Check-in Meetings Build Trust
A recent Akyra blog referenced that most employees are proud of where they work. However, at the same time, nearly half of them are looking for work elsewhere. So, what can make the difference?
An engaged employee is less likely to be looking elsewhere as they are:
- motivated with a sense of purpose;
- aware of the organisation vision, know their role and how it contributes to the organisation’s success;
- acting positively within their role to further the success of the organisation;
- trusting their co-workers and management to do what they say they will do; and
- involved in, enthusiastic about and committed to their work and workplace.
One of the ways to build trust within an organisation and individual employees is to schedule check-in meetings (also called one-to-one meetings).
Check-in meetings are one of the simplest and most efficient and effective ways to build trust, as the only investment is time on a regular basis. It’s should not be war and peace – just a check-in.
However, they can be an anxious time for a manager if there is little or no guidance or preparation. With the tips below, check-in meeting jitters can be alleviated; and allow you to create an open environment for employees to share progress, receive constructive feedback from their manager and build trust.
Employees are rightly frustrated by aimless and/or overly long meetings – so don’t let check-ins become a time-consuming annoyance.
How Should You Schedule Check-In Meetings?
Schedule employee/manager check-ins as no more than 30-minute meetings that recur weekly, fortnightly or monthly. Initially, you could consider starting with a weekly schedule and then move to fortnightly or monthly as the trust is built.
When employees and managers have good rapport and there is trust, check-ins can be reduced to just 15 minutes or less. However, it is useful to maintain the 30-minute time block in case a more in-depth discussion is needed.
Include a generic agenda in the meeting invite itself – e.g. what’s been achieved; what’s in progress and what are the blockers/challenges (including whether the manager can assist further and/or communicate more clearly).
How Do You Conduct a Check-In Meeting?
Three keys will help you to facilitate more effective check-ins.
#1: Prepare
Review notes from the last check-in meeting and ensure you’ve completed any follow-up actions you were supposed to take. If you didn’t complete the actions, identify the roadblocks that prevented you from doing so. Pull up any relevant materials you might want to share and discuss and close out anything that’s not relevant to the meeting.
#2: Ask open-ended questions.
Ask questions that are non-accusatory and require more than a one-word answer. For example:
- Instead of ‘How’s it going?’ try ‘What work do you have in front of you?’
- Instead of ‘Why didn’t you get this done?’ try ‘What are some barriers preventing this from getting done?’
- Instead of ‘What do you want to do next?’ try ‘What are some skills you’d like to build or experiences you’d like to gain?’
- Instead of ‘What do you think you’re doing wrong?’ try ‘Where do you see opportunities to improve?’
- Instead of ‘What do you think I’m doing wrong?’ try ‘How can I make expectations clearer and best respect your time?’
#3: Show Value: Do’s and Don’ts
It’s important to demonstrate check-ins are time well spent. This isn’t a once-and done affair. It’s an opportunity to build trust over time through the following habits.
- DO – listen and be open to changing your assumptions.
- DO – focus on the employee and his or her biggest goals and challenges.
- DO – stick to pre-set, clearly communicated and mutually agreed-upon expectations.
- DO – share organisation-wide updates, especially where they may impact the employee goals.
- DON’T – have both sides of the conversation in your head before the meeting even begins.
- DON’T – surprise employees with shifting priorities and new expectations at each meeting.
- DON’T – be secretive or blindly hope the employee can read your mind nor assume they will be able to ‘keep it up’ through big changes in the internal or external environment.
- DON’T – multitask or spend too much time on non-work-related chit-chat.
Key Takeaways
Considering the high percentage of Australian workers who say they are looking for work elsewhere, building trust and boosting engagement among your employees is integral to helping businesses to retain the right people.
Regular check-ins are an important tool for managers to build trust and develop an engaged workforce where individual team members are empowered to do their job in a way that both satisfies them and contributes to the organisation’s success.
It is important to ensure that these check-ins are effectively planned, that you are asking the right questions and that you follow up on any points of concern that may arise.
Contact Akyra today to see how regular employee check-ins could drive employee engagement and productivity and contribute to your organisation’s strategic goals.
Disclaimer – Reliance on Content
The material distributed is general information only. The information supplied is not intended to be legal or other professional advice, nor should it be relied upon as such. You should seek legal or professional advice in relation to your specific situation.
