One-on-one meeting templates: 3 free downloadable agendas

One-on-one meetings keep you connected with your people and give you a pulse on the work your team is generating. And the right one-on-one meeting template will help make every conversation focused and productive.

Keeping your process streamlined and efficient can be challenging, especially when you’re having these essential conversations weekly or even monthly with multiple direct reports. And that makes it tough to reap all the benefits of regular one-on-ones.

With an agenda for one-on-one meetings, you cover the right talking points, follow up on action items, and create continuity from one conversation to the next.

Use one of our 3 key one-on-one templates for your next meeting with a team member, so you can both walk away with a clear and shared understanding of your next steps.

What is the purpose of a one-on-one meeting?

The practical purposes of one-on-one meetings include everything from getting status updates on employees’ priorities and deliverables to removing blockers and planning what’s coming up. But they can also a moment to tackle difficult conversations, exchange feedback, discuss career goals, and much more.

18% of employees are dissatisfied with how often they communicate with their manager.

Officevibe Pulse Survey data

Ultimately, the purpose of these one-on-one meetings is to maintain ongoing communication with each member of your team. Better one-on-one conversations with your direct reports can help drive employee engagement, career development, and team alignment.

Many managers find that using a meeting agenda template sets the stage for great conversations and makes their job easier.

Having a one-on-one agenda helps you plan, think out discussion points in advance, and not miss any pressing issues, making one-on-one conversation flow. Everyone can tell when the other person has come to a meeting prepared. Doing so shows your employees you care and builds trust and rapport.

📖 In addition to the templates below, we’ve also put together a detailed one-on-one meeting guide for managers that covers everything you need to get started with one-on-one meetings.

One-on-one meeting agenda templates

Having a tried and true structure helps you cover all the key meeting agenda items and guides you through the meeting, ensuring enough feedback throughout. Setting yourself up with a one-on-one agenda template can save you a lot of time in the long run.

Download or print any of our free one-on-one templates below to prepare for your next one-on-one meeting with ease and speed.

Classic one-on-one meeting template

When you meet regularly, as you should with one-on-ones, it may be challenging to know what to discuss. However, the great thing about weekly or bi-weekly one-on-ones is how just a few questions can drive great conversations. We’ve compiled these questions and created the classic one-on-one meeting template with talking points to bring up during your meeting.

Click to download a FREE printable PDF version of the classic one-on-one meeting template.

Regular one-on-ones are a time for leaders and their team members to have a meaningful touchpoint. This 30-minute version of “the classic” is designed for leaders short on time who want to discuss the most critical topics while taking a pulse and making sure their team member is on the right track.

Prefer to work with a printable PDF copy? Save and edit the classic one-on-one meeting template PDF.

1. Informal check-in (5 minutes)

This meeting might be your first one-on-one with a new employee or just a regular touchpoint. Start the conversation off with a warm tone. Especially when you’re working remotely, it’s important to maintain connections with employees. Ask your direct report what they got up to over the weekend, or what they’re most looking forward to in the next month.

2. Recent work recap (10 minutes)

Let your team member lead the discussion and aim to keep this part positive. Find opportunities to give recognition and express that you value their hard work.

Talking point prompts from Officevibe’s one-on-one software:

• Can you share a recent example of a work situation in which you thrived? What were the key components that led to your success?
• Describe a recent work situation where you felt you were at your best professionally.
• What skills or actions enabled you to obtain your goal?

Find an easy-to-edit agenda template for classic check-ins in Officevibe’s one-on-one software.

3. Upcoming work preparation (10 minutes)

Look ahead together and mitigate any risks or blockers to your team member’s success in their upcoming work. With the context of their recent accomplishments still top of mind, you can also give specific feedback that applies to what they’ll be working on next.

Talking point prompts from Officevibe:

• As things stand, do you think the team will be able to achieve our goal? Why? 
• In your judgement, is your workload reasonable? If it isn’t, can you suggest solutions that we could implement together to address the problem? 
• What is your understanding of what is expected of you and your work in our current remote work context?

Access dozens of other suggested talking points to manage employee workloads in Officevibe’s one-on-one software.

