\n Sue: \u201cWell I can make Y my top priority but this will hold up Z.\u201d<\/em>
\n Rob: \u201cNo problem, I can wait a little longer for Z, let\u2019s get X and Y finished today.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n
Getting Pete, Sue, Rob, and any other stakeholders, to come to this agreement could have taken much more effort if they had not been standing next to each other.<\/p>\n
The communications channels in this type of stand-up can be visualised as in the following pattern.<\/p>\n However I believe that stand-ups are not well suited to all projects, and that they can actually become a daily energy drain on the team if used ineffectively.<\/p>\n My own experience has shown this to be the case when team members are loosely-coupled; that is they do not rely on each other in their normal day-to-day activities. On these projects the stand-up becomes a series of one-to-ones between each team member and the lead engineer, for which the whole team are forced to be present.<\/p>\n The communications channels in this type of stand-up can be visualised as in the following anti-pattern.<\/p>\n Stand-ups that embody the communications pattern provide a real energy boost as team members work together to solve problems; stand-ups that embody the communications anti-pattern become a drain on energy as team members struggle to remain focused.<\/p>\n If your daily stand-up meetings regularly look like the anti-pattern then I would suggest an intervention is needed. Perhaps another method of getting status updates would be more appropriate, such as individual one-to-ones, or asking team members to provide status updates by email.<\/p>\n Jason Yip has provided a much more detailed look into the daily stand-up meeting in his 2011 article<\/a>, with the anti-pattern above being briefly introduced as Reporting to the Leader.<\/p>\n I hope that by making this anti-pattern visual, even a casual observer will be able to quickly determine whether or not a stand-up is adding value to the project.<\/p>\n DW.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The pattern I like the idea of holding a daily stand-up meeting. This involves a team coming together at the start of each day to provide brief status updates and discuss the challenges ahead. I see stand-ups as being particularly useful in helping to resolve issues that are blocking progress, such as in this fictional … <\/p>\n![\"Daily](\"https:\/\/dawilson.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/standup2.png\")
The anti-pattern<\/h3>\n
![\"Daily](\"https:\/\/dawilson.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/standup1.png\")
Conclusion<\/h3>\n