Hello Reader 👋

I still haven't taken any real time off this summer. Client sessions kept landing on the calendar, and somehow we're already in August.

Here's what surprised me: I expected to slow down in this period.

Instead, I've been working harder than usual, because summer weeks are exactly when there's space to think about the things that get buried during the busy period.

When I was in FP&A, that longer-term thinking almost always came back to my team. How to develop them, how to give them enough space., how to make sure they were getting what they actually needed to do their best work.

So this week, let's talk about the 1:1s that actually deserve their place on the calendar.

So take a coffee, sit down and read FP&A Stories just like 16k other readers

🪞 Why 1:1s decide 70% of your team's engagement

The number behind the meeting

I remember what that felt like from the other side, as a mentee. My 1:1 was often the first meeting to disappear from the calendar whenever something more urgent came up.

It was frustrating enough that I made myself a promise. Whenever I'd lead a team, 1:1s would become the most important meetings in my calendar. I'd prepare them with the same care I'd put into an ExCo meeting.

Turns out that instinct had research behind it.

Gallup has been studying manager behaviour for years, and one figure was very persuasive. Managers account for roughly 70% of the difference in how engaged their team feels at work.*

That number has very little to do with mission statements or compensation bands. It comes down to the manager, and largely to the individual conversations they have with their people.

Employees who get regular 1:1s with their manager are close to 3 times more likely to be engaged than those who don't.*

And in my experience, a team member who isn't engaged is typically the one who's going to leave or provide work that isn't up to my standards.

*Gallup, State of the American Manager: managers account for at least 70% of the variance in employee engagement scores; employees with regular 1:1s are almost three times more likely to be engaged.

What most 1:1s actually cover

And it's not just a problem in Finance. 54% of managers treat one-on-ones as routine status checks, and nearly 40% of employees think their manager shows up unprepared for them.

Ben Horowitz put it well: a good 1:1 belongs to the employee, not the manager.** It's the one slot on the calendar meant for the open ideas, frustrations, but also reflection.

That's rarely what happens in practice. Most 1:1s default to the forecast, the close, the reconciliation.

It's easy to fill thirty minutes with that.

Half year always felt like the natural moment to hold myself to my own promise. Budget season hadn't started yet, and there was still room to talk about people.

**Ben Horowitz, The Hard Thing About Hard Things.

The questions worth protecting

Once the status update is out of the way, there's real space left in a 1:1. I try to spend it on three things.

1. What's getting in their way
Small, specific questions work best here:

What's been the most frustrating part of their week, or where their work feels stuck waiting on someone else.

Easy to answer honestly, precisely because they're not abstract.

2. What they want to grow into
What skill do they want to build next, and what would real support for that look like from me?

What part of the role still feels unclear?

These are maintenance questions; just like lawyers, you check with them before a problem arises.

3. What's gone unnoticed
This is the one FP&A leaders skip most often: what did they do this month that didn't get the spotlight?

So much of the best work in finance stays invisible and if you're a great leader, you should have it named out loud, and the 1:1 is often the only place it happens.

What changes when you ask them

People start bringing you problems earlier instead of sitting on them for three weeks first and they start asking for the extra assignment instead of waiting for you to notice they're ready.

And when budget season is finally there, you already have a list of their blockers and ambitions, built over months of "normal" weeks instead of exploding in a rush.

Final Thought

The questions rarely make or break a 1:1. What breaks it is being the first meeting that gets moved when the calendar gets tight.

Protecting that slot is a small decision with a long half-life. Six months later, it shows up as trust.

Hit reply and tell me about the 1:1 you wish someone had protected for you, back when you were the one being managed. I read every message and reply to all of them.

That's a wrap for this week

See you next week!

P.S.

After 17 years in FP&A, Consulting and Leadership, I’ve coached and trained finance teams across industries, from consulting and manufacturing to tech, media, and global logistics.
Through The Finance Circle, I’ve had the chance to work with teams from companies like Ralph Lauren, Deloitte, Roche, Holcim, CMA CGM, Bauer Media, Indeed, Volvo, AbbVie, NATO, and many others.

If you want to sharpen your own storytelling skills or bring this work into your team, here are a 3 ways can work together:

Financial Storytelling Program for Individuals
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For finance leaders who want their entire FP&A team to communicate more clearly, present with confidence, and build stronger business partnerships.
1:1 Coaching With Me
A direct, personalised way to work together if you want deeper feedback and support on storytelling, executive presence, or high-stakes communication.