One on one meetings training for managers teaches the habits of a useful 1:1: a cadence that holds, a shared agenda owned by the team member, coaching questions, feedback in both directions and follow-through. Bodhih designs the workshop using ADDIE and customises scenarios for hybrid, frontline or technical teams.
- Recommended: a half-day workshop in person, or 2 × 2-hour live virtual sessions, plus a 4-week 1:1 practice sprint
- Level: Foundation · In person · Live virtual · Blended
- Designed with the ADDIE model and customised to your context
- Offered by Bodhih since 2008 to 2,000+ organisations across 7 regions
Also known as: 1:1 meeting training, effective one-on-one meetings, one-on-one meeting skills, manager 1:1 workshop
Where and how: one on one meetings training for managers training as an in-person workshop in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Jaipur; as a live online course; or delivered overseas in Dubai, Singapore and across the Middle East, Asia and Africa.
Last reviewed · Bodhih Training, Bengaluru
Why the 1:1 is the habit that makes or breaks a manager
Hybrid calendars have replaced the chat by the coffee machine, so the scheduled 1:1 is now where most real conversation happens. When it becomes a status report, problems stay hidden until they show up as missed deadlines or a resignation email.
Gartner advises CHROs that managers must hold actionable productivity discussions with their people. One on one meetings training for managers gives them a practical format for exactly that: short, frequent, owned by the employee and focused on what moves the work and the person forward.
What participants will be able to do
Set a cadence that survives
Choose and protect a weekly or fortnightly rhythm that fits each person, and stop cancelling when things get busy.
Hand over the agenda
Use a shared agenda that the team member owns, so the meeting focuses on their priorities, not the manager's checklist.
Move past status updates
Push routine updates to async tools and use 1:1 time for blockers, decisions, growth and wellbeing.
Coach in the moment
Ask two or three coaching questions that help people solve problems themselves rather than waiting for answers.
Swap feedback both ways
Give short, specific feedback and ask for feedback on your own management every month.
Close the loop
Capture actions in a running note and start the next 1:1 by checking them, so commitments do not vanish.
Who should attend
- New managers setting up 1:1s for the first time
- Experienced managers whose 1:1s have drifted into status meetings
- Tech leads and engineering managers balancing delivery with people work
- Managers of hybrid, remote or multi-location teams
- Frontline supervisors who need a shorter, shift-friendly check-in format
- Senior leaders who want consistent 1:1 practice across their managers
Program outline
Recommended design, customised to your context after a short needs analysis.
01What a great 1:1 is forModule 1 · 45 min+
- The 1:1 versus the stand-up, the review and the appraisal
- Audit: where your current 1:1s go wrong
- The cost of cancelled and hijacked 1:1s
- Setting a purpose statement with each team member
02Cadence, length and formatModule 2 · 45 min+
- Weekly, fortnightly or flexible: choosing by role and tenure
- 15, 30 or 45 minutes and what fits in each
- In person, video or walk-and-talk
- Handling time zones and shift patterns
03The shared agendaModule 3 · 60 min+
- A simple four-part template: wins, blockers, priorities, growth
- Getting quiet team members to add items
- When to go off-agenda: wellbeing and urgent issues
- Build your team's template in the session
04Coaching questions that unlock thinkingModule 4 · 75 min+
- Ten questions for common 1:1 moments
- Resisting the urge to fix everything
- Using silence and follow-up questions
- Triad practice with real scenarios
05Feedback, recognition and early warningsModule 5 · 60 min+
- Micro-feedback in under two minutes
- Asking 'what should I do differently as your manager?'
- Spotting disengagement and flight-risk signals
- Knowing when to escalate or refer to HR or EAP
06Follow-through and the 4-week sprintModule 6 · 30 min+
- A running 1:1 document and action log
- Using AI assistants to summarise notes, with privacy care
- Sprint plan: run 1:1s with every report for four weeks
- Peer buddy for accountability
Sample training plan: half-day hands-on design
This half-day workshop fixes the one-on-ones managers already hold. Participants audit their last month of one-on-ones, choose a cadence for each team member, and build a shared four-part agenda. They then drill coaching questions in trios using real team scenarios, practise two-minute feedback and ask the hardest question of all: what should I do differently as your manager? They leave with a four-week sprint to run one-on-ones with every report, and a buddy to keep them honest.
Participants leave with a cadence plan, a shared agenda, a question bank and a four-week sprint for one-on-ones with every report.
