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A skip-level meeting is a one-on-one conversation in which an employee meets periodically with their direct supervisor’s manager. Run well, it gives senior leaders unfiltered context about work, systems and employee experience while giving the employee a credible route to be heard. It is not a covert evaluation of the employee’s immediate manager, a replacement for normal supervision or a promise that every concern can be fixed.
The manager’s job is to create a clear purpose, listen before defending a decision, protect psychological safety within policy limits and close the loop on what happens next.
Define the purpose before sending an invitation
Choose the reason for the conversation and tell the employee what it is. University of South Carolina HR guidance identifies several legitimate purposes:
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- Hear feedback about work, systems or organizational change.
- Understand the employee’s relationship with their direct leader.
- Build connection between the employee and a more senior leader.
- Recognize achievements and understand what is helping the employee succeed.
- Identify development needs, obstacles and support requirements.
- Gauge how a change is affecting the team.
State the purpose in the invitation and opening. For example: “I am meeting with people across the team to understand what is helping them do good work, where systems are getting in the way and what support is needed. This is not a performance review of you or a back-channel investigation of your manager.” A specific explanation reduces speculation about why the employee was selected.
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Skip-levels should supplement, not replace, the employee’s regular relationship with their direct manager. Routine coaching, workload decisions and performance feedback still belong in the normal management process unless a formal policy assigns them elsewhere.
Check trust and psychological safety first
Trust is a precondition for candor, not an automatic result of scheduling a meeting. Consider how well the employee knows you, whether the team has experienced retaliation or broken promises, and whether a formal program could be interpreted as surveillance. If the relationship is new or strained, begin with ordinary relationship-building and reliable follow-through before asking for sensitive feedback.
Explain what the employee can expect:
- Who will attend and how long the conversation is expected to take, if your organization has set a duration.
- Which topics are in scope and which matters must use another process, such as a formal complaint or safety report.
- Whether you will take notes, where they will be stored and who may see them.
- How you will summarize concerns and communicate follow-up.
- What confidentiality means in your organization and its limits.
Do not promise absolute secrecy unless policy and applicable obligations allow it. A safer explanation is: “I will treat what you share respectfully and limit distribution to people who need the information to act. If you raise a safety, legal, harassment or other reportable concern, I may have to involve the appropriate process, and I will explain that as clearly as I can.”
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Invite the employee’s priorities
Send a short description of the purpose and a few optional prompts. Leave room for the employee to add an issue that is not on your list. Steven G. Rogelberg, discussing ordinary manager-direct-report one-to-ones in an HBR IdeaCast interview, said: “The first thing that managers need to know is that this meeting is for their directs.” That principle applies to the design of a skip-level: the employee should not be a passive source of information for the senior leader’s agenda.
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Rogelberg also said, “One of the greatest predictors we have of one-on-one meeting success is the direct either creating the agenda themselves or doing it in concert with the leader.” His observation concerns ordinary one-to-ones, not a controlled study of skip-levels, but it supports offering the employee meaningful agenda control.
Choose a setting that lowers friction
An informal setting, such as coffee, is one option suggested by the university guide. Treat location as a preference rather than a proven performance intervention: available evidence does not establish that one location produces the best outcomes. Offer a private video or in-person alternative when the employee’s role, accessibility needs or comfort make that preferable.
Plan prompts, not a script
Prepare a few open questions, then follow the employee’s answers. A long questionnaire can make the conversation feel like an audit and crowd out the issue the employee most wants to raise.
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1. Open with purpose and permission
Briefly restate why you are meeting, how notes and follow-up work, and the limits of confidentiality. Invite candor without demanding a polished proposal: “You do not need to arrive with a complete solution. If you see a problem, describing what happens and how it affects the work is useful.” The federal Office of Inspector General (OIG) has described how expectations that employees fully formulate an idea before speaking can delay escalation.
