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14 One on One Meeting Topics You Should Be Discussing With

Employees

Submitted by: Submitted to:

MARYJANE S. CABATINGAN BEN HOPE RUELO

Student Professor

INTRODUCTION 

Effective one on one meetings can involve sharing ideas,

working through feedback and obstacles, and further discussion of

performance, goals, and growth.

Of course, one-on-one meetings aren’t limited to these

topics. You can talk to your employees about almost anything.

Discussing a variety of topics with your employees, in unique and

personalized settings, helps you build trust, improve

relationships, and keep your employees around for longer.

In this blog you’ll discover 14 one on one meeting topics

you should be discussing, including:

1. Ongoing performance conversations

2. Year-end performance review

3. Performance improvement

4. Goal setting

5. Feedback and recognition

6. Career growth and development

7. Compensation and benefits

8. Onboarding

9. Resources, work environment, and productivity

10. Motivation and work styles

11. Building personal relationships

12. Organizational changes

13. Manager effectiveness

14. Work life balance

1. Ongoing performance conversations.

 Purpose: To stay up to date with progress on goals, projects,

and other responsibilities.

Discussing employee performance is second nature to most. But

these conversations aren’t held as frequently as they could be. A

lot can happen in a year, let alone a quarter, a month, or a

week. Having regular conversations about employee performance

allows managers to quickly see what is hindering or impacting

performance and coach to make immediate adjustments.

Managers should conduct performance conversations at least

quarterly after initial goals have been set. This provides an

opportunity for managers and employees to discuss goal progress,

obstacles, and any feedback they may have recently received.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 Can I update you on my projects or tasks?

 Which of my projects or tasks is the highest priority to our

company?

 How will my success be measured on this project?

 What other projects or tasks can I work on?

 How can you keep me accountable for achieving goals and

results?

 What metrics/milestones should I use to make sure I stay on

track? 

 2. Year-end performance review.

Purpose: To explore past performance and help set goals for the

future.

The annual employee performance review is a common

conversation between managers and their direct reports. This

topic is one that is most likely a regular part of your

performance strategy. Nonetheless, it’s an important opportunity

for managers and employees to look back at the year to discuss

growth, areas of opportunity, and future fit within the

organization.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What were my highlights from this year?

 What did not go well this year?

 What do you think is keeping me from hitting my goals?

 How could I better achieve my goals?

 3. Performance improvement.

Purpose: To discover behaviors or barriers that are hindering top

performance and create an action plan.

Performance conversations aren’t always easy. But when employees

aren’t able to perform their best, it’s important for managers to

address it right away. This employee meeting topic is a good

opportunity to see what may be missing in their experience and

what gaps managers can help fill. These meetings should end with

clear, agreed-upon action steps for performance improvement.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 How could I improve as an employee?

 How can I keep myself accountable for meeting goals,

deadlines, and results?

 How could I have handled a recent situation differently?

 What behaviors do you think I need to improve to see growth?

4. Goal setting.

 Purpose: To align on goals and find out where employees need

support in goal achievement.

Setting and tracking goals shouldn’t be taken lightly. Goal-

setting should be conducted at the beginning of the year and act

as a roadmap or blueprint for the rest of the year. Employees and

managers should collaborate on and finalize goals together.

Setting aside a 1-on-1 meeting to work through goals leaves space

for identifying barriers, pinpointing stretch goals, and

assessing the resources needed to obtain success.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What were my highlights from last quarter?

 What did not go well last quarter?

  What do you think is keeping me from hitting my goals?

 How could I better achieve my goals?

5. Feedback and recognition.

Purpose: To help employees grow and ensure they feel valued.

Every meeting is an opportunity to give and gather employee

feedback. Gathering feedback helps employees feel valued, while

giving feedback helps employees grow. Giving feedback helps

employees grow, while gathering feedback helps employees feel

valued and heard.

Giving feedback. Be honest, immediate, and specific when giving

feedback. Make sure to pull positive and constructive feedback

from sources other than yourself, such as from an employee’s

peers or customers. This gives employees a 360 view of their

performance, strengths, and opportunities, and gives them the

chance to make meaningful adjustments.

Dealing with negative feedback. When reviewing negative feedback,

an open discussion allows employees to share their point of view.

Managers and employees can decide on a course of action together

to avoid the problem in the future.

Gathering feedback. Every meeting is an opportunity to gather

employee feedback. Make it clear that your relationships with

employees aren’t one-sided. Show that you have a genuine interest

in what they think and that you want to hear their opinions. Ask

for their thoughts and ideas about their role, the workplace, and

even your managing style.

Giving recognition. Recognition should be an integral part of

your employee meetings. When hard work goes unnoticed, it’s

incredibly disengaging for employees. Let them know you

appreciate their hard work and congratulate them for wins—even

the small ones.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What other areas of the team or the company could benefit

from my strengths? How?

 Can I share an idea on how our team/organization could

better live out our mission or values?

 What outputs are most valued by you? By team? By the

organization?

 Can I share with you the type of recognition I like to

receive?

 Why wasn’t I recognized for this project or task?

 6. Career growth and development.

 Purpose: To understand an employee’s goals and desires around

career growth and development.

Career growth is a key driver of employee engagement and

retention, so it makes sense that talking about career

development should occur at least once a year. As much as

employees may enjoy their current job, they likely have higher

career aspirations. And this doesn’t necessarily mean outside of

your organization—it could include earning a promotion, getting a

raise, or developing new skills.

