Ask any employee how they feel about meetings, and the responses might be less than enthusiastic. The number of meetings that occur in a day can have a detrimental effect on the amount of productivity that happens in the workplace. On the other hand, meetings are often the most effective way to share ideas and make sure staff is on the same page. But fear not, because there is a happy medium.
Stand-up meetings, also known as scrum meetings, are changing the way group discussions take place. Simply by the mere act of standing instead of sitting, these types of meetings are shortened to avoid the discomfort of standing for an extended period of time. Stand-up meetings typically last around 15 minutes, making it imperative that participants stay on topic and keep conversations short and to the point.
For optimal results, follow these eight pointers for productive stand-up meetings.
1. Schedule a regular time and place for meetings to occur. This way, group members can anticipate issues that need to be addressed and come up with questions and talking points beforehand.
2. Regular stand-up meetings can be structured to promote follow-up conversation and identify problems early on.
3. Take turns speaking and avoid interruptions by passing an item around to show whose turn it is to speak.
4. Discuss progress made since the last stand-up meeting, and plan for any future challenges. It’s also a good opportunity to ask for help or collaborate.
5. Keep number of participants to as few as possible to increase engagement and allow enough speaking time for everyone.
6. Take account of slowly progressing items and immediate deadlines to determine what actions can be taken.
7. Hold stand-up meetings across different departments to transmit important information at once, thereby lessening emails and improving communication.
8. During conferences, hold breakout sessions around standing-height tables to reap the benefits of scrum meetings and stay within session time limits.