4. Wrap-up and set action items (10 minutes)

Highlight the key takeaways of your discussion and set 2-3 action items together. Officevibe’s one-on-one software makes wrap-ups easy by letting you set trackable action items after every meeting.

Talking point prompts from Officevibe:

• What are the main points you got out of our conversation?
• Is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to discuss?

⌛ Pro-tip: If you don’t have time for weekly or bi-weekly one-on-ones in your schedule, a good practice is to schedule a meeting every month with each employee. Monthly one-on-ones are a great moment to look back at what has happened in the last few weeks, and naturally, these meetings will take more time.

Use the long version of the classic template to structure and guide your monthly one-on-one meetings.

Goal setting one-on-one meeting template

One-on-one meetings are an opportune time to set career development goals. Both managers and employees know that individual professional goals are part of the success of the entire organization. The one-on-one goal-setting meeting template has questions to guide a conversation that will get every employee thinking about a goal they want to achieve.

Click to download a FREE printable PDF version of the one-on-one meeting template for goal setting.

Find an easy-to-edit agenda template for employee goal setting in Officevibe’s one-on-one software. Plus, have team members outline their individual goals directly in the app, so it’s easy to track progress week to week.

Prefer to work with a printable PDF copy? Save and edit the goal-setting one-on-one meeting template PDF.

1. Employee self-reflection (before your one-on-one meeting)

Have your direct report reflect ahead on their skill sets and strengths, and how they might leverage these in their work.

Self-reflection prompts:

1. What motivates you the most at work?
2. What is one skill that is harder for you that you could work on?
3. How would you like to use your strengths in the future?

2. Setting individual employee goals (during your one-on-one meeting)

Aim to set 2 or 3 goals with your employee and balance performance goals with development goals. Beyond setting employee goals, be sure to discuss how your team member can achieve them, and what support they’ll need.

Questions for goal setting one-on-one meetings:

• What new knowledge would you need to obtain to achieve your goal more easily? How could you acquire it?
• Do you have sufficient resources (IT, human, budgetary, material or others) to pursue your goal?
• Do you need to have a clearer picture of how your individual goals allow us to attain our goals as a team or a company?

Access dozens of other suggested talking points for setting employee goals directly in the Officevibe app.

3. Establish smaller action items (wrapping up your one-on-one meeting)

How can you and your employee make strides towards accomplishing these long term goals? How can you equip them to succeed? Set a few smaller action items together, and add them as talking points in your next meeting agenda. Officevibe helps you follow up on every action item with meeting notes that carry over week to week.

Difficult conversation one-on-one meeting template

Not all one-on-one meetings are routine, where you set priorities, give constructive feedback, and celebrate wins. Sometimes, one-on-ones are called to address a specific team member’s actions or attitudes and should be handled differently. The one-on-one difficult conversation meeting template includes extra guidance on preparing for a difficult or sensitive conversation with an employee. It has talking points with expert tips to structure the conversation to ensure a positive outcome. 

Click to download a FREE printable PDF version of the difficult conversation one-on-one agenda template.

Find an easy-to-edit agenda template for having difficult conversations in Officevibe’s one-on-one software. Not sure what to say? Select from dozens of prewritten questions and talking points.

Prefer to work with a printable PDF copy? Save and edit the difficult conversations one-on-one meeting template PDF.

1. Establish the objective (5 minutes)

Give visibility on what you’d like to discuss by setting a talking point ahead, and start the difficult conversation with the employee by establishing a common objective. Do you want to give feedback, understand your team member’s perspective, or plan a solution to a problem? State your intentions clearly and give the employee a chance to do the same.

2. State the issue and its implications (5 minutes)

Get straight to the point and focus on the facts when you’re having a one-on-one with a difficult employee. What is the issue, what is its impact, and what are the potential consequences? Whether you’re addressing problematic employee behaviour or giving negative feedback, remember you can be both clear and compassionate at the same time.

3. Listen to what the employee has to say (10 minutes)

Allow time for your team member to express themselves, ask a question, or share their plan for moving forward. You can ask open-ended questions to encourage them to share their perspective and reflect on the situation.

