“So . . . how’s it going?”

“Fine.”

Most leaders know how important it is to regularly check in with their employees to see how things are going, but many of them don’t know WHAT to ask to get more than just a monosyllabic response. Below are some great questions you should be asking your employees individually and as a group, on a regular basis.

Of course, you’re not going to ask all the questions at the same time. Simply ask a few relevant questions based on what’s going on in your organization or with a particular individual.

Not only will you gain a lot of valuable information, but you’ll also show your employees that you’re really interested in their work, their well-being, and their success.

1. What’s one thing that’s holding you (or us) back?

2. What can I do to support you?

3. What would you like to do more of?

4. If you could have a “do over” what would you do differently?

5. What are your top three goals for this week?

6. What do you need from me to achieve your goals?

7. What is one thing you’re struggling with right now?

8. How can we make our work more fun?

9. What would you like to learn?

10. What’s the best part of your job?

11. What’s the most challenging part of your job?

12. If you were the (insert YOUR job title here) for the next three months, what would you stop doing, start doing, and continue doing?

13. How can we put your talents to better use?

14. What could we be doing to improve our business?

What other questions should you be asking your employees?

-Amy Castro, The Performance Communication Blog