What are 1-on-1 conversations?
1-on-1 conversations are a powerful tool designed to foster meaningful interactions between managers and employees. These structured conversations facilitate regular check-ins, goal tracking, feedback, and professional development.
As an Admin, understanding how 1-on-1s work, the available features, and how to track their usage will help you guide your organization in leveraging this tool effectively to enhance employee engagement and development.
Automatic access for all subscriptions
1-on-1 conversations are automatically enabled for all subscriptions, including any new customers with Engagement-only plans. This means every employee and manager in your organization will have access to 1-on-1s by default.
1-on-1's can be disabled at the account level if needed, but please note that it is not possible to make the feature available to some users and not to others. If enabled, all active users on the account will have access.
ℹ️ Note: If 1-on-1s aren't visible in your account, please start a support conversation. Our team will be happy to help get them enabled for you.
How 1-on-1s work
Hierarchy Setup
If your organization has a validated hierarchy, these conversations will automatically appear in the 1-on-1s conversations view.
Every time someone is assigned a new manager in the hierarchy, whether through a file upload, HRIS sync, or a manual update, Culture Amp automatically creates a 1-on-1 between that employee and their new manager.
When the hierarchy changes later (for example, if a manager is corrected or replaced), Culture Amp does not automatically remove or update the old 1-on-1s. This means employees may see multiple 1-on-1 conversations listed, including ones from previous or incorrect reporting relationships. They can archive these as needed.
Manual Relationship Mapping
If a hierarchy isn't validated, the tool will use a fallback demographic (like "Manager Email") to identify manager/direct report relationships. This fallback must be manually mapped by our support team and only upon your request.
To check if this has been set up already or to request the mapping, simply reply with "Ask a Person" in a support conversation to speak with a Product Support Specialist.
Starting a new conversation
If no hierarchy is set up, employees can still manually create 1-on-1 conversations with their manager.
Additionally, the "Meet with Anyone" feature allows employees to start a conversation with anyone they choose, whether that's a peer, manager, or someone outside their direct reporting structure.
Bulk topic creation for participants
Users with 1-on-1 conversations can add the same normal topic to multiple selected conversations in one action. Managers see their direct-report conversations selected by default, but the workflow is not limited to managers.
This is different from Assigned Topics. Assigned Topics are created by Account Admins and targeted to manager-employee conversations using demographic matching. Bulk-created topics are created by a participant in the conversations they select.
For the step-by-step workflow, see 1-on-1 Conversations.
Track and optimize 1-on-1 usage
As an Admin, you have access to the 1-on-1s usage report, providing valuable insights into how managers are using the tool with their direct reports. Tracking these insights helps you assess the tool's adoption rates, pinpoint areas for additional support, and optimize usage across teams. To maintain confidentiality and encourage meaningful conversations, the report does not display the specific names of direct reports a manager engages with. This ensures sensitive information remains private and fosters trust between managers and their teams.
Key features:
Hero stats: Get a quick overview of tool usage across the entire organization.
Department breakdown: See how specific teams or managers are engaging with 1-on-1s.
Usage insights: Track engagement over time, including 7-day or 30-day periods, to identify trends and make data-driven decisions.
Guide conversations with assigned topics
As an Admin, you can guide and support meaningful manager-employee conversations using Assigned Topics.
Assigned Topics allow you to assign discussion prompts to manager-employee 1-on-1s based on demographics, helping ensure alignment with company goals, encourage adoption of 1-on-1s, and spark thoughtful conversations across teams.
How it works:
Go to 1-on-1s > Assigned Topics
Click Assign a topic
Select who should receive the topic by using demographic matching (e.g., Country = Germany)
Add your topic title and note (discussion prompt)
Choose to send immediately or schedule for later
Once assigned, the topic appears directly in all matching manager-employee 1-on-1 conversations. Managers will see who assigned the topic and any additional context you include (like an annotation from HR).
💡 Tip: Start with a small group or your own team to test how the topic appears and feels in conversation. Want to learn more or see a full walkthrough? Check out our Assigned Topics setup guide
Key resources
💬 Need help? Open a support conversation to speak with our Product Support team.