. They were more just annoyances than anything else. But I feel the same way about stand-ups which are apparently pretty popular.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#42

Post by jedberg »

bitL wrote: post #19
RexM wrote: post #6

How about an employee README? > This is how I prefer to be managed...

Employee_README.md: I don't need a manager. Just tell me what you want and I'll make it for you without anyone messing up with my productivity. Thank you!

If I tell you what I want you won't be engaged or excited. Also, I may not tell you the right thing -- it may not play to all your strengths or what you are interested in right now.

If I tell you what the company goals are and our teams goals, and then ask you how you can use your unique talents to help us achieve those goals, you'll be much more engaged in the work, and also have a greater understanding of how your work fits into the rest of what your team and your company is doing.

Context, not control.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#43

Post by lsiebert »

apple4ever wrote: post #23
silveroriole wrote: post #8

Interesting that many seem to prefer weekly 1:1s. That seems far too much to me. I would absolutely dread having to spend so much time on that with my manager or my managees and I can’t imagine there are substantial benefits to it (does anyone REALLY have meaningful thoughts about their job/career path EVERY WEEK?)

I thought the same thing. Weekly 1:1s are worthless. That’s coming from an employee who had to do them and a manager who refuses to do them. I found them a waste of time when I had to do them. I hated them because if I needed to discuss something with my boss I would, and I had better things to do with my time than talk to him. They are also an interruption, so even if they are only 5 minutes, that’s at least 30 minu…

Hmm... so you aren't one of those people who feel uncomfortable bringing things up to their boss. That doesn't mean they don't exist.

One of the fundamentals every manager needs to learn is, people are not all like you. Extroverts may need someone to bounce ideas off of. Introverts may need a time to bring something they have been thinking about to your attention, because otherwise they assume you don't want to be bothered.

People have families and relationships and health issues outside of work that never the less it may be helpful to discuss if it impacts stress, times they can be in the office, their work flow, etc.

And then, and this is truly important, there are interpersonal relationships in the office. Are two employees not getting along? Having a 1:1 with them will often let you get both sides of the story, instead of, potentially, hearing nothing about it.

Finally, while your bosses may have been fine with you discussing something with them any time you wanted, or fine with an email on a topic, I personally hate being interrupted, and would prefer anything like that be scheduled, and find that in person or video chat conversations are helpful in providing context that text communications, especially those that aren't in real time and interactive, may lack.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#45

Post by jldugger »

bertjk wrote: post #10
elliottcarlson wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

(I'm one of the managers with a README in the article) It really depends - I've had direct reports that have had plenty to cover on a weekly basis, and others that don't really have anything new -- the point of the weekly 1:1's is that they have dedicated time whatever they want or need from me - and it's their time to use as they see fit. If they want to skip that week because there's nothing new on their side, that…

I'm really curious now, for those who want more 1:1 time, what sort of topics are often covered?

What I cover is a mix of decisions I need in the next week, technical questions I need help with, or a project I'm thinking about proposing. The general idea is to get some feedback on what it takes to earn a promotion, and where I stand.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#46

Post by ams6110 »

lsiebert wrote: post #43
apple4ever wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought the same thing. Weekly 1:1s are worthless. That’s coming from an employee who had to do them and a manager who refuses to do them. I found them a waste of time when I had to do them. I hated them because if I needed to discuss something with my boss I would, and I had better things to do with my time than talk to him. They are also an interruption, so even if they are only 5 minutes, that’s at least 30 minu…

Hmm... so you aren't one of those people who feel uncomfortable bringing things up to their boss. That doesn't mean they don't exist. One of the fundamentals every manager needs to learn is, people are not all like you. Extroverts may need someone to bounce ideas off of. Introverts may need a time to bring something they have been thinking about to your attention, because otherwise they assume you don't want to be bo…

> People have families and relationships and health issues outside of work that never the less it may be helpful to discuss

This is one of the problems I had with my managers who like to do one-on-ones. They always wanted to talk about things outside of work. Got to the point where I just wanted to say none of your effing business, but I tend to be more polite than that in a professional setting.