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2. Start broad, then listen
Use a wide opening such as “How are things going for you and your team right now?” Let the employee finish. Do not immediately defend the organization, explain a decision or solve the first problem raised. The OIG report says employees may be more willing to share views when leaders solicit input before sharing their own.
3. Explore work and systems, not only the direct manager
A balanced conversation covers the employee’s actual work, the conditions around it and the reporting relationship. Move through these areas as relevant:
- Day-to-day responsibilities and the most rewarding work.
- Obstacles, handoffs, tools, processes and dependencies that slow progress.
- Team dynamics, collaboration and alignment of priorities.
- Support, guidance and decision access from leaders.
- Skills or experiences the employee wants to gain in the next year.
- How organizational changes are affecting workload, clarity or morale.
- What the direct manager does well and where additional support could help.
Ask for concrete examples and effects rather than labels. “What happened, who was affected and what would have made the outcome better?” produces more actionable information than “Is your manager good?”
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Ask neutrally about the relationship, then listen for patterns. Do not fish for criticism, compare the employee with colleagues or reveal what another employee said. If the employee raises a serious allegation, acknowledge it, explain the next formal step and avoid promising a personal finding or outcome.
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5. End with a shared understanding
Before closing, summarize the points you believe you heard and ask the employee to correct your interpretation. Separate actions you own from matters that belong with the direct manager, human resources, compliance, security or another established process. Confirm which topics may be shared and with whom.
Questions to adapt to the meeting’s purpose
Select a few; asking every question can feel interrogative.
Understanding the current experience
- “How are things going for you and your team right now?”
- “What has been the most rewarding part of your role recently?”
- “What challenges are you or your team currently facing?”
Exploring leadership support
- “How is your relationship with your manager?”
- “What is one thing your manager does really well that helps you succeed?”
- “Are there areas where your manager could provide more support or guidance?”
- “What is one thing I, as a senior leader, can do to support you and your team?”
Finding system and priority problems
- “Where can team priorities be better aligned?”
- “How would you describe the dynamics within your team?”
- “Which process or handoff creates the most avoidable work?”
Supporting development
- “What skills or experiences are you hoping to gain within the next year?”
- “What kind of feedback, exposure or opportunity would help you progress?”
Respond safely when the employee raises a concern
When the issue is solvable by you
Clarify the desired outcome, name the action you will take and set a realistic check-in. If you cannot meet the request, explain the constraint and any alternative. A vague “I will look into it” without an owner or next contact encourages cynicism.
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Do not automatically route every issue downward. First determine whether the employee feels safe raising it there and whether the matter is routine coaching or something more serious. You can help frame a conversation, provide context to the manager with the employee’s knowledge, or involve an appropriate partner.
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When the issue may require a formal process
For allegations involving harassment, discrimination, retaliation, threats, safety, fraud or other policy-defined matters, explain that normal reporting obligations may apply. Record only what is needed, preserve the employee’s words accurately and contact the designated function. Do not conduct an improvised investigation during the skip-level.
When you disagree
Ask questions before judging the account. If a suggestion is not adopted, explain the rationale and any constraints. The OIG report warns that unexplained decisions can reduce people’s future willingness to share views.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Close the loop after the conversation
- Write a concise record. Capture themes, specific commitments, owners and dates rather than a speculative transcript or personality assessment.
- Confirm the summary. Send the employee a short recap when appropriate, correcting misunderstandings before information is shared more widely.
- Route each item deliberately. Assign your actions to yourself; identify matters for the direct manager or another process; and document the employee’s consent or the policy reason for necessary disclosure.
- Act on quick wins. Small, visible improvements demonstrate that speaking up has a purpose, but do not trade a quick fix for a proper response to a serious concern.
- Explain decisions. If a proposal is declined or delayed, give the reason, constraints and any future review point.
- Follow up. Report progress even when the answer is “not yet.” An invitation to speak without credible follow-through undermines trust.
