Manager resources
Practical guides and ready-to-use worksheets for the conversations that help service teams settle in, grow in confidence and feel appreciated.
14 pages · PDF and editable Word · Free to use · No signup
Staff appreciation ideas and free personal recognition toolkit ↗
Free new employee onboarding checklist and review templates ↗
Free team meeting agenda and minutes templates ↗
01 · The first twelve weeks
Use the four-, eight- and twelve-week reviews as connected conversations. Read the previous notes before each meeting. Give the colleague time to speak, record their view fairly and check the commitments you made last time.
Find out how the first few weeks have felt and whether the basics are in place.
Check what has changed since week four and whether the promised support has arrived.
Review progress across the first three months and agree the support and direction for the next stage.
Every review includes space for the colleague’s view, manager feedback, agreed actions, an owner and a date. Record your own commitment alongside the colleague’s next step. Share the notes, invite corrections and book the next conversation.
A fictional example
A new team member is unsure how to write a customer update. The manager agrees to walk through two examples on Tuesday. The colleague will draft the next update, and they will review it together on Friday.
Share the questions, book a quiet time and bring the previous actions. Consider the information, equipment and training the person has actually received.
Let them finish, ask for a recent example and check what you have understood. Be specific about progress and concerns. Agree the help you can provide.
Share the notes, record any differences of view fairly and follow through on agreed actions. Support that is needed now should start now.
02 · Recognition that fits the person
Public praise suits some people; others prefer a quiet thank-you. Our recognition-preferences worksheet helps you ask, rather than assume.
Recognition ideas and examples ↗Answers are optional. Keep them private, revisit preferences and agree the audience and particular story before sharing. No family details or personal dates are needed.
How do you prefer to be thanked?
What makes recognition meaningful to you?
Whose feedback matters to you?
What would you rather avoid?
Which work milestones would you like acknowledged?
How should we check before sharing more widely?
03 · Keep the conversation going
Start with a first-week conversation, then the four-, eight- and twelve-week reviews. Continue with regular one-to-ones and periodic development conversations. Adapt the timing to the person and the role; do not wait for a scheduled review to offer help.
Start with the colleague’s priorities. Review previous commitments, notice progress and ask what is getting in the way. Agree the next action and the help needed.
Reflect on achievements, challenges and learning. Discuss how the person puts your team’s standards into practice and what support the manager provided.
Choose a small number of priorities. Describe what success will look like, agree practice and support, and set a date to review progress.
04 · Communicate clearly
Explain what has changed, who it affects and what needs to happen. Use familiar words and make responsibilities and dates clear. Ask what might make the task difficult, then give the person time to answer.
Ask them to talk through the next step or summarize what you have heard and invite corrections. A message being read or acknowledged does not tell you whether it was understood.
The complete toolkit
A manager guide, matching four-, eight- and twelve-week reviews and action sheets, recognition preferences, a one-to-one worksheet, annual reflection, development plan, conversation schedule and communication guidance.
Keep completed reviews and personal preferences in your organization’s appropriate private record system. These are conversation resources; follow your organization’s separate process for formal employment decisions.
NewsAndWins helps service teams share updates, communicate and recognize good work. Explore the product or request a trial for your business.
Trials are available to selected US businesses after individual review. Public signup is closed. Administrators use the web dashboard. The iPhone app is available in the US App Store; Android is limited to internal testers and is not publicly available.