Hi everyone, I’d love your input on something. I spent many years as a project manager and most recently concluded my role as Director of Project Management at a consulting firm last July. That month I stepped into a new position as Chief Operating Officer of a national nonprofit that’s growing quickly.
Our team is remote, spread across the country, and we typically come together in-person about five times a year for conferences and convenings. During those times, we usually build in team-building and off-site activities to strengthen cohesion.
As a project-based organization, most of our department heads function like project managers, with the exception of our comms and operations teams. When I began, I started holding weekly one-on-ones with each of our five department heads to get acclimated. That continues today. In addition, I have staff meetings weekly. I attend/rotate between different team scrum ceremonies, including daily stand-ups, retrospectives, and sprint reviews.
On top of that, I participate in monthly CORE meetings that include all department heads, the CEO, and our board co-chairs. I also have recurring design meetings with two external partners and a number of other standing meetings each week. While I’m not quite overwhelmed, we are in the middle of restructuring, splitting one department into two, and onboarding a new hire to lead the newly formed department.
With this in mind, I’ve been thinking a lot about streamlining my time and making our meeting cadence more sustainable and effective across the organization. Here’s what I’m considering: I would shift to monthly one-on-ones with each department head rather than weekly, and instead set up “office hours” on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 10:00 and noon, offering two one-hour blocks for anyone who wants to drop in with questions or sensitive matters that can’t wait until our next scheduled conversation.
Naturally, folks can still reach me via Slack, email, or our other systems. For the new department head, I plan to keep weekly one-on-ones for the first couple of months while she gets settled, and then transition her to monthly check-ins.
Now here’s where I’d really love your input: How do you structure one-on-ones in your organization, especially if you’re a PM who has regular access to your C-Suite? How often do you meet 1x1 with your supervisors? For those of you who manage others, what cadence has worked best for your team? And for organizations that are remote or hybrid, what do you find helps keep people aligned and supported without creating meeting fatigue? Even though I’m in an executive role now, I want to ensure I’m setting a rhythm that serves my team and not just me. I realize what works for one group may not work for another, but hearing how others are approaching this might help me refine what I’m doing or confirm I’m on the right track. Thanks in advance. I’m looking forward to learning from this community!
Community Champion
