Planning Library · Operating rhythm
1:1s — the highest-leverage meeting.
Staged now, dormant until Phase C. When Groundworks hires its first GM, this is the playbook already in place. Adapted from Andy Grove via Highland's Northstar OS — same structure the founder uses in the board chair 1:1 today.
Dormant. Activates on first hire (GM, Phase C — expected 90 days after site LOI signed).
Founder ↔ board chair 1:1 already runs monthly on this framework. See /governance.
The report's individual dashboard. One tab, no separate agenda deck.
High leverage or negative leverage — nothing in between.
Andy Grove called 1:1s "high-leverage" because 30 minutes of structured conversation can shape months of an employee's behavior. Done badly, they do the reverse: a rambling status update, low-priority tangents, and venting about co-workers. That kind of 1:1 doesn't just waste time — it manufactures misalignment. Groundworks runs 1:1s the leveraged way or doesn't run them.
Every other week, 30 minutes.
| Role | Cadence | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Founder ↔ GM | Weekly | 45 min | First 90 days after hire. Drop to biweekly at 60 min once the operating rhythm is set. |
| GM ↔ cook / kitchen lead | Biweekly | 30 min | Weekly for first 6 weeks of café operations, then biweekly. |
| GM ↔ programming / education lead | Biweekly | 30 min | Alternates with cook 1:1 so GM's schedule stays predictable. |
| Founder ↔ board chair | Monthly | 30 min | Already active pre-open. See governance. |
No 1:1 until there is at least one WhyGo assigned to the report. If someone doesn't have goals worth reviewing, fix that first — don't invent 1:1s.
Same four blocks, every time.
Personal check-in
How are you doing — not the work. Keeps the relationship honest and surfaces energy issues early.
WhyGo pacing review
Walk the report's individual dashboard. Discuss the exceptions — outcomes off-pace or at watch. The icons speak; don't recap the greens.
One stuck problem
The report brings one thing they need coaching or unblocking on. This is the high-leverage block — protect it from status drift.
Manager feedback + commitments
Direct, specific, in-the-moment. End with 1–2 written commitments before the next 1:1. No commitments = no meeting.
Weekly (45-min) 1:1s stretch each block proportionally. The structure doesn't change — the ratios do.
Six rules. Non-negotiable.
Own the meeting
The report drives — brings the dashboard, brings the stuck problem, sends the recap. The manager coaches.
Dashboard on the table
Every 1:1 opens with the report's individual dashboard on screen. If the dashboard isn't updated, the 1:1 is rescheduled — not run.
No status theater
Do not recap what the dashboard already shows. Discuss the exceptions and the why.
No third-party venting
Complaints about co-workers get one sentence and then get taken to the person directly, or escalated cleanly. 1:1s that turn into venting sessions poison the org.
3-line recap within 24h
Report sends: (1) what was decided, (2) what will happen before next 1:1, (3) who owns it. This is the paper trail.
Reschedule, don't cancel
1:1s are the highest-leverage meeting on the calendar. Move them when needed; canceling them signals the relationship is optional.
The 1:1 is theirs, not yours.
In the first week of any hire, walk them through this page. Set expectations explicitly: they own the meeting, they bring the dashboard, they send the recap. The manager's job is to show up read-in, coach, and unblock. If a report treats 1:1s as a status update they get out of doing real work, the structure has failed and needs to be reset — not abandoned.