Scott's framework for combining direct feedback with genuine care shows up throughout Module 2, particularly in how to ask a pointed question without making someone feel attacked. Useful context for why so many organizations default to vague, unhelpful kindness instead.
Further reading
Books that pair well with this course
None of these were written specifically about skip-level meetings, but each touches on something the course leans on: honest listening, trust between layers of management, and the discipline of turning observation into change.
Written from the perspective of a first-time manager, this book is worth reading if you want to remember what it feels like to be the person in the middle. That perspective is exactly what Module 3 asks directors to hold onto.
A former submarine captain's account of pushing decision-making downward instead of pulling information upward. It's a different structure than a skip-level meeting, but the underlying question, who actually knows what's going on, is the same one this course is built around.
Wiseman's research on leaders who make the people around them smarter and more capable, rather than more dependent, connects directly to how a skip-level meeting should feel from the employee's side of the table.
A dense but rewarding look at organizations built around continual honest feedback at every level. Not a quick read, but a useful companion for anyone who wants to understand what a fully feedback-oriented culture looks like in practice, beyond a single meeting format.
How to use this list
You don't need to read all five before starting the course, and the course doesn't assume you have. They're here as optional depth for anyone who wants to sit longer with the ideas behind a specific module, particularly the ones on trust and honest disclosure.
If you only have time for one, pairing it with whichever module is giving you the most trouble tends to be more useful than picking based on title alone.