Staff Tracking 1 on 1 for Wellness Initiative

One-on-One Meeting Policy for Tree of Life Open Bible Church

Introduction

While we understand that staff members will have various meetings that do not fit these specific qualifications, for the sake of consistency across the organization, we ask that all staff ensure these essential components are followed when recording a one-on-one meeting in the Tree of Life Hub.

This policy emphasizes the importance of spiritual wellness, personal development, operational support, and meaningful relational connection within our interactions.

Purpose

This policy provides guidelines for conducting and recording one-on-one meetings within Tree of Life Open Bible Church. It aims to foster spiritual growth, wellness, personal development, and relational connectedness among staff, volunteers, vendors, and others served through the ministry.

Definition and Scope of One-on-One Meetings

A one-on-one meeting is a dedicated interaction between a staff member and one eligible individual that is focused on spiritual wellness, personal growth, encouragement, leadership development, or operational collaboration.

One-on-one meetings should ordinarily involve more than a brief or incidental conversation. They should create an opportunity for meaningful discussion, personal prayer, encouragement, feedback, problem-solving, or the sharing of spiritual and practical insights.

Whenever reasonably possible, one-on-one meetings should be scheduled in advance. A planned agenda is preferred, although it is not mandatory.

For adult meetings, approximately 30 minutes is generally recommended. Staff members are encouraged to use the Effective Manager 10/10/10 format as a suggested structure:

Approximately 10 minutes for the participant’s topics and concerns.
Approximately 10 minutes for the staff member’s topics, feedback, or follow-up.
Approximately 10 minutes for development, coaching, prayer, or discussion of next steps.

The 10/10/10 format is a recommended tool rather than a strict requirement. Staff members may adapt the meeting’s length and structure according to the participant’s needs and the purpose of the conversation.

Policy Guidelines

Frequency and Distribution of Meetings

Staff members must record their qualifying one-on-one meetings each week in the Tree of Life Hub.
There are no organizational minimums or maximums for the number of one-on-one meetings a staff member must conduct.
Staff members are encouraged to distribute their attention across the individuals and teams for whom they are responsible.
The purpose of tracking is not merely to produce a high meeting count. It is to encourage consistent, meaningful investment in people.

Participants

Eligible participants may include:

Direct reports
Volunteers
Ministry participants
Vendors
Consultants, coaches, or mediators when the meeting otherwise meets the qualifications of this policy

The following meetings do not qualify for tracking:

Meetings with another Tree of Life staff member
Meetings with a member of the staff person’s household
Committee meetings
Group staff meetings
Group coaching or group development meetings
Brief, incidental, or unscheduled conversations that do not involve meaningful depth
Meetings that are primarily transactional and do not include spiritual wellness, personal growth, development, or meaningful operational collaboration

When a consultant, coach, or mediator is brought into a meeting to assist another person, the meeting may count if the primary purpose is to address the needs, development, or circumstances of one individual.

When the staff member is participating as the person receiving consultation, coaching, or mediation, the meeting does not ordinarily count unless the staff member helped develop the agenda and was actively responsible for facilitating the meeting’s purpose for the other participant.

Recording Meetings in the Tree of Life Hub

Qualifying one-on-one meetings must be recorded through the Tree of Life Hub:

https://hub.godlovesbrookline.com/dashboard/

Staff members must enter the name of each person with whom they had a qualifying one-on-one meeting rather than entering only a total number.
The Hub calculates the weekly count from the people entered.
Multiple entries involving the same individual during the same week are automatically de-duplicated and count as one distinct one-on-one meeting for that week.
Multiple meetings with the same individual in a single week therefore count as one meeting for weekly tracking purposes.
When a staff member has no qualifying one-on-one meetings during a week, the staff member should select “No 1-on-1s this week.”
Staff members should enter only meetings that qualify under this policy.
Staff members must not include other staff members, household members, committee meetings, group staff meetings, or other excluded interactions merely for visibility or recordkeeping.
The Hub’s Google Calendar suggestions are provided as a convenience. A calendar suggestion does not determine whether a meeting qualifies. Staff members remain responsible for applying this policy before recording the meeting.
The Hub maintains historical and rollup views so that staff members and organizational leaders can review the distribution of one-on-one meetings over time.

Information entered into the Hub should be limited to the participant’s identity and any other information specifically requested by the system. Sensitive pastoral, personal, medical, disciplinary, or confidential details should not be entered into the one-on-one tracking record.

Scheduling, Agenda, and Documentation

Scheduling the meeting in advance is preferred.
A planned agenda is encouraged but not mandatory.
The agenda may be formal or informal, but the staff member should have a reasonably clear purpose for the conversation.
Linking an agenda, notes document, or relevant material in the calendar invitation or description is recommended when appropriate.
Staff members should use discretion when documenting personal or pastoral matters. Confidential information should not be placed in broadly accessible calendar descriptions or shared documents.
Staff members should identify any appropriate follow-up steps before the meeting concludes.

One-on-One Meetings with Minors

A dedicated conversation with a minor may qualify as a one-on-one meeting when it is scheduled or intentionally arranged, has a clear purpose, and creates an opportunity for meaningful spiritual, personal, behavioral, or leadership development.

For meetings with minors, the length of the meeting is less important than its intentionality and depth. A conversation may qualify even when it is shorter than 30 minutes if:

It was scheduled or intentionally arranged rather than merely incidental.
The staff member had a clear purpose or agenda.
The conversation moved beyond casual interaction.
The minor was given an appropriate opportunity to speak, reflect, ask questions, or receive support.
The interaction included meaningful encouragement, spiritual formation, coaching, problem-solving, or personal development.

The Effective Manager 10/10/10 format may be adapted for minors, but it is not required. The structure, language, and length of the meeting should be appropriate to the minor’s age, maturity, needs, and attention span.

The term “one-on-one” in this tracking policy describes the individualized focus of the conversation. It does not override Tree of Life Open Bible Church’s child-safety requirements or mean that an adult should meet privately or secretly with a minor.

All meetings and conversations with minors must comply with the church’s child-safety policies and applicable reporting requirements. Staff members should exercise particular care regarding visibility, location, transportation, physical contact, electronic communication, and the involvement or awareness of parents or guardians.

Whenever possible, meetings with minors should:

Take place in an observable and interruptible setting.
Occur where other approved adults are present nearby.
Avoid isolated rooms, locked doors, private residences, or other settings that could create unnecessary risk.
Be scheduled through appropriate ministry or parental communication channels.
Include parent or guardian awareness or consent when required by church policy or appropriate to the circumstances.
Remain within the staff member’s ministry role, training, and level of responsibility.

Staff members should not use the one-on-one tracking system to record sensitive details concerning a minor. Any safety concern, disclosure of abuse, threat of harm, or other reportable matter must be handled immediately according to the church’s child-safety and mandatory-reporting procedures rather than treated only as a one-on-one meeting record.

A spontaneous conversation with a minor may still be pastorally important, but it should only be counted as a tracked one-on-one when it demonstrates sufficient intentionality, appropriate depth, and compliance with all safety expectations.

Conclusion

By adhering to these guidelines, Tree of Life Open Bible Church aims to build a stronger, more spiritually well, and relationally connected community.

The Hub provides a consistent way to identify the people receiving intentional care and to understand how that care is distributed over time. Staff members are encouraged to approach these guidelines with wisdom, flexibility, accountability, and a commitment to promoting wellness and meaningful personal development throughout the organization.