Free Agenda Template for a First Time One-on-One Meeting

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If you are unsure of which topics to cover during your first one-on-one meeting with a new employee, look no further. We here at ManageBetter have crafted a free template to help you smoothly run through this important onboarding task.

Download the template.

*Tip: Try printing out this agenda and taking notes by hand during your one-on-one meeting. It's more personable than typing away behind a keyboard and appearing distracted by your computer.

Remember that this is one of the first in-depth interactions a new hire may have with you, the manager. The initial one-on-one will set the tone for future meetings and let your employee get comfortable with the idea of engaging in these discussions.

Areas to Address

Greeting / Personal Connection

Be sure to welcome the employee and find out how they are adjusting to their new position in the company. Take a little time to get to know them better and ask about something outside of work.

Overview

Give an overview of the meeting agenda. Talk about what can be expected from one-on-one meetings and what you hope to gain from these sessions. Explain that these meetings will be a platform for the employee to voice their opinions and questions and that open communication is the ultimate goal. 

Issues & Feedback

This will give your direct report a chance to bring up anything that they need more help with or that they anticipate may be a challenge for them moving forward. Your new employee may not have a lot of feedback at this point in time (depending on how soon you do the first one-on-one meeting) or they may be hesitant to share their thoughts. Try asking some probing questions to get an idea of their perspective on certain areas of the company or aspects of their job

Goals & Action Items

The majority of time should probably be spent on these areas during the first one-on-one. Really check in with your new employee about their goals in the coming weeks, as well as the long-term career goals they are hoping to accomplish. Their answers will help you begin to understand what tasks may suit them, how they operate and how you will best be able to support them as a manager.

Once some goals have been put in place, follow up by brainstorming action items with the employee.

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