- 09:30–10:00One-on-one auditDiagnostic
- 10:00–10:30Cadence by person, not habitGroup challenge
- 10:30–11:10Build the shared agendaBuild sprint
- 11:25–12:25Questions, not fixesSkill drill
- 12:25–13:00Two-minute feedback and the reverse questionRole-play
- 13:00–13:30Four-week sprint planAction planning
Every session’s activity, timings, outputs and materials, plus pre-work, a 90-day reinforcement plan and how impact is measured. Free, emailed to you instantly.
Recommended: a half-day workshop in person (09:30–13:30), or 2 × 2-hour live virtual sessions, plus a 4-week one-on-one practice sprint. A sample design: every Bodhih program is customised after a short needs analysis.
How long is one-on-one meetings training?
The recommended design is a half-day workshop in person, from 09:30 to 13:30, followed by a four-week practice sprint where managers hold one-on-ones with every report. It also runs as two live virtual sessions of two hours each, a week apart.
What activities are included in one-on-one meetings training?
Managers audit their own last month of one-on-ones, plan a cadence for every team member, and build a shared agenda. They drill coaching questions in trios with a silence challenge, practise two-minute feedback and ask 'what should I do differently?' They finish by booking a four-week sprint.
How we deliver it
Practise on your own calendar
Managers leave with 1:1s already booked and a template ready, and apply them in the four-week sprint.
Real-play, not role-play
Participants bring actual upcoming 1:1 topics and rehearse them with peers acting as their team members.
Short and spaced
The core workshop is kept tight, with a follow-up clinic after four weeks to fix sticking points.
Team voice built in
A short pulse from team members before and after gives managers honest feedback on their 1:1s.
Tailored versions
For engineering and product teams
Covers balancing sprint work with 1:1s, handling technical escalations and supporting deep work without losing touch.
Frontline 10-minute check-ins
A shift-friendly version for retail, hospitality, plant and contact-centre supervisors, with short standing check-ins.
Skip-level 1:1s for senior managers
For managers of managers: how to run skip-levels that build trust without undermining the middle layer.
How we measure impact
Following the Evaluate phase of ADDIE, each manager's team answers a five-question pulse on 1:1 frequency, usefulness and follow-through before the program and again after the four-week sprint. Managers track 1:1s held versus planned. Where useful, AssessAll runs a pre and post assessment on coaching and feedback skills. At 30, 60 and 90 days we review pulse trends and, with HR, any engagement or attrition indicators you choose.
Pair this program with AssessAll, Bodhih’s AI assessment platform, for pre- and post-program skill measurement.
Frequently asked questions
What should be discussed in a one on one meeting?
Focus on things that are hard to cover in group settings: blockers, priorities, decisions the person needs help with, feedback in both directions, growth goals and wellbeing. Routine status updates are better shared asynchronously. A simple agenda of wins, blockers, priorities and growth keeps the meeting useful without making it rigid.
How often should managers have one on ones?
Weekly works well for most direct reports, especially new joiners and people in fast-changing roles. Fortnightly can suit experienced, independent team members. What matters most is consistency; a short, reliable 1:1 does more good than a long one that keeps getting cancelled. The training helps managers choose a cadence per person.
How long should a one on one meeting be?
Between 15 and 30 minutes is usually enough if the meeting is frequent. Longer sessions of 45 minutes suit monthly growth conversations or complex roles. Keeping 1:1s short and regular makes them easier to protect in a busy calendar and keeps issues from piling up between meetings.
What if my employee has nothing to discuss in our one on one?
That is often a sign the meeting has become a formality or the person does not yet feel safe raising issues. Try open questions such as 'what is taking more energy than it should?' or 'what would make next week easier?'. Share the agenda ownership explicitly. The program includes a bank of prompts for quiet team members.
Who should set the agenda for a 1:1?
The team member should own most of the agenda, since the meeting exists for them. The manager adds a few items, such as feedback or context on priorities. A shared running document works well: both people add topics before the meeting and actions are captured at the end for the next session.
How is this different from coaching skills training?
Coaching skills training builds the full coaching capability. One on one meetings training for managers is narrower and more practical: it installs the 1:1 habit, with cadence, agenda, a small set of coaching questions and follow-through. Many clients run it first, then add deeper coaching for managers who want to go further.
Can one on one meetings training be delivered virtually?
Yes. The live virtual version runs as two two-hour sessions with breakout practice and a follow-up clinic. Bodhih has facilitated 18,000+ programs since 2008, in person across India and the Middle East with trainers travelling from Bengaluru, and live virtually for distributed teams in many time zones.
Should managers use AI tools to take 1:1 notes?
AI assistants can help summarise notes and track actions, but managers should agree this openly with the team member and follow company data policies. Sensitive topics such as health or personal matters should not be recorded in shared tools. The program covers simple guidelines for using AI in 1:1s responsibly.