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One-on-one meeting template: a free agenda and 15 questions for managers

A regular one-on-one is the simplest habit a manager in a small team can keep. Thirty minutes every week or two, with the other person's topics first, catches small problems before they become big ones.

This guide gives you a simple agenda, a free printable template, a bank of questions and a few habits that make 1:1s feel useful rather than like a status report.

What a 1:1 is for

A 1:1 is time for the person who reports to you. It is not a project update; you can get those in a team meeting or a shared document. Use it for the things that are hard to raise in a group: what is getting in the way, what they want to learn, how they feel about their workload, feedback in both directions.

It is also not a performance review or a disciplinary meeting. If you need one of those, schedule it separately and follow your company's process.

A simple 30-minute agenda

1. Their topics first (10 to 15 minutes). Ask them to add topics to a shared page before the meeting. Start there.
2. Your topics (5 to 10 minutes). Updates they need, feedback, upcoming changes.
3. One bigger question (5 minutes). Pick one from the question bank below.
4. Actions (2 to 3 minutes). Who does what by when. Write them down.

If they have nothing to raise, that is fine. Use the bigger question, or end early. A short 1:1 is better than a canceled one.

15 questions in five groups

Do not ask all of these. Pick one or two that fit the week.

Workload and priorities

• What is taking more of your time than it should?
• If you could drop one task this month, which would it be?
• Is anything unclear about what matters most right now?

Blockers

• What is slowing you down that I might be able to help with?
• Who do you need something from that you are not getting?
• Is there a decision you are waiting on?

Growth

• What would you like to get better at this year?
• Is there a project you would like to be part of?
• What did you learn this month?

Team and ways of working

• What is one thing we could do differently as a team?
• Are our meetings useful to you? Which ones could go?
• Is there anyone on the team you would like to work with more?

Feedback for the manager

• What could I do more of, or less of, to help you?
• Was there a time recently when I could have handled something better?
• Is there anything you have been meaning to tell me?

Keep a running log

Use one document or page per person, with the newest meeting at the top. Over a few months it becomes a useful record: what they raised, what you agreed and whether it happened. It also makes review time easier, because you are not trying to remember six months of conversations.

Keep the notes factual and kind. Assume the person may read them, and in many teams they should be able to. Think about who else can see the document, and do not store anything sensitive there. If something personal comes up, ask the person what, if anything, they would like written down.

Habits that make 1:1s work

• Keep the same day and time, and protect it. Moving a 1:1 is fine; canceling it often sends a message.
• Let the other person speak first.
• Close your laptop and turn notifications off.
• Follow up on last time's actions before anything new.
• Every three months, look back over the log together and ask what has changed.
• For new starters, start weekly. Many teams move to every two weeks after the first three months.

Your first 1:1 with someone new

The first meeting sets the tone, so spend it on how you will work together rather than on tasks. Ask:

• How do you like to get feedback: in the moment, or saved for our 1:1?
• How should I let you know about something urgent, and how will you tell me?
• What did a good manager do for you in a past job? What did a bad one do?
• What would make these meetings worth your time?

Write the answers at the top of their log and look back at them after a month. Then agree how often you will meet and put the series in both calendars before you finish.

Common mistakes

• Turning the 1:1 into a status update on every task
• Talking for most of the meeting
• Skipping it whenever things are busy, which is exactly when it is most useful
• Agreeing actions and never checking them

Remote 1:1s

For remote team members, 1:1s matter even more, because there are no chats in the corridor. Use video if both of you are comfortable with it, and keep a shared agenda page you can both edit. A walking 1:1 on the phone works well now and then for a change of pace.