A great 1:1 culture isn't just about showing up; it’s about having the right conversation at the right time. In Small Improvements, you can build this habit using two distinct workflows: Calendar Integration or 1:1 Automations.
Because these features handle scheduling differently, we recommend choosing the "flavor" that best fits your team's needs.
Note: We do not recommend using Automations and Calendar Integrations simultaneously for the same meeting, as this may result in duplicate meeting entries.
Step 1: Choose your "Scheduling Flavor"
Option A: The "Calendar-First" Workflow
Choose this if you want your 1:1s to be scheduled and driven by your Google or Outlook calendar, and use Small Improvements for the prep and documentation.
Check with your Admin: Ensure your HR or IT Administrator has enabled the Calendar Integration for your company.
Schedule as usual: Create the meeting in your external calendar (Google or Outlook). These will appear as a blank 1:1 meeting in Small Improvements in advance of the meeting.
Apply a template: Once the meeting syncs to Small Improvements, open it and click Use Template, or simply manually add your Talking Points.
Note: Templates are not added automatically through the calendar integration
Option B: The "Automation-First" Workflow
Choose this if you want a "set it and forget it" system that automatically applies a specific template to every meeting in Small Improvements.
One great advantage of this workflow is the ability to create customized automations for different colleagues or reports. For example, you can set a "Monthly Career Growth" automation for a long-term report and a "Weekly Onboarding" automation for a new hire, each with its own tailored template.
Create the Automation: Navigate to 1:1 Meetings > Automations > + New Automation.
Set the frequency: Define your participants and how often you want to meet (e.g., every 2 weeks).
Define Settings and Template: Under the Template dropdown, select your preferred template, and define the participants and date/time.
Note: The automation does not create a calendar invite
Step 2: Select (or create) the right Template
Regardless of your workflow, using a template skips the "What should we talk about?" phase. You can choose from our built-in options or create a custom template that fits your team's specific culture.
Using built-in templates
Regular 1:1 check-in: Focuses on challenges and wins to maintain engagement.
Connect with each other: Designed to build rapport and understand what drives a teammate.
Align on Objectives: Focuses on tracking progress against milestones and keeping goals front-of-mind.
New hire check-in: Ensures first impressions are supported and early feedback cycles aren't missed.
Career check-ins (Quarterly): Dedicated space for discussing long-term growth and professional trajectory.
Creating your own
If our built-in options don't quite fit, you can build a custom template to use again and again.
Go to 1:1 Meetings > Personal Templates.
Click Create New Personal Template.
Add your own unique Talking Points, Title, description and save.
Step 3: Use Notes and Action Items for accountability
Documentation is what turns a conversation into progress. Use Meeting Notes for context and Action Items for commitments.
Meeting Notes
Notes provide a permanent, shared record of the discussion.
Capture the context: Use the notes field to summarize decisions, feelings, or detailed feedback discussed during the meeting.
Shared or Private: You can choose to share notes with your counterpart or keep them private for your own reference.
Searchable history: All meeting notes are saved in the meeting history, making it easy to look back at progress over months or years.
Action Items
Action items are the specific "to-dos" that result from your conversation.
Assign and Prioritize: Use the High, Medium, or Low priority tags to focus on what matters most.
Automatic Rollover: Any incomplete Action Items automatically move to the next meeting, so you can start your next session by reviewing what was achieved.
Tip: Before finishing a 1:1, take 2 minutes to summarize the key points in the Notes and verify the Action Items. This ensures both parties leave the meeting with the same understanding.