Stand-up Meetings: A Key Driver of Team Productivity
Fact: Most people don’t like meetings. They are time-consuming and if it is not done in an effective manner, they are unproductive. But, when done right, team meetings can be a great productivity driver for your team. If you set aside a few minutes each day for the team to meet, you create an important routine that supports the project and builds camaraderie. Here is where the stand-up meeting comes in.
Stand-up meetings have become a sacred ritual for Agile teams. But, this practice can be adapted by different businesses based on their needs. They are fantastic for keeping a team aligned and focused in the same direction. When facilitated properly and organized around a shared goal, standing meetings can be an effective, collaborative way of keeping teams focused and in sync.
What is a Stand-up meeting?
The stand-up meeting is just like a regular meeting, but standing, right?
Not exactly! It is a nuanced method of project management in which the team is encouraged to stand for the duration of the meeting, which is typically held for a brief period of time (around 5 – 15 minutes is pretty standard). In some agile circles, they call stand-ups “daily scrums” or “daily huddles” or even just “morning meetings” or “daily check-ins”. Stand-up meetings allow a project or product teams to quickly touch base, report progress and align on project goals.
UP1 Sit to Stand
5 Benefits for your teams
Stand-up meetings are a great way for teams to align short- and long-term goals, along with personal tasks and overall team projects. Here are 5 benefits of daily stand-up meetings:
Better Communication
Daily stand-ups keep everyone on the same page, sharing the latest information and learning from other team members. Get answers in real-time and face-to-face on a daily basis. Huddle around the table with a cup of coffee and start a brand new day.
Encourages team building
A fast and productive way to keep the team cohesive is to encourage regular (and short!) team stand-up meetings. Standing up makes people psychologically more in tune with the discussion.
Lambor height-adjustable discussion table
Faster problem-solving
Stand-up meetings allow you and your colleagues to identify blockers quickly, as they arise. Not only does this team meeting enable problem-solving, but you can also rectify issues in the bud before they snowball into bigger problems.
Transfer of knowledge
A stand-up meeting will result in an increased rate of knowledge transfer between employees – meaning that the team overall has a wider and better understanding of the projects and tasks at hand.
Align with the team’s goals
Every team member has their own tasks and goals they’re focused on, which makes it easy to lose sight of how you’re contributing to the team’s goals. Stand-ups are a great reminder to align team goals and reiterate each team member’s role to the team.
I-Plus Sit-to-stand Meeting tables
10 tips for effective stand-up meetings
Effective stand-up meetings are more than just team members taking turns talking about what they’re working on. These tips will help you to make the most out of your brief team gatherings.
Make sure everybody is standing
Hold the meeting in an open space or a room without chairs. This seems obvious, but people will often sit down without even realizing it. A standing meeting table or a high discussion table will be perfect CenterPoint for such meetings. Move the chairs elsewhere so that nobody sits.
Keep it short
A quick stand-up in the morning should be about 5-15 minutes before starting the day’s work. If you find that it takes a minute or two longer, that’s OK if the time is still effective. Don’t cut people off mid-report, but rather encourage brevity.
Keep a regular time and place
Stick to an exact time and location to make it a positive habit. You needn’t try stand-ups every single workday; you can do it every few days, depending on the number of projects and work your team has to report and face.
Jason High Meeting tables
Fix an unusual time
When scheduling the meeting, it is a good idea to choose an unconventional time. For example, 9:34 AM for Sales or 9:52 AM for marketing. By scheduling it for a strange time, you will make it more memorable.
Stick to three questions
What did I accomplish yesterday/last week?
What will I do today/this week?
What roadblocks or obstacles are impeding my progress?
If you stick to these, you will find that although short, the responses are powerful updates.
Include remote employees
With tools like video conferencing, you can loop in everyone from any location. Place the video conferencing camera and display screen next to the table, where every attendee can view it properly and remote people will join in through laptop or mobile.
Be mindful of everybody
You may have employees with back problems, those who are pregnant, or those with other physical challenges that make it difficult to stand for extended periods of time. Give them a chair or stool and use a height-adjustable meeting table to suit everybody’s comfort level.
D-Cloud height adjustable meeting table
Use an object to decide who speaks
A ball or an office object or something fun like a toy can be passed on from person to person. The purpose of this is to keep the concentration on the person speaking and avoid interruptions.
Invite a small team
If your stand-up meeting has more than 15 attendees, this leaves less than one minute for each person to contribute. Instead, consider splitting the teams into smaller groups and increase the benefits of stand-up meetings within your team.
Always follow-up
Assign someone to take notes of any action items that might crop up during the stand-up. It’s also helpful to set a deadline to check in on how these action items are progressing outside of the stand-up.
Jason Standing table
Effective stand-up meetings lead to more productive teams
Stand-up meetings, when running effectively, are key in helping the entire team figure out how to accomplish business goals. Stand-up meetings can also foster a stronger team culture among your employees. Bid your farewells to those long, dreadful meetings and say hello to smarter, higher quality and quicker stand-ups.
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