One-On-One Meeting Template, Agenda & Questions

In this post, you’ll find a downloadable one on one meeting template document along with some tips for an effective meeting.

One-on-one (1:1) meetings are a critical check-in—they're part of developing and fostering positive and productive relationships between you as the manager, and the individual members of your team. 

A good one-on-one meeting provides you and each of your employees with a regularly scheduled forum for the two of you to catch up, communicate, and follow up on ways to help each other grow personally and professionally. 

Check out our article, the essential guide to 1:1 meetings, for a deep-dive into 1:1 basics and additional resources. 

All About One-On-One Meetings

The Purpose Of One-On-One Meetings

Effective one-on-one meetings help you foster positive relationships with your team members by giving you each the opportunity to:

1. Share information on everything from project updates to career goals to personal feelings;
2. Set general job performance expectations, and ensure consistency and alignment of expectations between all team members;
3. Assess team member engagement and motivation and understand the personal and/or work elements impacting this;
4. Reinforce workplace vision and values, to ensure broader culture alignment across the entire organization;
5. Develop a personal relationship, which can help support the professional relationship; 
6. Identify ways in which you and your employee or direct report can help with their career development and professional goals, and
7. Minimize surprises, particularly negative ones, during formal performance reviews.

Related Read: Skip-Level Meetings: A Powerful Leadership Tool

Typical One-On-One Meeting Agenda

The one on one meeting template below is structured in a way that helps you cover off these important points.

While the specific topics discussed in a one on one meeting will vary from meeting to meeting, it’s important to create a general structure and agenda that applies to every discussion. 

You might schedule one one one meetings weekly or bi-weekly. Remember, these aren't status updates about your projects. They are check-ins that cover a broader range of employee performance talking points, including personal life, energy, goals, motivation, obstacles, career development, and more.

A typical one on one meeting agenda includes:

• a check-in on their general well-being and personal life to build rapport
• work updates from the team member to go over action items from the past week (or time period since your previous meeting), roadblocks, and goals 
• updates from the manager to share important information, non-urgent performance management talking points, new long-term goals or responsibilities
• ​flex time to go over any other important items and clarify action items.

Find more details on a one on one meeting agenda in Essential Guide to One-on-One Meetings for First-Time Managers. 

Following a regular agenda is useful for your one on one meetings because it helps to build trust. Employees will generally know what to expect. All of this further contributes to making 1:1’s a productive and effective business habit. 

The Ultimate One-On-One Meeting Template

Are you looking for a simple template to help you lead an effective 1:1 conversation in your next meeting? 

Our 1:1 meeting template includes a bunch of great one-on-one tools and resources, including:

• Quick start guide with essential one on one best practices
• Simple framework for your one on one meeting agenda
• Suggested one on one meeting questions for the one on one conversation
• Printable template for writing notes, and recording actions and decisions

Get our One-on-One Meeting template!

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