For me work is its own thing. I don't go there for friends, relationships, entertainment, mental health or medical advice, and don't expect my employer to provide or want to be involved in those things.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#47

Post by josephwegner »

ggambetta wrote: post #11
silveroriole wrote: post #8

Interesting that many seem to prefer weekly 1:1s. That seems far too much to me. I would absolutely dread having to spend so much time on that with my manager or my managees and I can’t imagine there are substantial benefits to it (does anyone REALLY have meaningful thoughts about their job/career path EVERY WEEK?)

Whenever I've managed people, I've made a point of scheduling weekly 1:1s; did that even with 12 or so reports, and it did take a significant chunk of time, but it was IMO one of the most important things, if not the most important thing, I could do for them as a manager (and also the one I enjoyed the most about the role). As other commenters have said, the 1:1 time is the report's time. It's a chunk of time in whic…

I am about 6mo into a job with weekly 1:1s, and am coming from a job that did them every other week. I am always excited for my weekly 1:1.

As a disclaimer, my boss scheduled a weekly 30min 1:1 when I started, but with the caveat that we could make it less often if I found it not useful. He just preferred weekly during the "settling in" phase.

Almost without fail, our 1:1s go over time, totaling between 45min and 1hr. I can't imagine how my boss finds the time, but I so appreciate that he does.

I keep a pinned slack message in our DM, of priority-ordered things to discuss. Often these are things like:

- Something went wrong this week. How did I do? How could I have performed better?

- I noticed something unhealthy with our team, how can we fix it?

- You did something that surprised me as a manager, what was your thought process (this is sometimes critical feedback, sometimes curiousity)

- Is this thing I want to do a good idea?

- Debrief on progress (or lack thereof) on a predefined goal.

- Help me with this stupid HR/Expense report thing

And the list always ends with:

- leave space for to discuss things he wants

This is easily the most valuable growth time of my week. I appreciate my IC time to do an excellent job, but the 1:1s help me pick my head up and think about bigger things.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#48

Post by klenwell »

silveroriole wrote: post #8

Interesting that many seem to prefer weekly 1:1s. That seems far too much to me. I would absolutely dread having to spend so much time on that with my manager or my managees and I can’t imagine there are substantial benefits to it (does anyone REALLY have meaningful thoughts about their job/career path EVERY WEEK?)

Before my first one-on-one meeting with anyone reporting to me, I refer them to this link:

https://workplace.stackexchange.com/questions/32765/what-is-...

I give my reports an opportunity to raise any topics they wish to discuss. Then, following the example set by a previous manager of mine, I always ask these 4 questions:

- On scale of 1-5 (3 being ok, 5 being really bad), what’s your stress level?

- What has been the most challenging thing since our last meeting?

- What has been the most rewarding thing since our last meeting?

- Are there any resources that could assist you or our team with our projects/goals?

I meet every other week for a half-hour with each of my reports. I've found it invaluable and am a strong proponent.

I've also had one-on-one with managers who just wanted to shoot the breeze or complain about other people we worked with. And during one really bad stretch, I had regular one-on-one's with a manager who, after putting me on a PIP, would quiz me about random details of our applications in an effort to collect evidence for HR that I was unqualified for my job. So YMMV.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#49

Post by chrisweekly »

silveroriole wrote: post #8

Interesting that many seem to prefer weekly 1:1s. That seems far too much to me. I would absolutely dread having to spend so much time on that with my manager or my managees and I can’t imagine there are substantial benefits to it (does anyone REALLY have meaningful thoughts about their job/career path EVERY WEEK?)

It's not about there being meaningful / weighty subject matter every week! Rather, by establishing a weekly cadence (which has value per se in creating and strengthening an interpersonal, human connection), it ensures that if/when there _is_ a momentous discussion, there is minimal friction involved, in having the conversation and in how that conversation goes.

Re: “Manager READMEs” from some tech companies

#50

Post by perseusprime11 »

rdiddly wrote: post #24

These should be taken as the hypothesis statement at the start of an experiment, that will or won't be borne out by what actually happens. Show, don't tell. One reason: People can be wrong about themselves. Or they can, with varying degrees of either idealism or self-dishonesty, present a rosy view that amounts to little more than a sales pitch for themselves. If it's true, you'll find out soon enough. If it's not, y…

+1 what bites you next time is not the same time as what bit you last time. Hard to imagine how anyone will respond in an untrained situation. Interesting to see how quickly these things become a fad in silicon valley
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