This guide walks you through the key tasks to get started as a manager in 15Five. Each section covers a core feature area and links to the articles you need to set things up and use them effectively. Start with the areas most relevant to your immediate priorities, or work through them in order.
Check-ins
Check-ins are recurring pulse surveys your direct reports complete each week. As a manager, you can configure the questions your team sees, review their responses, and take action directly from a Check-in to keep work unblocked and conversations moving.
- Check-ins — Feature Overview
- Configure Check-in questions for your team (Manager)
- Access and review a direct report's Check-in
- Take action on a Check-in (react, comment, flag, pass up, add to 1-on-1)
- View Check-ins for your direct report hierarchy
1-on-1s
15Five's 1-on-1s feature gives you a shared, running agenda with each direct report so nothing falls through the cracks between meetings. Use it to prepare talking points, document discussion notes, and connect meeting outcomes to other 15Five workflows.
- 1-on-1s — Feature Overview
- Create a new 1-on-1 agenda
- Schedule a 1-on-1 meeting with Google Calendar
- Hold a 1-on-1 meeting
- Add a talking point to a 1-on-1 agenda
Performance Reviews
During a review cycle, managers complete written reviews for their direct reports, approve peer nominations, and share results once the cycle closes. These articles walk you through each step so you can move through the process accurately and on time.
- What managers do in a performance review cycle
- Complete a manager review with AI Assist
- Approve peer nominations for your team
- Share review results with a review cycle participant
- View Review Results as a Manager
Engagement Surveys
When your organization runs an engagement survey, you'll have access to results for your team so you can identify where people are struggling and take targeted action. Use the engagement tab to read your team's scores, understand what's driving them, and build action plans around low-scoring areas.
- Access Engagement Campaign Results via the Engagement Tab
- Understand the Engagement Report
- Create an Action Plan from Engagement Survey Results
- Take action on a low engagement driver score
- Engagement Score and Engagement Level — Overview
Objectives / OKRs
Objectives help you and your team stay aligned on what matters most. As a manager, you'll create and align objectives, track progress through Check-ins, and use reports to monitor status across your team.
- Understand Objectives and OKRs as a manager
- Create an objective
- Align an objective with a parent objective
- How to track objective progress in a Check-in
- Download an Objectives report
High Fives
High Fives are peer recognition messages that help reinforce positive behavior and contributions. As a manager, you can give High Fives, use Manager Copilot to draft them quickly, and pull reports to track recognition trends across your team.
- High Fives — Feature Overview
- Generate or improve a High Five using Manager Copilot
- View and filter the High Fives feed
- Pull a custom High Fives report
Feedback
15Five's feedback tools let you request and share structured feedback with colleagues, and view feedback submitted about your direct reports. Use these features to support coaching conversations and keep a clearer picture of how your team is perceived.
- Request feedback from a colleague
- Share feedback with a colleague
- View feedback shared with you about a direct report
Kona
Kona is 15Five's AI meeting assistant that integrates with your calendar and 1-on-1s to capture notes and surface coaching insights. Connect it to your calendar, configure auto-join settings, and access on-demand manager training to get the most out of it.
- Kona for Managers — Feature Overview
- Connect Your Calendar to Kona Meeting Assistant
- Manage Kona Auto Join and recurring meeting settings
- View and Manage Kona Meeting Notes in Your 1-on-1 Agenda
- Access On-Demand Manager Training Content
Career Hub
Career Hub gives you visibility into your direct reports' career goals, growth areas, and job responsibilities. Use it to prepare for development conversations, review their self-reported answers, and make sure their responsibilities in 15Five reflect what they're actually doing.
- Career Hub for managers — overview and navigation
- Access a direct report's Career Hub answers
- Prepare for and hold a Career Hub meeting with a direct report
- Manage job responsibilities for a direct report in Career Hub
- Create a career goal in Career Hub
What's next
Once you've completed the basics in each area, explore the full domain sections in the Help Center for deeper configuration options and advanced use cases. If your organization has specific workflows enabled, your 15Five admin can point you to any role-specific settings that apply to your team.