1:1 Meeting Questions: Powerful Questions Every Manager Should Ask

The Power of Great 1:1 Meeting Questions

The questions you ask in 1:1 meetings can make or break the conversation. Ask surface-level questions, and you'll get surface-level answers. Ask powerful 1:1 meeting questions, and you'll unlock insights that drive better performance, stronger relationships, and higher retention.

This guide provides a comprehensive collection of effective 1:1 meeting questions organized by category, helping you have more meaningful conversations with your team members.

Why the Right 1:1 Meeting Questions Matter

Great 1:1 meeting questions serve multiple purposes:

• Uncover what's really happening with your team
• Build trust and rapport
• Identify challenges early
• Support employee development
• Gather valuable feedback
• Show you care about their success

Essential 1:1 Meeting Questions by Category

Questions About Workload and Capacity

These 1:1 meeting questions help you understand if employees are overwhelmed, underutilized, or well-balanced:

• "How is your current workload? Is it sustainable?" - The most important question for preventing burnout
• "What percentage of your time is spent on high-impact work versus administrative tasks?" - Reveals productivity blockers
• "Are you able to focus on your most important priorities?" - Identifies if they're getting pulled in too many directions
• "What tasks are taking more time than expected?" - Helps you identify where support is needed

Questions About Challenges and Blockers

Use these 1:1 meeting questions to surface issues before they escalate:

• "What's the biggest challenge you're facing right now?" - Simple but powerful
• "What would need to change for you to be more effective?" - Invites systemic thinking
• "Are there any decisions or approvals you're waiting on?" - Identifies bottlenecks
• "What obstacles are preventing you from doing your best work?" - Opens up discussion about blockers
• "What's frustrating you right now?" - Gets to the heart of pain points

Questions About Growth and Development

These 1:1 meeting questions show you're invested in their career:

• "What skills would you like to develop over the next 3-6 months?" - Opens development conversations
• "What part of your work would you like to do more of? Less of?" - Helps align work with interests
• "How do you feel about your career progression here?" - Critical for retention
• "What experiences do you need to reach your career goals?" - Supports career planning
• "What would you like to learn next?" - Identifies learning opportunities

Questions About Support and Resources

These 1:1 meeting questions help you understand what they need from you:

• "How can I better support you in your role?" - Shows humility and care
• "Do you have all the resources, information, and access you need?" - Surfaces missing tools or access
• "What support would be most helpful right now?" - Focuses on immediate needs
• "Is there anything I can take off your plate?" - Offers relief for overloaded team members

Questions About Engagement and Motivation

Use these 1:1 meeting questions to understand what energizes and motivates your team:

• "What part of your work are you most excited about right now?" - Identifies what drives them
• "What's been the highlight of your week?" - Positive framing that invites sharing
• "What would make your work more enjoyable?" - Opens discussion about improvements
• "What are you most proud of accomplishing recently?" - Recognition and celebration

Questions About Feedback and Recognition

These 1:1 meeting questions create opportunities for feedback exchange:

• "What feedback would be most helpful for you right now?" - Makes feedback requested and relevant
• "What's something you've accomplished recently that you're proud of?" - Ensures wins don't go unnoticed
• "How do you prefer to receive feedback?" - Personalizes your approach
• "What's working well that we should do more of?" - Captures positive patterns

Questions About Well-being and Sentiment

These 1:1 meeting questions address the human side of work:

• "On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your overall well-being? What would make it a 10?" - Quantitative but open
• "How are you feeling about work-life balance?" - Directly addresses balance
• "What's impacting your stress levels right now?" - Identifies stress sources
• "How supported do you feel by the team?" - Assesses team dynamics

Questions About Team and Culture

These 1:1 meeting questions gather insights about the bigger picture:

• "If you could change one thing about how our team works, what would it be?" - Invites constructive feedback
• "How can we improve our team communication?" - Opens discussion about processes
• "What would make our team culture even better?" - Focuses on culture improvements
• "What trends are you seeing in your work or the organization?" - Gathers strategic insights

The Most Important 1:1 Meeting Question

While all these questions are valuable, there's one question that should end every 1:1 meeting:

"Is there anything else you'd like to discuss?"

This simple question often reveals the most important topics--the ones employees are hesitant to bring up. Always make this your closing question.

How to Use These 1:1 Meeting Questions Effectively

Don't Ask Everything at Once

You can't ask all these 1:1 meeting questions in a single session. Instead:

• Rotate through different categories based on what's most relevant
• Pick 3-5 questions per meeting
• Follow up on interesting responses from previous meetings
• Let the conversation flow naturally

Ask Follow-Up Questions

Great 1:1 meeting questions lead to deeper conversations. Don't just accept the first answer--ask follow-up questions like:

• "Tell me more about that..."
• "What makes you say that?"
• "Can you give me an example?"
• "How does that make you feel?"

Listen Actively

The best 1:1 meeting questions are useless if you don't actively listen to the answers. Give your full attention, maintain eye contact, and avoid distractions.

Take Action

Asking great questions means nothing if you don't act on what you learn. Document insights, follow up on commitments, and show that these conversations drive change.

Adapting 1:1 Meeting Questions to Different Situations

For New Team Members

• "How was your first week/month?"
• "What's been clear? What's been confusing?"
• "Do you have everything you need to be successful?"
• "How can I help you get up to speed faster?"

For High Performers

• "What would make this role even more fulfilling?"
• "What stretch opportunities interest you?"
• "How can we leverage your strengths more?"
• "What would challenge you appropriately?"

For Struggling Team Members

• "What support would help you succeed?"
• "What obstacles are you facing?"
• "What would need to change for you to feel confident?"
• "How can I help remove blockers?"

Conclusion: Master the Art of Asking Great 1:1 Meeting Questions

The quality of your 1:1 meetings depends largely on the quality of your questions. By using these 1:1 meeting questions strategically, you'll have more meaningful conversations that build trust, identify issues early, and support your team's growth and success.

Start incorporating these questions into your next 1:1 meeting. Choose questions that feel authentic to you and relevant to the situation. With practice, asking powerful questions will become second nature.

Want help structuring your 1:1 meetings with proven question templates? Workcom provides ready-made question sets, note-taking, and sentiment tracking to make your 1:1s more effective and easier to manage.