One on one meeting templates to make your life easier

What is a one on one meeting?

The one on one meeting is still an important stalwart in management. One on one meetings are akin to a forum group between a manager and an employee, in which they can discuss performance, improvements, suggestions and any queries either of them may have. For both managers and employees, one on one meetings can provide imperative benefits to help drive ongoing development and performance.We bring you some useful one on one meeting templates that will help you make the most of the discussion.

For managers, one on one meetings serve a dual purpose. On one hand, they provide an opportunity to ask strategic questions to gain valuable insight. On the other hand, they provide an opportunity to build rapport with an employee and show to them they are a valued member of the team; helping to build engagement and a culture of appreciation.

For employees, they offer a platform to gain a better understanding of your manager’s expectations, air any concerns you may have or get extra advice or coaching. A lot of employees are afraid of having one on one’s or having a bad one on one meeting. But done right, they can set you apart from the rest of the team, give you greater visibility into your managers current view of your performance and development, and kick you into the right direction for improvements. They can provide you with ideas on how to complete your goals and guide you in career development.

Although one on one meetings with your managers should be a power for good, they can often have a net null effect, or worse… a negative effect! Here are some signs of what a bad one on one look like:

They turn up late and primarily talk about negative issues with your work. This can be made even worse if they talk negatively without providing explicit examples.
Conversation concerning career progression is avoided.
The meeting is unstructured and there is no set agenda.
Short, medium and long term (3, 6, 12 month) goals are not integrated into the meeting.

For more examples of what constitutes a good, a bad and a null one on one meeting, check out this blog.

Why are one on one meetings important?

One on ones are a vital part of an effective performance management process. They are one of the most valuable tools management have in their belt, and they can help you too achieve a number of benefits if done properly:

Better employee engagement
Increased Productivity
Reduced employee turnover
Helping to improve managers
Help employee morale issues
Improve and/or replace performance procedures like reviews and feedback
Internal Promotions
Help reconnect remote staff.
Address individuals exhibiting performance deficits

Example one on one meeting templates

Check out some of these example one on one meeting templates that we have created to help you devise the most effective one on one meeting possible. Adopt and adapt the template that you think best fits your organization.

Here are some questions and discussion topics which you can use in your one on one meetings. Topics range from conversational (to build relationships), to more in-depth questions about strategy:

Tell me about what you’ve been working on.
Tell me about your week – what’s it been like?
How are your family/your weekend/your activities?
How far along on project X?
Are you on track to meet the deadline?
What areas are ahead of schedule?
What questions do you have about the project?
Is there anything I need to do, and if so by when?
How are you going to approach this?
What do you think you should do?
How do you think we can do this better?
What are your future goals in this area?
What are your plans to get there?
What can you/we do differently next time?
What sort of progress have you made on the steps we discussed last time?
What have you done exceptionally well since our last meeting?
What, if anything, would you have done differently?
What do you think has gone well? What do you think you could have done differently?
What, if anything, would you like to do, but haven’t been able to?
How might I make this project more challenging or interesting for you?
What ideas can you bring in from past successes?
What additional resources from me would be helpful for you as some you solve this problem?
Imagine it’s two years from now, and things have gone well: What has been your role in that? What does your role look like?
If we could improve in any way as an organization, how would we do it?
What actions will you take before our next one on one to make progress on X?
What development areas do you want to work on in the upcoming quarter?
What additional resources can I provide for you between now and the next time we meet?