Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders • Hacker News Board

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#11

Post by curiousllama » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 4:16 PM UTC

silicon2401 wrote: post #9

Does anybody have advice on how to make the most of meetings with coworkers/mentors 2+ levels up the ladder from yourself? I once had a great session with a c-suite exec in an employer with 5 digits worth of employees, but I think that was as much due to his being a really motivated mentor as any prep or questions I did. I want to make sure I'm prepared for future meetings if the mentor is not as open or enthusiastic…

Think about purpose and benefit. A cynical view, perhaps, but the way to a good relationship is to make it part of the transaction.

What are this person's priorities (outcomes they need to make happen) for the year? How can you help make that happen?

Come to the conversation with "you're doing X; how can I help make that happen?" - and when you explain why you want to help, make it personal ("I want to get to Y, and this will help me get there"). You help with X, and they'll hep with Y.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#12

Post by dwater » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 4:16 PM UTC

I would love to have a skip level meeting going 2 levels up. My one on ones with my manager have become repetitive because he asks me what my problems/concerns are, I tell him variations the same 3 or 4 things every time, and has asks me for ideas about what he/we can do to try to solve them from below since he doesn't have the direct power or influence to address them from above. Unfortunately I know who his manager is and I know that my/our concerns are not going to be addressed by that person.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#13

Post by hammock » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 4:46 PM UTC

username90 wrote: post #8

skeeter2020 wrote: post #2

I dislike that skip levels are positioned as some sort of variation of a 1:1, as other than the # of people they have nothing in common. The 1:1 is for the employee while skip levels are all about the senior manager. We already have enough opportunities for them to set the agenda and drive the conversation. A real 1:1 is a frank conversation about early-stage (potentially bad) things and based on mutual trust and vul…

Your skip level manager is not any more able to fire you than your manager, so I see no reason why you'd have to be more careful in those meetings than the 1:1 with your manager. I'd even say that if you aren't getting to meet and make an impression on your skip level then there is something wrong. They are your best bet to get promoted and if the organization tries to block that path for you then why should you stay…

>I see no reason why you'd have to be more careful in those meetings than the 1:1 with your manager

The first thing that comes to mind is you wouldn't want to tell your skip level manager anything that you wouldn't (or haven't already) told your direct manager. That's going outside the chain of command and creates political and organizational issues that no one will appreciate.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#14

Post by pc86 » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 4:50 PM UTC

rubidium wrote: post #3

skeeter2020 wrote: post #2

I dislike that skip levels are positioned as some sort of variation of a 1:1, as other than the # of people they have nothing in common. The 1:1 is for the employee while skip levels are all about the senior manager. We already have enough opportunities for them to set the agenda and drive the conversation. A real 1:1 is a frank conversation about early-stage (potentially bad) things and based on mutual trust and vul…

If you have a bunch of cogs working, sure. But if you have a dynamic team that has the courage to point things out to senior leaders it can be a good way to pull back the veil on what’s really going on.

I'm curious what "dynamic" means in this context to you.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#15

Post by pc86 » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 4:53 PM UTC

wonder_er wrote: post #10

username90 wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your skip level manager is not any more able to fire you than your manager, so I see no reason why you'd have to be more careful in those meetings than the 1:1 with your manager. I'd even say that if you aren't getting to meet and make an impression on your skip level then there is something wrong. They are your best bet to get promoted and if the organization tries to block that path for you then why should you stay…

> Your skip level manager is not any more able to fire you than your manager True, but say something that reflects negatively on your manager, and if they hear about it, they may rapidly become _more likely_ to fire you than the skip-level manager.

Why would you say something (whether it's negative or not) to your skip that you haven't said to your direct manager? Skip-level meetings should be about distilling important topics from your 1:1's with your direct manager and sharing with your skip what they need to know. There shouldn't really be any information that your skip has that your manager hasn't gotten weeks earlier (if it's negative, so they can try to fix it).

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#16

Post by Afton » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 4:59 PM UTC

hammock wrote: post #13

username90 wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your skip level manager is not any more able to fire you than your manager, so I see no reason why you'd have to be more careful in those meetings than the 1:1 with your manager. I'd even say that if you aren't getting to meet and make an impression on your skip level then there is something wrong. They are your best bet to get promoted and if the organization tries to block that path for you then why should you stay…

>I see no reason why you'd have to be more careful in those meetings than the 1:1 with your manager The first thing that comes to mind is you wouldn't want to tell your skip level manager anything that you wouldn't (or haven't already) told your direct manager. That's going outside the chain of command and creates political and organizational issues that no one will appreciate.

If you're telling your skip level something that you haven't or wouldn't tell your direct manager, that is an indication that you are failing to communicate with your direct manager. That in itself is worth the skip level person knowing.

For this is less about being careful, and more about not going off on a spontaneous rant, which honestly, isn't a good idea to do for the chain of command anyway. Spontaneous rants are for your peers. Deliberate communication up and down the COF.

My two cents anyway.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#17

Post by rubidium » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 5:14 PM UTC

pc86 wrote: post #14

rubidium wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you have a bunch of cogs working, sure. But if you have a dynamic team that has the courage to point things out to senior leaders it can be a good way to pull back the veil on what’s really going on.

I'm curious what "dynamic" means in this context to you.

People actively working and interested in making the product and business better. Not just “doing time” at work.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#18

Post by dvfjsdhgfv » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 5:28 PM UTC

rubidium wrote: post #17

pc86 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious what "dynamic" means in this context to you.

People actively working and interested in making the product and business better. Not just “doing time” at work.

This is an extremely delicate issue in any large organization. Skipping one level basically means: "Let's see what important things my report is not telling me". If you are asked for such a meeting, anything you say could be used against your direct manager. You need to know the office politics well before speaking anything that could have even small impact on anything. I saw people freaking out for mentioning minute stuff "behind their backs."

With a small team, it's very different - but usually the hierarchical structure is much more horizontally aligned so this is not much of a problem.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#19

Post by codemac » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 5:31 PM UTC

silicon2401 wrote: post #9

Does anybody have advice on how to make the most of meetings with coworkers/mentors 2+ levels up the ladder from yourself? I once had a great session with a c-suite exec in an employer with 5 digits worth of employees, but I think that was as much due to his being a really motivated mentor as any prep or questions I did. I want to make sure I'm prepared for future meetings if the mentor is not as open or enthusiastic…

You want them to be a sponsor of your work to others. At that level of seniority they could really make a difference in your promotion and growth over time if they know who you are and what problems you're solving.

Mentorship should be about someone telling you what they did when they were in your shoes, and coaching is more like performance optimization.

Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders

#20

Post by xythian » Thu, Dec 10, 2020, 5:36 PM UTC

bob33212 wrote: post #5

Everytime I have been invited to a 1 on 1 with someone high up the org ladder, I have been given talking points from the people in between

This depends entirely on org culture. I've worked at places where I had to go thru an absolute gauntlet of "prep" meetings to hone my talking points for talking with someone several skip levels above my manager.

And, I've worked in places where you are free to send a DM to the C-Suite if you feel like it's necessary to get your work done. No pre-approval required.