Choose cadence and format without overstating the evidence
The federal OIG report recommends periodic skip-level meetings but does not establish a universal frequency. Cadence should reflect the purpose, team size, change activity and trust level. A newly reorganized group may need change-triggered conversations; a stable organization may use a lighter recurring cycle. State the cadence you choose and review whether it is still useful.
Evidence about ordinary one-to-ones can inform, but cannot determine, a skip-level schedule. In a 2024 HBR interview, Rogelberg said research on regular manager-direct-report meetings generally favors weekly and then biweekly conversations. He cautioned that monthly meetings can suffer from recency bias and that meetings more often than weekly can feel like micromanagement. He also said no established finding identifies which location produces the best outcomes. Those observations concern ordinary one-to-ones, not skip-level meetings.
| Format choice | Useful when | Primary risk to manage |
|---|---|---|
| One-to-one | The employee needs privacy, individual development discussion or space for a sensitive concern. | The employee may fear exposure if confidentiality limits are unclear. |
| Group listening session | You need shared themes about a process, change or cross-team dependency. | Employees may withhold personal concerns; provide a private route as well. |
| Recurring conversation | You want an ongoing relationship and a way to notice changing conditions. | It can become routine reporting unless each meeting has a stated purpose. |
| Change-triggered conversation | A reorganization, major policy or operational shift creates a specific learning need. | Employees may interpret the meeting as a crisis signal; explain the context. |
| Employee-led agenda | The goal is voice, development or relationship-building. | Important organizational questions may be missed; provide optional prompts. |
| Leader-led agenda | You need consistent input on a defined change or risk. | The meeting can feel like an inspection; reserve substantial time for employee priorities. |
Interpret engagement statistics carefully
Gallup reported that 15% of employees whose managers did not meet with them regularly were engaged, while employees whose managers met with them regularly were almost three times as likely to be engaged. The figure comes from a Gallup Panel Web study of 8,287 employed U.S. adults, fielded September 4 through October 9, 2013, and published August 5, 2014. It concerns manager meetings generally; it does not show that skip-level meetings cause engagement.
The University of South Carolina guide also repeats figures attributed to Gallup (2022), the Edelman Trust Barometer (2023) and Harvard Business Review (2021): 37% more likely to feel motivated and committed, 82% believing senior leaders should interact more frequently to demonstrate transparency, and 25% more likely to identify operational challenges early. The guide does not provide the underlying studies or enough methodological detail to verify those numbers independently here, so treat them as secondary claims rather than guarantees or targets.
Recognize common failure modes
- Secret surveillance: Employees discover that comments were used to grade their manager. Fix this by stating the purpose, limiting distribution and using normal performance processes.
- Executive monologue: The senior leader spends the meeting explaining strategy. Fix it by asking first and postponing your view until the employee has finished.
- Manager-bashing prompts: Questions invite criticism instead of balanced information. Ask what is working, what is difficult and what support would help.
- False confidentiality: The leader promises secrecy that policy cannot honor. Explain limits before sensitive details are shared.
- Solution pressure: Employees believe they must present a complete business case. Invite observations and examples, not only finished proposals.
- Action without closure: Concerns disappear after the meeting. Assign owners, dates and a follow-up channel, then explain decisions.
- One-size-fits-all cadence: A fixed schedule is imposed without considering purpose or trust. Review whether the format is producing useful information.
A practical manager checklist
- Can I state the meeting’s purpose in one sentence?
- Have I explained scope, notes, confidentiality limits and follow-up?
- Does the employee have a real opportunity to shape the agenda?
- Will my opening question invite a candid account rather than a yes-or-no answer?
- Have I reserved attention for work systems, priorities, development and team dynamics, not just the direct manager?
- Do I know which concerns I can own and which require another process?
- Will I summarize what I heard and check the employee’s interpretation?
- Are every action, owner and next update clear?
- If I decline a suggestion, can I explain why?
Effective skip-level meetings are a disciplined listening channel: clear enough to be safe, open enough to reveal problems, and reliable enough that employees can see what their input changed.
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