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
[deleted]
Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
21–30 of 60 posts
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#22I 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…
Have you requested a meeting? You might be surprised.
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#23Everytime 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
When I was a jr. engineer, I had a skip level meeting with the director of our department (~30 people). I asked the director -- in the snarky way that certain entitled junior employees have -- what he actually did in his job. He laughed and explained that his job was to make sure senior management understood what we were doing and were onboard with why we were doing it. Nobody gave me any talking points and I was too…
It's not that snarky.
Especially from someone new to the field these are questions I would be expecting, especially at a tech company (so pretty equalitarian and meritocratic where the director probably started as an engineer himself). I would also expect the career path to take to get into management to be discussed as well.
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#24Does 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…
Ask them what the top 3 problems they are spending time on. That will uncover areas for you to invest in understanding to uncover solutions.
People at this level are looking for help from people that are doing the real work in the organization who have a better understanding of the details. Conversely, this level has a wider view of problems that have high impact across the organization. Seek to uncover those problems and find solutions.
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
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…
I must have worked at organizations with flatter structure than the others here. Talking with your skip level manager is an ordinary thing, if he has some opinions on the things you are responsible for why would he talk to your manager and not just go directly to you? Managers are mostly for bookkeeping purposes anyway, they shouldn't tell you what to do on a daily basis. At least they didn't in the 3 places I worked.
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#26Earlier 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.
> That's going outside the chain of command and creates political and organizational issues that no one will appreciate.
I'd refuse to work anywhere that cares about chain of command. Managers are for bookkeeping purposes, not commanding. If your manager doesn't let you talk to the people you need to talk to to get things done then it is a very toxic environment.
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#27I 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…
Talk to your manager about that meta problem. It may be awkward but you should push them to become a more effective manager, which they can do by pushing on their manager and skips.
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#28I 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…
Have you requested a meeting? You might be surprised.
No, the upper level person in question is overbooked with being in charge of 1/3 or 1/2 of the company's employees. My personal opinion is that person was given too much responsibility too quickly and is in over their head. When my team came into their purview they told us they wanted to spend as little time as possible on my team, and I've deferred to that statement.
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#29I 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…
[deleted]
Re: Skip Level Meeting Guide for Leaders
#30Earlier quoted context omitted.
Have you requested a meeting? You might be surprised.
No, the upper level person in question is overbooked with being in charge of 1/3 or 1/2 of the company's employees. My personal opinion is that person was given too much responsibility too quickly and is in over their head. When my team came into their purview they told us they wanted to spend as little time as possible on my team, and I've deferred to that statement.
> When my team came into their purview they told us they wanted to spend as little time as possible on my team, and I've deferred to that statement.
That sounds like a pretty effective way of hurting morale.