One-on-one meeting questions to ask employees:

• Why is it important to resolve this situation?
• What’s at stake if we don’t resolve it?
• How could you do things differently?

4. Check in and set action items (10 minutes)

Especially when you’re addressing more sensitive issues, you want to take the time to check-in and establish the next steps at the end of your conversation. Ask your employee how they’re feeling and what they’re taking from the discussion. Set your top priorities so you’re both clear on expectations as you advance.

One-on-one meetings are how you stay connected with each direct report and build alignment across your team. No matter how the context changes week to week, having a template to structure the conversation helps you cover the most important agenda items and set action items that lead to tangible outcomes.

Additional one-on-one meeting templates for different scenarios

Noticing the nuances between these three main one-on-one meeting types, you can tell how different meeting scenarios call for different types of preparation. Officevibe has over 45 templates (and counting!) made by our experts. Use them to guide your next conversation to build confidence as a leader and better rapport with your employee.

Some examples of specific templates are:

• Start your first one-on-one right in Officevibe.
• Take time to talk to a struggling team member and uncover what is affecting their performance and engagement at work with the poor performance discussion template.
• Give effective feedback or address a sensitive issue with a team member with the tough talk template.
• Use the weekly meeting check-in template to stay in touch on both the human and work front.

Explore our full template gallery or one-on-on meeting and employee survey templates designed to solve challenges quickly and build stronger relationships with your team.

How to use one-on-one meeting agenda templates

One-on-one meeting agendas can become the guiding light to running productive meetings and building solid relationships with your people. How to use them? We suggest trying out a few different ways to see which works best for you:

• Have the PDF copy open on screen as you meet virtually.
  
  Remember, what’s most important is that you give your total focused attention to the person you are meeting with. It’s ok to have prompts up on screen to help facilitate the conversation, but try not to let it be a distraction.
  
• Kick it old school with a printout pen and paper.
  
  If you’re going the hard copy route, make sure you have a secure and organized filing system in place.
  
• Use a one-on-one software like Officevibe to share meeting agendas ahead of time and keep notes in a single place.
  
  Bonus when you’re keeping management digital: annual reviews are made easy with a record of your conversation in Officevibe. Plus, you can set up automated recurring meetings with prompts for employees to add talking points and questions to the agenda.

What should you discuss in a one-on-one conversation?

Your one-on-one meeting conversation topics will vary depending on the context of your team and what each employee is currently working on. From task management to personal life and job satisfaction, one-on-one time with employees is valuable to build rapport and achieve goals. Whether you’re following up on an action item you set in your last meeting, preparing for performance reviews, or giving constructive feedback to your team member, the conversation will be more efficient with a clear plan.

Even better is when you both contribute to the agenda, which boosts employee engagement and participation in the conversation.

Officevibe lets managers and employees set talking points in a shared meeting agenda throughout the week. You can save on prep time by selecting one of the customizable agenda templates offered directly in the app. When you both have visibility on what you’ll be discussing, it’s easy to arrive at the meeting prepared.

Want more sample one-on-one meeting questions?

If you’re still looking for more one-on-one meeting ideas, check out our extensive list of one-on-one meeting questions. We made a list of 40 questions and divided them by subject so you can address any situation and focus on your employees’ answers and what they need.

Tips to make one-on-one meetings more productive

These tips will help you keep your conversations organized, productive, and driving real results, no matter what type of one-on-one meeting you’re having.

As a leader—heck, as a human—learning to develop better relationships is evergreen. In the world of work, one-on-one meetings can be invaluable to flexing your rapport muscle. Hungry for more? We’ve rounded up the top one-on-one meeting tips to help you facilitate insightful conversation, develop trust with your employees, and inspire results from your team.

Empower and improve one-on-ones with Officevibe

Officevibe can help you have better conversations with your employees. Whether it’s your first meeting with a new employee, or a goal-setting session for the upcoming quarter, having your own templates on hand will bring confidence to any meeting scenario.

The best managers come prepared and ready. Show up equipped for your next meeting: Explore our many 1-on-1 meeting and employee survey templates designed by our experts to solve challenges quickly and build stronger relationships with your team.

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