%20(1).png)
As a people manager, your ability to guide and mentor employees makes all the difference. And a big part of keeping those coaching and feedback muscles active is having regular one-on-one meetings with your direct reports.
But quality is just as important as quantity. According to Gallup, 80% of employees feel that meaningful feedback is a major factor of engagement — but only 16% report that their last conversation with their manager was meaningful. So ask yourself: Are you making the most of those one-on-one conversations? Are you setting clear enough objectives to make the time you spend with employees productive? And is the meeting agenda tailored towards growth?
Goal-driven meetings help maximize the time you have with employees so conversations lead to real results. Goals provide direction — they ensure every next conversation focuses on improvement and act as historical notes to make performance reviews even more effective.
So, managers, keep reading! This article is full of success-driven goal ideas for your own one-on-one meetings, as well as tips to build trust with your employees.
What's in this article
- Why regular one-on-ones are important
- 7 essential one-on-one meeting goals
- How to set realistic one-on-one meeting goals (with your direct reports)
- Techniques to build trust with your employees
- Turn one-on-one goals into productive meetings and high-performing teams
Why regular one-on-ones are important
A one-on-one is a meeting between two individuals working together at an organization. While one-on-one meetings can be between peers or leaders (or any mix of two people, really), the most common (and important ones) are between managers and their direct reports. That's because employee-manager relationships are some of the most critical to nurture.
How come? For starters, regular conversations with employees help managers ensure every individual has what they need to do their best work. They also create bonds and trust-building moments, which are crucial to establishing effective leadership. Collectively, regular touch bases help drive entire teams toward success.
Benefits of effective one-on-ones
Digging deeper into the benefits of one-on-one meetings, it’s easy to see how goal-driven one-on-one meetings are a win-win for both managers and employees. When properly planned and with purpose, one-on-ones help:
- Set expectations: One-on-ones provide great opportunities to align on goals and clarify roles and responsibilities. This helps build a more autonomous, high-performing team so managers can step back and focus on leadership and strategy.
- Boost confidence: Regular touchpoints help build managerial skills and leadership abilities. Over time, problem-solving becomes second nature, and managers are better able to guide employees in the right direction.
- Delegate work: Leading successful teams means delegating work to the right people. One-on-ones help managers decide who's best for the job, who’s willing to learn, or who’s got the capacity — freeing up their own pipeline for more strategic work.
- Create a safe space: Employees who trust their managers are more comfortable discussing issues with them. One-on-one meetings can provide a safe space for employees to ask questions, raise flags, and address challenges so they don’t feel stuck or disengaged.
- Build human connections: It's nearly impossible to build rapport with people you don't connect with regularly. Having dedicated and recurring time slots to speak with each team member individually fosters connections and builds trust.
- Discuss career growth: One-on-one meetings provide employees the chance to discuss professional development. Managers can make employees feel valued, support them in their career ambitions, and ultimately improve their engagement levels.
7 essential one-on-one meeting goals
Without an established purpose, meetings can feel like wasted time. This can lead to employee disengagement, hinder a manager’s own performance management, and even stall an employee’s career development. All in all, goals are key to every meeting.
While there’s no magic formula, there’s no need to start from scratch either. Below are seven essential one-on-one goals to make the most of manager-employee check-ins:
1. Relationship building
Research shows a positive correlation between employees who have strong relationships with their managers and their productivity at work. This is why positive employee-manager relationships are critical to developing high-performing teams.
One-on-one meetings are one of the best ways to get to know your employees, build relationships, and maintain personal connections. They give managers a chance to actively listen to employees, understand their problems, and support them where they need.
Examples of relationship-building goals to set for your next meeting:
- Get to know your team on a personal level: Spend time discussing non-work-related topics to understand your employees' interests, hobbies, and personal lives.
- Schedule regular check-ins: Schedule consistent one-on-one meetings ahead of time to ensure continuous communication and demonstrate your commitment as a manager.
- Actively listen: Practice active listening by paraphrasing and summarizing the employee's points during discussions, showing that their input is valued and understood.
Questions to build solid work relationships:
- What is currently energizing you outside of work?
- How can I better set you up for success in your role?
- What can I do to improve your overall happiness at work?
According to Harvard Business Review, a big predictor of a one-on-one’s success is the amount of time an employee talks — ideally between 50% to 90% of the meeting. As a manager, you should tailor questions and prompts to get your employees talking.
[ov_cta id="5119985"]
2. Employee engagement
The importance and benefits of employee engagement can’t be overstated. People want to feel connected, motivated, and appreciated. Engagement is complex and can be impacted by an array of factors, including job satisfaction, recognition, and well-being. So naturally, measuring and acting on engagement takes time and dedication — making it a perfect objective for a series of one-on-ones with your direct reports.
Individual conversations with employees are a great way to gauge people’s engagement levels because they allow you to collect useful qualitative information. They're the perfect time to ask open-ended questions to better understand what motivates (or demotivates) the people on your team.
Examples of employee engagement goals to set for your next meeting:
- Identify motivators: Ask employees about what aspects of their job they find most fulfilling and exciting, and explore ways to incorporate more of these elements into their roles.
