Thoughts on daily stand-ups
The daily standup is the most identifiable feature of the agile methodology along with the kanban board. If we think consciously about our standups, then we can choose the kind that is best for the project and best to help the team deliver what the project requires.
I credit people in the teams that I have worked with for prompting a more deliberate and self-aware approach to standups, rather than doing what might be more or less reflexive.
Purpose
This article is a reflection on the kinds of standup that I have experienced. The purpose is to prompt thoughts on daily standups and help you review and reconsider the kinds of standup your team runs.
Agile Manifesto principles
Where does the idea of the standup come from? The Agile Manifesto's 12 principles includes at least 3 principles which relate to the daily standup https://agilemanifesto.org/principles.html :
Principle 4: Business people and developers must work together daily throughout the project.
Principle 6: The most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation.
Principle 12: At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.
Overview
I have encountered 3 kinds of daily standup with variations amongst each:
Report exceptions
Type 1. Each team member states blockers, if any. If a team member faces no blockers, then they have little to say today in this forum, and effectively 'pass' to the next team member.
Type 2. A more verbose version is that each team member states whether they are on-track for this sprint or not, and states blockers if any.
The above are aligned with agile principles where the standup is brief and hyper-focussed. All details are taken 'offline' to a separate discussion with only the relevant people. If the project manager attends the standup then they observe silently. If the project manager speaks, it is only because they have an item on the kanban board and so contribute as if they were another team member.
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The scrum master guides the standup, ensures it remains on the track agreed by the team, and watches the clock to end on time or before time. Ideally, the scrum master is different from the project manager, and the Agile Methodology requires the scrum master to be a different person from the project manager to reduce any sense of hierarchy in the team's way of working.
Give updates
This kind of standup explain progress as well as reporting exceptions.
Type 1. Each team member gives an update on what has happened since the last stand-up, and what is expected to be achieved today.
Type 2. The scrum master requests from each team member in turn an update on what has happened since the last stand-up, and what is expected to be achieved today. There might be some brief Q&A but everyone is conscious that discussion should not be detailed, and just enough to fully understand the update or blocker that is being explained.
Manager drives
This kind is not related to the Agile Methodology which is intended to be democratic and 'flat' in structure. These are in increasing order of focus on the manager.
Type 1. The scrum master or project manager actively queries each team member on their progress since the last stand-up and/or overall progress in this sprint, and their plans for the day. This standup is still largely about what is on the kanban board only.
Type 2. The project manager - not the scrum master - explains problems the project is facing at a higher level, or perhaps that other related projects are experiencing, or queries they received from upper management. Since everyone is in the room, the manager uses this as a chance to discuss these issues and seek input from the team. The discussion may not be relevant to many team members. However, everyone gets to learn about wider issues. It is important to be conscious of whether this is the best use of everyone's time - it could be valuable for all team members to be present, but equally often not.
Type 3. The project manager speaks about themselves, jokes around, and builds a happy atmosphere. The spotlight is on the manager which can be excellent for new teams, but does not encourage individual team members to speak except for the most gregarious and outgoing team members, or the ones who already know the manager well. Nevertheless, there is a chance for updates, and typically in this mode the manager will be keen to pick up topics raised and discuss problems potentially to solve them in the meeting. While this is not agile, it can still be a very useful meeting to knock problems on the head early, and get manager input on a range of matters. This is excellent for new teams which are in the process of getting clarity on priorities and the 'lie of the land', and so need more guidance from the project manager.
Finally
Different kinds of standup are appropriate for different project scenarios and statuses, and where in the lifecycle of a project you are. There is a time for manager-centric 'non-Agile' standups, and there is a time to go entirely with the spirit of Agile Methodology, and a time for everything in-between.
I hope this prompts some thoughts on your standups, the impact on your team whether or not you're the manager. Would you consider running your standups differently to better meet your team's development goals and project goals? Or seeking and sharing feedback from team members on conducting more effective standups?
Short video
In this short video, I explain the different kinds of stand-up from my experience in different words: https://youtu.be/z0j88OB_pww