Skip-level meetings: implementation, structure & tips

Even in organizations with strong internal communication, gaps between senior leadership and individual contributors are common. Executives naturally focus on strategic priorities and often lack visibility into day-to-day employee experiences. HR professionals can play a critical role in bridging these gaps.

One initiative worth considering is the skip-level meeting. These sessions facilitate candid conversations across different organizational levels and allow leaders to collect feedback to help companies improve and managers progress. And with LinkedIn research reporting that 69% of US professionals would leave their job if they had a “bad manager,” skip-level meetings could be a key part of your employee retention strategy.* 

Stay with us as we unpack the benefits of skip-level meetings, share our five-step implementation guide, and provide expert tips on how to approach these discussions. 

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*LinkedIn News, 2024
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What are skip-level meetings & why are they effective?

A skip-level meeting is a conversation between an employee and their manager’s supervisor, without the attendance of that manager (who’s effectively “skipped over”). This presents a valuable opportunity for individual contributors (or managers) to interact with senior leaders. 

Benefits of skip-level meetings include:

• Giving team members the chance to discuss concerns and goals with higher-ups 
• Creating a space for honest employee feedback
• Bridging hierarchical disconnects in communication 
• Aiding employee and leadership development
• Giving higher-ups insight into everyday operations 
• Boosting morale, well-being, and loyalty by making team members feel heard 

In a recent Forbes article, Susan Bortone — CEO and Founder of the Noble Talent Group — spoke to the value of skip-level meetings, stating they “often lead to better engagement, with employees feeling like they have a connection to upper management. [They also give] upper management insight into day-to-day operations they may not get from the managerial level.”

Despite their advantages, skip-level meetings remain underutilized, likely due to busy executive calendar — with many already in at least 12 meetings a week.
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How to implement skip-level meetings within your organization

Whether you’re introducing skip-level meetings for the first time or looking to optimize your existing process, take a look at our five-step guide to successful implementation below.

1. Define the purpose & communicate the value

Clearly defining the purpose of skip-level meetings should help all team members understand why they’re important and how they benefit both individuals and the organization. With that in mind, be sure to communicate the core advantages of skip-level meetings: from helping build a richer company culture to encouraging constructive feedback to facilitating transparency and providing an opportunity for managers to practice empowering leadership. 

Consider sharing learning materials about the objectives of skip-level meetings or hosting a Q&A session.
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2. Set clear guidelines & expectations

If skip-level meetings are an entirely new process for your organization, it’s worth reassuring everyone that they’re not intended to function as performance reviews. Rather, they’re designed to reveal new insights, foster open communication and innovation, and improve the employee experience across the board.

To standardize the initiative, provide guidance on who will attend the meetings (e.g., individual contributors and the senior leaders their managers report to; managers and their supervisor’s managers), how frequently the meetings will take place, and the types of questions or content they might cover. 

Senior leaders might also benefit from training on running productive skip-level meetings. You could provide them with access to customized skip-level meeting templates or use a tool like Leapsome Learning, where HR professionals can create custom courses on how to successfully conduct skip-level meetings. 
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3. Pilot with a small group

 Once you’ve finished the planning stage, It may be tempting to roll out skip-level meetings across your company. However, piloting them with small groups gives you the chance to identify issues before a wider rollout — like common points of confusion or logistical issues. 

Start by asking a select few team members to participate in a skip-level meeting “beta test” to try out the format and agenda. Then, gather early-adopter insights and make refinements accordingly. This shows employees that you’re committed to developing a process that works for everyone. Plus, by shining a light on any early successes, you’ll build trust in the initiative, increasing the likelihood of team members participating meaningfully and enthusiastically from the start.
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4. Create a feedback & action-tracking system

The real value of skip-level meetings lies in the feedback leaders gain — and what they do with it. With the right tools, it’s simple to capture these key insights and categorize them by theme; for instance, grouping together comments about process issues, communication gaps, or specific company culture concerns. 

With Leapsome Meetings, you can create and share a custom skip-level meetings template — then swiftly summarize feedback by subject, and even track which comments are actioned. When this process is visible to employees, it shows that their voices are heard and have a legitimate impact on the organization. 
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5. Measure effectiveness & adapt over time

Piloting skip-level meetings with a dedicated group should pinpoint and resolve any early issues, but scaling the initiative will likely reveal new challenges. Stay open to feedback and be prepared to refine the process as you go.

Measuring (and reporting on) the effectiveness of these meetings should also help to improve buy-in and bolster participant engagement. By analyzing the data and tracking the resulting actions, you’ll be able to see and share how skip-level meetings help drive real change and create a thriving culture of growth and feedback.
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How to structure your skip-level meeting agenda

Preparing a skip-level meeting structure in advance ensures consistency between team members, keeps the conversation on track, and ensures you cover the most crucial discussion points while keeping both parties engaged.

The most suitable structure will vary in line with your organization, but here’s a suggestion to get you started:

• Break the ice & reiterate the purpose
  Start with a brief, informal exchange to put the employee at ease and set the tone for the meeting. Then, restate the purpose of the conversation and outline the key topics you’ll cover.

