A one-on-one without an agenda becomes whatever is loudest that week. A one-on-one with a ten-point form becomes a form. The template that works sits in between: a handful of fixed steps with times, and the topics left to the team member.
Below are three one-on-one meeting templates written out in full, so you can copy them into a calendar invite or a shared note and start using them this week. There is nothing to download. Each template is short enough to remember.
- A 30-minute agenda for the regular weekly or biweekly one-on-one
- A 45-minute agenda for a monthly one-on-one when meetings are less frequent
- An agenda for the first one-on-one with a new team member
Why one-on-ones matter and how to run them is covered in one-on-one meetings: why they matter and how to run them well. Thirty questions to fill the templates with are in one-on-one meeting questions.
What a good one-on-one template does
A template has three jobs, and the fewer things it does beyond them, the better.
It protects the order. The team member's topics come before the manager's. If the manager goes first, the team member's topics run out of time, every time.
It makes follow-up automatic. The agenda includes last time's agreements, so nobody has to remember to bring them up.
It ends with something written down. One or two agreements, with a date, visible to both. That is the only note a one-on-one needs.
What a template should not do is script the conversation. The questions in the templates below are prompts. Use the ones that fit and skip the rest.
Template 1: the 30-minute weekly or biweekly one-on-one
The default. Same slot every week or every two weeks, never moved, sometimes shortened.
1. Check-in, 3 minutes
- How are things, really?
- What is on your mind right now?
2. Your topics, 12 minutes
The team member brings one to three topics. If nothing was prepared, ask:
- What has been on your mind since last time?
- What is getting in the way of your work right now?
- What would you like my help with?
3. My topics, 7 minutes
The manager's points, short and specific:
- Feedback on something observed since last time
- A heads-up about what is coming
- One question the manager wants answered
4. Follow-up on last time, 5 minutes
- We agreed to do this. What happened?
- Is it done, still open, or no longer relevant?
5. Agreements, 3 minutes
- What will you do before next time, and what will I do?
- Written down as one line each, with a date
Template 2: the 45-minute monthly one-on-one
For teams where one-on-ones happen less often, or for senior team members who manage their own week. The extra time goes to looking a little further ahead, not to more status.
1. Check-in, 5 minutes
- How has the month been?
- If you described it in one word, what would it be?
2. Your topics, 15 minutes
- What went well this month, and what did you do to make it happen?
- What was harder than it should have been?
- What do you need from me this month?
3. Looking ahead, 10 minutes
- What is coming in the next month that you want to be ready for?
- Is there something you would like to learn or try?
- Is your workload such that you can do your work well?
4. My topics and feedback, 8 minutes
- One thing I noticed you did well
- One thing I would like you to do differently, with an example
5. Follow-up and agreements, 7 minutes
- Last time's agreements: done, open or dropped?
- One or two agreements for the coming month, written down
Template 3: the first one-on-one with a new team member
A new team member has no past period to review and no agreements to follow up. The first one-on-one sets expectations for all the ones that follow. Hold it in the first two weeks, and hold the next one a week later.
1. What this meeting is for, 5 minutes
Explain the rhythm: how often, how long, and that the topics are theirs. Say out loud that the one-on-one is not a status update.
2. First impressions, 10 minutes
- What has surprised you most so far, for better or worse?
- What did you expect about this job that turned out to be different?
- What has been unclear?
3. How you like to work, 10 minutes
- How do you like to receive feedback?
- When do you prefer to be left alone, and when do you want to be checked in on?
- What did a good manager do for you in a previous job?
4. The next three months, 5 minutes
- What do you hope for or need from me over the next three months?
- What would make you feel this job was the right choice?
5. Agreements, 3 minutes
- The next one-on-one, in the calendar before the meeting ends
- One thing each of you will do before it
How to use the templates
Send the agenda before the meeting. Not a form to fill in, just the steps, so the team member knows the topics are theirs and can think about them.
Keep the shared note in one place. One document per team member, newest meeting at the top, only the agreements written down. Both can edit it.
Adapt after three meetings. If a step is always empty, remove it. If one step always runs over, the topic belongs in a separate conversation.
Do not let the template replace the check-in. The first three minutes decide the meeting. If the answer to "how are things, really" is not fine, the rest of the agenda waits.
The most common mistakes that even a good template does not prevent, such as the meeting turning into a status update or the manager talking for most of it, are covered in one-on-one meetings: why they matter and how to run them well. If you are looking for a structure for the annual development discussion rather than the regular one-on-one, see three development discussion templates for managers.
When a template is not enough
A template protects the order and the follow-up. It does not solve the two hardest parts of a one-on-one: getting a quiet team member to bring topics, and keeping the manager's own talking to a third.
Topaasia One-on-One handles both by changing where the topics come from. The team member picks from the cards the things that feel important right now and explains their choices. The manager listens, asks follow-up questions and writes down the agreements. The session ends with one most important thing and a concrete action, and the documentation is created as you go. At Entteri the cards replaced a form that some team members left blank, and the conversations flowed even with the quieter ones. The story is in Entteri's customer story, and how Topaasia One-on-One works is on the development discussions page.
Frequently asked questions
What should a one-on-one meeting agenda include?
Five things: a check-in, the team member's topics, the manager's topics, follow-up on last time's agreements, and new agreements written down. In that order.
How long should a one-on-one meeting template be?
Short enough to remember. Five steps with rough times is enough. A ten-point form turns the meeting into form-filling.
Who owns the one-on-one agenda?
The team member. The manager adds points after the team member's topics.
Should the same template be used for everyone?
The same steps, yes. The questions inside them change with the person and the situation. A new team member, a quiet team member and a senior team member need different prompts.
Do I need a separate template for a development discussion?
Yes. The development discussion is a longer, less frequent conversation about direction and growth, and it has its own structures. See three development discussion templates for managers.