> Am I too cynical?

Not at all. I feel exactly the same way. I'm also introverted, and to me "relationship building" in a corporate context often feels really contrived.

I want to bring as much value as possible to my employer, and I don't feel like I generate value by having 1:1s for the sake of having 1:1s. I jump through the hoop though, because I want a promotion and I'm concerned that I won't get one if I don't fit the norm.

Building those relationships does help the business, even if they are temporary. Some (perhaps most) people need the social aspect to function.

I am going to chime in here, but my situation is very particular and will not apply to every people, because i am an position were my current manager was my peer for a long time before he was promoted..

When we were peers we were the only two person from our team in our country, so we had a friendly relation as peers that we some how managed to keep when he became my manager..

We never had 1:1s before because we always speak to each other as we need.. We could go whole months with not talking much to each other, often only an occasional checking from him to jokingly ask if i was still alive, on the other hands there were times we would speak several times every day if there was need for it.. We both work fully remote since before he became a manager..

This year our company SVPs are mandating 1:1 for the whole team, so we are doing it every two weeks but our meeting are mostly chit chats with some work stuff here or there when there is something to discuss..

But as someone said above.. if i need something work related from him i will likely reach out and talk to him at the time.. We also have a whole team meeting once a month and most important stuff is discussed in that meeting, we also have a lot of non work chit chat in those, but there is not much left to discuss at 1:1s..

Also the stuff that i would discuss at 1:1 are not usually stuff i need to discuss every two weeks, it is career or pay stuff that i usually need to discuss two or three times per year.

I kind of agree with Jensen Huang on his take, most stuff can be discussed with the whole team, even coaching, the only thing you should only discuss in particular with your manager from you are your personal career and from him is any criticism he has to make (i believe in the saying, praise in public and criticize in private), but you should not need a regular 1:1 for those, you or your manager should schedule a meeting and discuss those when the need arise..

Now.. like i said, i work remote full time, so for me those 1:1, and even the team meetings, are some nice opportunity we have for some social interactions, this is why both are mostly chit chat.. so they are good for the team mental health so in some way they are good for our personal advancement as well.. so even if my manager is gone tomorrow i don't see as it being all for nothing..

Also having a close relation with one manager can be good for ones career, my manager know my career goals and he has being doing what he can to help me achieve my objectives.. if he is gone tomorrow the work he has already done to help will still have value..

Think this, we all had several friends trough life that we eventually lost contact with or very rarely speak with.. those friendships were important and had value at the time in some way or another but then they ended, just because they ended the value did not disappeared, it was valuable at the time and in some ways we carry this value with us, i see 1:1s with my manager the same way.. they are nice to have and have some value at the time but if he is gone tomorrow so be it..