• Ask open-ended questions
  Open-ended questions yield more nuanced responses and may expose you to perspectives you wouldn’t have considered otherwise. For example, “What do you think is working well within our organization?” or “What things do you enjoy most about your role?” 

• Raise specific questions about management
  ‍While skip-level meetings shouldn’t exclusively focus on the employee’s manager, it can be helpful to ask about their experience to determine if there are any issues that should be addressed. For example: “What is your manager doing well?” and “How could your manager better support you?”

• Discuss the wider team & organization
  Dig into the employee’s perspective on their team and company overall. For instance, ask questions like, “Are there any obstacles currently impacting your team’s progress?” and “What business objectives do you feel the most excited about?”

• Make room for employee questions
  Remember that skip-level meetings should be two-way conversations. Aim to create an open, psychologically safe atmosphere where participants feel comfortable raising their own questions. If they don’t, be sure to prompt them.

• Wrap-up & next steps 
  Thank the employee for their time and insights and tell them what to expect next. For example, explain how you plan to act on their feedback or whether you’ll follow up with a meeting summary.

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Skip-level meeting tips for leaders

Ask targeted, open-ended questions 

Avoid vague or generic questions like “How’s everything going?”; instead, prepare a list of open-ended queries around your key focus areas. You might include questions like “What’s working well within your team?”, “Are there any bottlenecks in your processes?” and “What do you think we could do to improve organizational communication?”

Remember, you’re looking to get a new perspective on these issues to complement that of the person’s direct manager. 
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Listen more than you talk

Skip-level meetings aren’t designed for you to justify or explain business decisions. Your goal is to listen actively so you can deepen your understanding of the employee’s experience, understand the actions you can take for improvement, and build rapport. As Hans Vranken, CEO of AXA Korea, shared: “These interactions are more than knowledge-sharing; they’re barrier-breaking connections of trust, openness, and mutual growth in the spirit of an inclusive workplace.” 
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Align with direct managers 

To minimize the risk of misunderstandings or negatively impacting the manager’s relationship with their direct report, make sure they’re aware when you’re scheduling the meeting. 

Management training consultant Celia Gorman recommends that you “share the sample questions you might ask and see if [they] have any ideas or input prior to meeting with their team. Assure them you’ll share any feedback you receive that can help them become a stronger manager.” 

It’s also worth reassuring managers that skip-level meetings are part of a broader initiative and are not isolated check-ins about their performance or specific issues.
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Don’t let it turn into a performance review of the direct manager 

Skip-level meetings shouldn’t primarily center on the performance of a specific manager. Instead, focus on the employee’s general perspectives, how they could be better supported, and any areas of improvement they can pinpoint.

If they do mention problems with their manager, give them space to voice their concerns and acknowledge them in an unbiased way, then address the feedback separately at a later time.
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Follow up & close the loop

After the session, follow up with a summary of key takeaways or use an AI-powered tool like Leapsome Meetings to do it for you. If the employee gave specific feedback or raised issues, share details about anything you’ve done or will do to address them.

Reflecting and acting on team member suggestions isn’t just good for the individual but positively impacts the business, too. Indeed, a Salesforce study found that when an employee feels heard at work, they’re also 4.6x more likely to feel empowered to perform at their best.
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Skip-level meeting tips for employees

Come prepared with discussion points

Before the meeting, make notes that detail the things you feel are working well and what you think could be improved upon. If you want to share feedback about processes, initiatives, or challenges you’re facing, bring specific examples you can use to make your point — and be ready to discuss concrete ways to solve those problems.
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Be honest, but keep it professional

Skip-level meetings are an opportunity to share transparent feedback — but they’re not performance reviews of your direct manager. Make sure the perspectives you share are balanced and respectful, and remember that passing on positive comments is just as valuable as sharing constructive feedback. 
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Focus on what leaders can control 

While skip-level meetings are an opportunity to make your voice heard, senior leaders don’t have limitless power. Skip-level meetings are best used for “big-picture” feedback, so keep the focus on areas where change is possible and beneficial — like company culture, processes, internal communications, and team and organizational objectives. 

💡 “In companies going through a lot of change, skip-level meetings give leaders a chance to get to know the people in the organization better. This makes it easier for them to match the right people with the right roles when changes happen.”

— Daria Rudnik, executive coach and consultant

Stay engaged

Come to the meeting with a positive, curious mindset; ask thoughtful questions and pay attention to the insights your senior leader shares with you. They might give you ideas for your own professional development or help you align your goals with those of the wider organization.
 

Run meaningful skip-level meetings with Leapsome  

Skip-level meetings ground your senior leaders and reveal the realities of day-to-day operations while allowing individual contributors to share their authentic perspectives and help develop a more successful workplace.

With so much value to offer, it’s clear that time and resources are among the key obstacles preventing a wider uptake of these meetings — but the right tools can make implementing them easy.

Leapsome Meetings handles everything from custom template creation to AI-powered meeting insights and easy tracking of follow-up tasks and action items. This minimizes administrative requirements from participants and ensures skip-level meetings are as productive as they are efficient.

So if organization is your barrier to adoption, upgrade your tech stack with Leapsome — you won’t look back.

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