- Recognize efforts: Make a point to acknowledge and celebrate employees' contributions and achievements, reinforcing their sense of value and commitment to the organization. Doing so at the beginning of the meeting sets a positive tone!
- Solicit feedback: Encourage employees to share their thoughts on workplace culture, processes, and their roles throughout the meeting.
Questions that help you engage employees
- What do you enjoy most about your role?
- What kind of projects would you like to work on this upcoming quarter?
- Are you currently struggling with anything? If so, how can I help?
🎯 Reach this goal quicker with an employee engagement solution. Keep track of one-on-one meetings and supplement them with regular engagement surveys, so you can measure trends and fluctuations over time.
3. Career development
Having a clear career path and goals that align with this vision helps employees feel like they’re moving in the right direction. People want to know that they have room to grow within their team and the company.
Some managers use one-on-one time for career chats. Dedicating time to discuss professional development and self-improvement helps employees stay engaged and invested in their work. It also lets them know you care about their growth and are committed to supporting their success.
Examples of career development goals to set for your next meeting:
- Have career path discussions: Explore your employees' long-term career aspirations and identify opportunities that align with their goals to build a relevant development plan.
- Discuss skill development: Chat about specific skills or knowledge areas employees wish to develop so you can provide them with the right resources or opportunities for training and growth.
- Identity mentorship opportunities: Ask employees if they have any role models within the company. Together, consider who can provide guidance, advice, and support in their career progression.
Questions to support career growth
- What skills are you looking to build in the next year?
- What are your upcoming career goals?
- How can I best support you to achieve these goals?
Not sure how to bring up someone’s future career path or connect it with the team goals? This career development talk template can guide you.
4. Feedback goals
Feedback is crucial for achieving goals faster. So, most employees really appreciate when their managers take the time to provide constructive feedback — in fact, many would like it more often!
One-on-one meetings are one of the best settings for feedback. It comes with the territory of being a coach and is an important practice to prepare for upcoming bi-annual or annual performance reviews.
Examples of feedback goals to set for your next meeting:
- Provide constructive feedback: Make sure to provide specific, actionable feedback on recent projects or tasks, so employees walk away with a clear understanding of how to improve next time.
- Ask for feedback: Encourage a two-way feedback culture by inviting employees to share their own thoughts on your management style and how you can better support them.
- Prep for performance reviews: Use one-on-one meetings to also review performance so there are no surprises during formal evaluations.
Questions to spark a feedback loop
- Have I given you any feedback recently that you'd like me to further explain?
- Are there any projects you would like me to give you more constructive feedback on?
- Do you have any constructive feedback about my management style?
Track your feedback: Make sure you take notes in every meeting and set action items you can follow up on. One-on-one software like Workleap Officevibe allows you to store all your meeting notes in one place, so when annual performance reviews come along, your prework is a breeze.
5. Solution-oriented goals
It's important to identify and address any current challenges your employees might be facing. These could be related to their workload, team dynamics, or external factors affecting their performance. One-on-one meetings are a safe space to discuss these issues and find solutions together.
Employees might not always bring up a problem outright — but there are many ways to prompt them in to understand where they might be struggling. As a manager, let them know these discussions aren’t about laying blame but about finding solutions.
Examples of goals to address current challenges:
- Identify any problems: Talk openly with employees about issues you’ve observed and work together to articulate the root challenges.
- Allocate resources if needed: Determine what extra support or adjustments are needed to help employees overcome these challenges.
- Create an action plan: Even if just to outline the next steps, developing a clear, actionable plan together allows the employee to walk away from a meeting with a tangible solution.
Questions to help uncover and address challenges
- What challenges are you currently facing in your role?
- Are there any obstacles hindering your progress on current projects?
- How can I help you overcome these challenges?
Action plans are only effective if there’s a follow-up on progress — so make sure that’s part of the next agenda. As part of performance management, every one-on-one meeting should touch base on the last meeting and any changes that occurred.
6. Recognition goals
Regularly acknowledging and celebrating your employees' achievements helps boost morale and motivation. Even a quick shoutout has a big impact. These moments of praise not only reinforce positive behaviors at an individual level but also encourage a culture of recognition across the whole team.
However, not everyone likes to receive recognition in the same way. Some employees thrive on public praise, while others prefer private acknowledgments. As a manager, it’s important to understand each team member’s preferences to make sure your praise lands perfectly.
Examples of recognition goals to set for your next meeting:
- Personalize your praise: Recognize a recent achievement and add a personal touch that reflects the individual's unique contributions and preferences.
- Acknowledge progress since your last meeting: Reference a recent struggle or challenge to make this meeting’s praise that much more impactful and relevant.
- Celebrate a milestone: This might not be possible for every meeting, but underlining important milestones, like a work anniversary, shows a manager pays attention.
Questions to understand how your employees like to receive recognition
- What recent accomplishments are you proud of?
- Is there any particular success you’d like to highlight?
- How can we celebrate your achievements as a team?