Talk to employees about their career motivations and goals, then

brainstorm and suggest ways they can progress toward that goal.

You’ll get a sense of what motivates the employee, who will feel

grateful you’re taking a genuine interest in their future. Career

conversations help managers ensure employees are driving their

own development and can offer any support or guidance needed.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 Where do you see my career advancing in five years?

 What skills are needed to meet my career advancement goals?

 What do you think is holding me back from career

advancement?

 
7. Compensation and benefits.

Purpose: To better understand an employee's perceptions around

benefits and compensation.

Benefits and pay can be touchy subjects for employees to talk

about and managers to address. But having regular conversations

about an employee’s compensation and their opportunities to earn

additional income eliminates the potential for ongoing

frustration and disappointment.

Asking employees about their expectations while also sharing your

organization’s policies around compensation will help clear up

any uncertainties and strengthen your bond. You can also use this

opportunity to coach employees to help them achieve their career

and compensation goals.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What compensation goals are reasonable for me to have for

the next five years? Ten years?

 How does our organization address compensation?

 Can you help me understand our benefits and how I can better

utilize them? 
8. Onboarding.

Purpose: To help employees find their fit within the organization

and align with company-wide goals.

Start scheduling regular one-on-one meetings with new employees

from day one. Building a regular 1-on-1 meeting into onboarding

can help you uncover what’s working and what could be improved

through the lens of a brand-new perspective. Whether new to the

organization or just to the team, discussing personal experiences

during one-on-ones accelerates a relationship between employee

and manager. It also ensures that the employee’s onboarding is

going smoothly.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What can I do to make sure I stay at this organization over

the next two years?

 What should I be focusing on in the next 90 days? 

9. Resources, work environment, and productivity.

Purpose: To help remove barriers and provide employees the

information and resources they need to keep performing.

Helping an employee be successful is sometimes as simple as

showing them you care. Make sure employees have what they need by

asking them what materials, resources, or workspaces would help

them be most successful. You may not have the funds or the

capacity to help them with every request or need, but learning

what makes employees tick can help you understand how to set them

up for success.

This topic is also a great way to determine how you can remove

obstacles in their way and coach to improve their process for

increased productivity.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What has your process been for accomplishing a similar task

or project?

 Do you have suggestions for how to handle distractions and

interruptions?

 How can I better organize my work schedule to

improve productivity? 

 Are there resources and tools I’m not using that could help

me perform my job better?

 What changes can I make to my work environment to improve my

productivity and quality of work?

10. Motivation and work styles.

Purpose: To discover what strengths, preferences, and

communication styles to leverage to better motivate employees.

Every employee has their own way of achieving success at work.

Each has their very own set of skills, strengths, communication

styles, and preferences that help them accomplish tasks and

goals. And managers are constantly searching for better ways to

motivate employees. They develop incentive plans, create awards,

spark friendly office competitions, and re-design work

environments in an effort to drive productivity.

But when you actually ask your employees how they prefer to work,

you’ll learn a lot more about their process and will be able to

tap into their needs and motivations easily.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What tasks and projects are best aligned with my strengths?

 What strengths do you think I have that help me do my job

effectively?

 What makes me the best fit for my position?

 What skills do I have that you believe I could use more

effectively?

 What areas of work do you think I could use more of a

challenge?

 How could I get the information I need to do my job more

effectively?

11. Building personal relationships.

Purpose: To get to know each other outside of work.

If the only topics of discussion are about business, employees

are going to feel like faceless cogs in the machine. Get to know

who your employees are outside of work and help them get to know

you. Talk about families, passions, hobbies, and weekend

activities when you get the chance.

The employee will get a sense that you care about their well-

being as much as their productivity. You will also get a deeper

understanding of their strengths, skillsets, and their purpose

behind the work.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What are you passionate about outside of work?

 Who are some leaders you admire?

 What do you like to do in your free time?

 Tell me about where you are from. 

12. Changes in the organization.

Purpose: To increase transparency about decisions and gather

employee feedback.

One on one meetings also offer a time to discuss organizational

changes. While these may be discussed by the broader team or

organization, having individual conversations provides employees

the environment to bring up any concerns or reservations that

they may have overlooked in a group setting. It also gives

managers a chance to follow up on important organizational topics

after employees have had some time to process the change.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 Why are we making this change?

 How will this change impact my role and our team?

 How can I help us navigate through this transition? 

13. Manager effectiveness.

Purpose: To help managers understand how they can be better for

employees.

Managers are key to motivating employees, building successful

teams, and creating a safe space for employees. But their ability

to coach and motivate employees isn’t always aligned with

employee perceptions. These conversations can involve sharing

ideas for improving your working relationships, looking through

feedback, and discussing how both employees prefer to be led.

Discussing personal strengths and leadership styles can also shed

light on how you could work better as a team.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 Why am I getting more or less direction from you on my work?

  Could you please stop doing X?

 Could you please start doing Y?

 How do you think we could improve our communication?

14. Work-life balance.

Purpose: To set understand and support an employee's work-life

balance.

Check-ins about the life side of work-life balance are important.

Scattering this topic throughout your one-on ones grants both the

manager and the employee the ability to stay up to date on the

things that are really driving employee engagement.

Manager Prep: How would you respond to these questions?

 What advice do you have on improving my work-life balance?

 What resources could help me better balance my personal and

professional life?

 When (if at all) do you think it’s necessary for me to

address work responsibilities after hours?

REFERENCE:https://www.quantumworkplace.com/future-of-work/one-on-

one-meeting-topics