How to Run Better 1-on-1s with Your Team
The one-on-one meeting is the most powerful tool a manager has and the most commonly wasted one. A 1:1 that results in a status update the manager could have gotten by email or a meeting the report dreads coming to is an opportunity lost. A well-run 1:1 is where trust is built, feedback moves, development happens, and problems surface before they become crises.
Key takeaways
The 1:1 should serve the needs of the direct report, not the manager’s information needs.
Agenda ownership matters — the report should be driving most of the conversation.
Blomma’s coaching supports 1:1 preparation on both sides: what to ask, what to raise, how to follow up.
Consistency matters more than perfection — a regular 1:1 that’s okay is much better than a perfect 1:1 that rarely happens.
Feedback conversations that happen in 1:1s rather than only at review time change how development works.
On this page:
What a good 1:1 is actually for
A 1:1 is not a status meeting. Status updates belong in written formats or team meetings. A 1:1 is for things that are harder to surface in group settings: concerns, development, relationship, and context. The clearest signal that a 1:1 is working is that the person walking out of it feels more supported, clearer, or less alone in a challenge than when they walked in.
How to structure a 1:1 that’s genuinely useful
Start with something open-ended that puts the report in the driver’s seat: “What do you want to talk about today?” or “What’s been front of mind for you this week?” Resist starting with your agenda unless something genuinely urgent requires it.
Leave space for development-focused conversation even in weeks when operational pressures make it tempting to skip. “What are you working on that’s developing you right now?” asked regularly stays on the agenda without requiring a separate formal process.
Save five to ten minutes for your own context to share — what’s coming, what’s changing, what the report should know. Information asymmetry between manager and report erodes trust faster than most managers realize.
Questions that open better conversations
“What’s going well that you want more of?”
“What’s getting in your way right now?”
“Is there something you’ve been sitting with that you haven’t had a chance to raise?”
“What feedback can I give you that would be most useful?”
“What do you need from me this week that you’re not getting?”
“How are you feeling about your work overall at the moment?”
These questions are not scripts — use one or two per session, not all of them. The goal is to open conversation, not conduct an interview.
Following through after each 1:1
The quality of a 1:1 is measured in what happens after it as much as during it. If you said you’d do something, do it. If they raised a concern, follow up on it. If something needed escalating, escalate it.
Blomma’s accountability partner is useful for exactly this — keeping the commitments and follow-ups from 1:1s visible between sessions so they don’t get lost in the busyness of the week.
For more on building the management habits that make 1:1s consistently good, first-time manager: a 30-60-90 day guide gives the broader structure. For external research on effective feedback conversations, see [EXTERNAL: Google’s Project Oxygen research on effective management behaviors].
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should a 1:1 be?
30 minutes weekly or 45-60 minutes every two weeks both work well. The key is consistency. A short regular 1:1 is usually better than a long irregular one.
What if the person doesn’t have much to say?
Use a more specific opener: “What was the hardest part of the week?” or “Is there anything from last week’s project you want to debrief?” And check whether the frequency feels right — some people need less frequent 1:1s once things are established.
Should I take notes in 1:1s?
Lightly. Capturing the things you’ve committed to and any important context is useful. Don’t let note-taking reduce the quality of your presence in the conversation.
How do I handle it when someone raises something difficult in a 1:1?
Listen fully first. Thank them for raising it. Avoid jumping to problem-solving or reassurance immediately. And follow through: the way you respond to difficult things being raised determines whether they get raised again.
Can Blomma help me prepare for 1:1s?
Yes. Working through what you want to cover, thinking through how a particular person is doing, and preparing for a specific conversation you need to have are all things Blomma’s coaching structure supports.
A consistently good 1:1 practice is one of the highest returns on time a manager can invest. Making them a priority and running them well changes the relationship with your team fundamentally.