Tim, a C-Level leader, loves his skip-level meetings. He feels the meetings offer him a chance to connect with people he doesn't normally see. They get to talk about whatever the other person wants.
Sharon, a different C-Level leader, never conducts skip-level meetings. She feels that those meetings might cause her managers to feel unsafe, as if she doesn't trust them.
Two talented senior managers. Two different opinions about skip-level meetings. Is there a “right” answer?
As always, when we're talking about management choices or consulting answers, the answer is, “It depends.”
What does it depend on? The purpose, frequency, and desired outcomes of that meeting.
Let's start with the purpose.
Why Have a Skip-Level Meeting?
Tim believes that when he meets one-on-one with a person “down” a couple of levels, both he and the other person benefits:
- Tim might learn something new from the other person.
- The other person realizes Tim is a normal human, despite his title.
- Tim thinks he can feel the raw “pulse” of the organization. That's because Tim worries that the managers who report to him might massage data in some way.
I thought the first two outcomes were terrific. But as Tim's trusted advisor, I worried about the third. When I suggested that “pulse” might mean that Tim does not entirely trust his managers, Tim first said, “No! I trust them implicitly!”
I waited for a few seconds.
Then, Tim said, “Well, maybe I don't totally trust them.”
That's when we spoke more about how to tell if anyone did massage data.
But Sharon has a different perspective.
Why Avoid Skip-Level Meetings?
Sharon says she has an open-door policy, so I asked her how much time she spent in meetings and how much time in her office with the door open.
She said, “Hmm, not much open-door time this week,” as she brought up her calendar. “Oh. Less than three hours so far, and it's already Thursday.”
“So you have an open door policy, but you're not here often enough for people to take advantage of it?” I asked.
She nodded.
Then I asked, “Do people ever tell you that you intimidate them?”
While Sharon isn't physically intimidating, I know she's intellectually intimidating. She's a no-nonsense, no-pushover, formidable intellect. (I love working with her because she keeps me on my intellectual toes.)
She frowned. “Nuts,” she said. “We actually spoke about this last quarter, right?” She paused and said, “Yeah, some people do tell me I intimidate them.”
“So you might benefit from having other people see you as human?”
She laughed. “I am human!”
We discussed guidelines for when she might consider skip-level meetings.
My Guidelines for Skip-Level Meetings
As an executive, I rarely felt I had time for skip-level meetings. But I often made time (lunches) for team or group meetings. When the team or group was large, I asked people to select from one of two dates, and my admin managed the inevitable changes. I also asked my admin to organize food so everyone could eat. In advance, I sent out an email with the:
- Purpose: An informal get-to-know-each-other so I could put faces with names. I found this especially important when we hired a lot of people.
- Frequency: I explained that I met with teams or groups about once every two or three weeks. And while the skip-level meetings were not one-on-ones. I explained that I was open to one-on-one meetings.
- Desired Outcomes: “I'd like to get to know you more as people. And I'd like you to know me more as a human.”
In addition, I asked the directors who managed those people to meet as a cohort. I asked for weekly, and settled for biweekly meetings. (See Create Your Peer Management Team for Fun and Profit (and to Solve Problems.)
These actions created more trust and problem-solving at the source.
What Guidelines Will Work for You?
Tim is now working more with the managers he leads and serves, to make sure they expose problems early—to themselves, and to him. And Sharon is having good results where people see her as human, even with her fierce intellect.
The value of skip-level meetings for you depends on your situation. But the more you consider the purpose, frequency, and outcomes you want, the better all your meetings will be. Especially any skip-level meetings.