We sit down and reserve our time to talk to each other on a professional and personal level. It usually takes place in an office meeting room, office terrace or even having a common breakfast outside or combining it with an after-work beer.

Professional.

The most important part of the meeting is giving and receiving feedback. We tell each other what the other party did well and what can be improved. Usually, we prepare this part beforehand because we value each other’s time. This is also the perfect platform for actively asking feedback about any specific worries we might have. The silent rule of 1-on-1s is also keeping the chat between ourselves and respecting each other’s privacy. A nice side-effect of this is increased mutual trust.

How often do you actually have the chance to give honest and constructive feedback? 1-on-1 is a perfect practice ground for learning how to do exactly that. This skill can later be used to give your colleagues feedback during day-to-day activities and you don’t need to wait for a 1-on-1 to do this.

Another interesting difference to most companies is that we also do 1-on-1s with our company leaders in the same manner as with everybody else. This reflects the flat hierarchy our company has and how we can always directly communicate with any of our colleagues.

Personal.

Besides professional feedback, it also provides a space for getting to know each other on a more personal level. This can include our hobbies, issues, successes, interests, and so on. Even though this conversation is between two people, it also works as a team-building process. We know each other better and this gives us a more relaxed atmosphere, also when working.

This is especially beneficial for new employees as they don’t know any of us yet.