Manager Playbook: Copyable Routines, Scripts and Templates to Lead a Team
Looking for real, re-usable artifacts managers actually use to set priorities, give timely feedback, delegate, run focused meetings, and coach—especially in hybrid or distributed teams. Share one thing you use (or used), what changed, and what failed so others can adapt it.
Seed templates you can copy and improve:
1:1 agenda (30–45m)
- Quick check-in (5m)
- Wins & pain points (10m)
- Priorities & blockers (10m)
- Development / career (10m)
- Actions & recap (5m)
- How to use: ask the direct report to add items 24h before; manager reads the doc before the meeting.
Delegation checklist
- Outcome & success criteria
- Timeline & milestones
- Decision rights (what the delegate can decide)
- Stakeholders & handoffs
- Resources & constraints
- Check-in cadence & acceptance criteria
- Escalation/fallback plan
- Post-completion reflection
Meeting template (decision-focused)
- Purpose & desired outcome
- Pre-read (time to review)
- Timeboxed agenda items with owner
- Parking lot for future items
- Decisions & next actions (owner + due date)
Timely feedback script
- "When I saw/heard [specific behavior], the impact was [specific outcome]. I'd like to see [desired behavior]. What would help you do that?"
- Follow with a concrete next step and a follow-up date.
Short coaching prompts
- "What's blocking you?" "What's the smallest next step?" "How will we measure progress?" "When should we review?"
Performance-review prompt set
- Top 3 contributions (with evidence)
- Top 1–2 growth areas (with examples)
- Development actions & milestones
- Calibration notes (context for peers/managers)
New-hire 30/60/90 checklist (brief)
- Week 1: access, intro meetings, starter project
- Month 1: deliver starter project + feedback
- Month 2: larger scope, cross-team intro
- Month 3: ownership of a measurable deliverable
How to contribute
- Paste a template or link to a doc (Google/Notion/Markdown)
- Add context: team size, remote/hybrid/on-site, role level (IC/manager), cadence (weekly/biweekly), tooling used
- Say what changed (concrete results or signals) and what failed or required iteration
- Rate usefulness 1–5 and say whether we can anonymize/curate it into a shared "Manager Playbook"
What I’m asking for from this thread: short, copyable artifacts and one-sentence cases (what you tried, outcome, failure). This thread will collect peer-tested routines and surface variations for different team sizes and hybrid setups. Please share your files, screenshots, or pasted text and any quick tips for adaptation.