Peer-to-peer recognition is super impactful. Managers should lead by example and encourage their teams to share messages of appreciation with their colleagues. Over here, we like to send out Good Vibes!
7. Goals to set future goals
Goal-setting one-on-one goals? How meta! But seriously — managers can use one-on-one meetings to set and review short-term and long-term goals with their employees. This puts their ongoing efforts in the context of the bigger picture — ensuring they have a clear direction and understand how they, as individual employees, contribute to the team and company’s objectives.
Of course, managers can lead goal-setting discussions. But the best future-looking goals are ones that are co-created. Rather than telling your employees what their next goals are, do this exercise together. They’ll feel that much more engaged to accomplish them!
Examples of goal-setting goals to set for your next meeting:
- Set clear objectives for next meetings: Set specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals so it’s easy to analyze their progress.
- Check that personal and team goals are aligned: Are the current tasks set up to help employees meet both broader team objectives and their own personal goals? Take a moment to ensure there’s alignment.
- Set up some incentives: Incentives, like a day off when employees reach the halfway milestone, can motivate them to continue working towards their long-term goals.
Questions to set future goals
- What are your key priorities for the next quarter?
- How do you see your role evolving over the next year?
- What support do you need to achieve your upcoming goals?
Do you know about the OKR method? OKRs stand for “objectives and key results” and are used to set goals with measurable results that get everyone on the same page.
How to set realistic one-on-one meeting goals (with your direct reports)
Before scheduling recurring one-on-one meetings with all your team members, establish what you’re both looking to get from them. Based on these goals, you can work together to create meeting agendas and set talking points that will help you really drive those desired results.
One-on-one meetings are a time to get a status report, tackle challenges, give feedback, track employees’ career goals, and delegate tasks. That’s a lot, so pinpointing what your short-term and long-term goals are will help you keep your one-on-one conversations focused.
With the broader goals outlined above in mind, you can set more specific goals for your one-on-one meetings. These could be the same for every employee on your team or different based on their individual aspirations and roles in the team. For example, one employee may be keen on meeting specifically for feedback and coaching. Others might prefer to spend their time discussing their career aspirations and goal progress.
Steps for setting (and achieving) great one-on-one meeting goals
Setting clear goals for your one-on-one meetings is crucial to ensure that each session is productive and valuable. Follow these steps to help both you and your direct reports have more meaningful meetings:
- Set your goal: You may choose to set a new goal each week or spend a few weeks focusing on the same goal. Check in at the start of every meeting to make sure you’re on the same page and know how you want to use your time.
- Identify milestones: Define success and set some milestones so you can assess and track if you’re meeting your goals with your employees. Follow up frequently to see when it’s time to move on from your current goal or goals, or when you might need to spend more time covering a certain topic.
- Take notes: Have a dedicated space for meeting notes, whether it’s a static doc or a tool for one-on-ones. This will help you arrive prepared at every meeting without adding to your workload.
- Use a meeting agenda: A one-on-one meeting template keeps you on track to cover the most important talking points and make the best use of your time. You can even collaborate on the meeting agenda with your direct report so you can establish the primary goal of your meeting together.
- Follow up: Make a practice of following up. Each time you wrap up, add an agenda item for your next one-on-one so you always follow up on commitments.
Interesting fact: Did you know that employees who feel heard are 4.6 times more likely to perform their best work? By creating an environment where employees feel comfortable sharing their thoughts, you not only build trust but also significantly enhance overall team performance.
Techniques to build trust with your employees
Building trust and creating a safe space are keys to open, honest communication — and incorporating these objectives is essential for effective one-on-one meetings!
Here are some techniques to help you achieve this with your employees:
- Use one-on-one templates: Structured templates help standardize the meeting agenda, ensuring all critical points are covered and every employee can benefit from the same consistency. Employees will also feel more comfortable walking into each meeting when they know what to expect and how to prepare.
- Use anonymous employee surveys: Anonymous surveys can help gauge employee sentiment and gather honest feedback. Surveys can reveal issues that employees might be hesitant to bring up in person at one-on-one meetings, allowing managers to address concerns proactively.
- Create feedback loops: Establish continuous feedback loops where employees can give and receive feedback regularly. Most office cultures thrive with this feedback mindset, which fosters openness between employees and managers and pushes for continuous improvement.
Turn one-on-one goals into productive meetings and high-performing teams
With so much distraction in our lives, setting one-on-one goals will help you stay on track, organize your time and resources, and support a thriving team. This way, you can run more effective meetings with your team members and make the best use of everyone’s time.
Managing this process doesn’t have to be manual. There's some really user-friendly performance management software out there to help managers integrate these techniques seamlessly into their day-to-day. Plus, they provide a centralized hub to track progress, document discussions, and automate follow-ups — ultimately leading to more effective and meaningful one-on-ones.
One-on-one meetings that consistently focus on growth, development, and performance create a continuous dialogue that supports comprehensive performance reviews. By maintaining regular and goal-oriented discussions, managers can track progress, address challenges promptly, and provide ongoing feedback, making performance reviews more meaningful and less daunting.
So — what will your next one-on-one meeting goal be?
