Building Better One-on-One Meetings: A Fresh Guide

At its core, a one-on-one meeting (a 1:1) is a dedicated, recurring conversation between a manager and their direct report. It’s less formal than a performance review but more meaningful than an ad hoc chat. The goal is to create a private space where both people can talk openly—about priorities, challenges, progress, and growth.

These meetings are powerful: they deepen relationships, boost alignment, and help catch issues early—not after they’ve become bigger problems. But many managers struggle to carry them out consistently or make them truly useful. That’s where structured templates and guidance for both manager and employee can make a big difference.

What One-on-One Meetings Do for Teams

When executed well, these meetings deliver value on several fronts:

For employees, they offer reliable time to raise questions, request feedback, align on expectations, talk career goals, and be seen.

For managers, they give insight into what’s going on under the surface—what’s working, what’s not, and what support might be needed.

When both sides prepare and commit, the regularity can prevent miscommunications, resolve small problems early, and strengthen trust.

The meeting isn’t just about task checklists—it’s about people, relationships, and ensuring work remains meaningful.

How to Prepare for a One-on-One

Preparation is key. To make the most of these meetings, both parties should come ready:

Managers should review what the employee has done, what objectives were set last time, and draft an agenda with points they want to cover. They should be ready to give constructive feedback and genuinely listen.

Employees should reflect on their recent work: successes, roadblocks, questions, and goals. Jot down topics they want to discuss.

As the meeting starts, it helps to begin with a personal check—how someone’s doing beyond work—and then move into performance, goals, challenges, and development.

Running the Meeting: Structure + Flexibility

A useful flow for the meeting can look like:

Personal Check-in: A few moments to connect on a human level.

Updates & Progress: What happened since the last meeting—wins, tasks, obstacles.

Challenges & Blockers: What’s getting in the way, and how the manager can help.

Goals & Future Planning: Revisit goals, set next steps, and align on what’s next.

Feedback & Growth: Give and ask for feedback, talk about skills, learning, and aspirations.

Closing & Action Items: Agree on who will do what, by when, and what the agenda might be next time.

While structure is helpful, it’s also important to leave breathing room for whatever needs to be addressed.

Frequency & Purpose

One-on-ones are most effective when they happen regularly—weekly, biweekly, or whatever cadence fits the team and workload.

Their purpose is multifaceted: ensuring alignment, giving feedback, supporting development, and strengthening the manager–employee relationship.

Over time, they become the ongoing check of how someone is doing, more than the sporadic catch-up they often devolve into.

Templates & Question Sets

The post includes various templates tailored to different situations: regular check-ins, first one-on-ones (with new hires), onboarding/training, skip-level meetings, goal-setting, problem-solving, career conversations, and more. Each template suggests relevant questions and an agenda that fits the meeting’s purpose.

For example, in a career development 1:1 you might ask:

“What skills do you want to build over the next 6 months?”

“Where do you feel blocked, and how can I support you?”

“How does your work align with your longer-term goals?”

Best Practices: What Makes Them Effective

To get the most out of one-on-ones, several practices help:

Prepare well (for both sides).

Stay consistent—don’t cancel often.

Let the employee speak—you’re not there to dictate, but to guide and support.

Follow up on the action items from previous meetings.

Customize the agenda to what the person needs (don’t use rigid, identical formats every time).

Create a safe environment—trust, confidentiality, and honesty matter.

Why This Matters for HR & Managers

As HR or as a leader, you can help your organization embed one-on-one meetings as a habit and a tool. You can:

Train managers on how to run them well

Provide templates and question banks

Encourage both sides to prepare

Monitor whether they happen regularly

Use them as a pulse check on culture, engagement, and team health

When managers and employees genuinely invest in these moments, they shift from reactive management to proactive development, and teams perform better as a result