Skip to product menu
close
  • Recent Launches
    Press Space or Enter to display list of options
EXPLORE ALL PRODUCTS

Recent Launches

New

Payroll software with automated tax payments and filing.

Try now
New

Robotic process automation software to automate high-volume, rule-based tasks.

Try for free
New

Low-code IoT platform and solutions for connected businesses.

Try now
New

Business formation service to launch and grow your businesses.

Try now
New

Privacy-friendly application analytics solution.

Try for free

Sales

 
CRM

Comprehensive CRM platform for customer-facing teams.

CRM
 
Bigin

Simple CRM for small businesses moving from spreadsheets.

Bigin
 
Forms

Build online forms for every business need.

Forms
 
SalesIQ

Live chat app to engage and convert website visitors.

SalesIQ
 
Bookings

Appointment scheduling app for consultations with customers.

Bookings
 
Sign

Digital signature app for businesses.

Sign
 
RouteIQ

Comprehensive sales map visualization and optimal route planning solution.

RouteIQ
 
Thrive

Complete loyalty and affiliate management platform.

Thrive
 
Voice

Cloud Contact Center Software for businesses.

Voice
 
Suites
CRM Plus

Unified platform to deliver top-notch customer experience.

CRM Plus

Marketing

 
Social

All-in-one social media management software.

Social
 
Campaigns

Create, send, and track targeted email campaigns that drive sales.

Campaigns
 
Forms

Build online forms for every business need.

Forms
 
Survey

Design surveys to reach and interact with your audience.

Survey
 
Sites

Online website builder with extensive customisation options.

Sites
 
PageSense

Website conversion optimization and personalisation platform.

PageSense
 
Backstage

End-to-end event management software.

Backstage
 
Webinar

Webinar platform for webcasting online webinars.

Webinar
 
Marketing Automation

All-in-one marketing automation software.

Marketing Automation
 
LandingPage

Smart landing page builder to increase conversion rates

LandingPage
 
Publish

Manage all your local business listings on a single platform.

Publish
 
SalesIQ

Live chat app to engage and convert website visitors.

SalesIQ
 
Sign

Digital signature app for businesses.

Sign
 
Thrive

Complete loyalty and affiliate management platform.

Thrive
 
Voice

Cloud Contact Center Software for businesses.

Voice
 
NEW
LeadChain

Sync, manage, and convert leads across channels seamlessly.

LeadChain
 
NEW
CommunitySpaces

Online community platform for individuals and businesses to grow their network and brand.

CommunitySpaces
 
Suites
Marketing Plus

Unified marketing platform for marketing teams.

Marketing Plus

Commerce and POS

 
Commerce

eCommerce platform to manage and market your online store.

Commerce

Service

 
Desk

Helpdesk software to deliver great customer support.

Desk
 
Assist

Remote support and unattended remote access software.

Assist
 
Lens

Interactive remote assistance software with augmented reality.

Lens
 
FSM

End-to-end field service management platform for service businesses.

FSM
 
SalesIQ

Live chat app to engage and convert website visitors.

SalesIQ
 
Voice

Cloud Contact Center Software for businesses.

Voice
 
NEW
Solo

The all-in-one toolkit for solopreneurs.

Solo
 
Bookings

Appointment scheduling app for consultations with customers.

Bookings
 
Suites
Service Plus

Unified platform for customer service and support teams.

Service Plus

Finance

 
Books

Powerful accounting platform for growing businesses.

Books
 
FREE
Invoice

100% Free invoicing solution.

Invoice
 
Expense

Effortless expense reporting platform.

Expense
 
Inventory

Powerful stock management and inventory control software.

Inventory
 
Billing

End-to-end billing solution for your business.

Billing
 
Checkout

Collect payments online with custom branded pages.

Checkout
 
NEW
Payroll

Payroll software with automated tax payments and filing.

Payroll
 
NEW
Solo

The all-in-one toolkit for solopreneurs.

Solo
 
Practice

Practice management software for accounting firms.

Practice
 
Sign

Digital signature app for businesses.

Sign
 
Commerce

eCommerce platform to manage and market your online store.

Commerce
 
Suites
Finance Plus

All-in-one suite to manage your operations and finances.

Finance Plus

Email and Collaboration

 
Mail

Secure email service for teams of all sizes.

Mail
 
Meeting

Online meeting software for all your video conferencing & webinar needs.

Meeting
 
Writer

Word processor for focused writing and discussions.

Writer
 
Sheet

Spreadsheet software for collaborative teams.

Sheet
 
Show

Create, edit, and share slides with a sleek presentation app.

Show
 
Notebook

Beautiful home for all your notes.

Notebook
 
Cliq

Stay in touch with teams no matter where you are.

Cliq
 
Connect

Employee experience platform to communicate, engage, and build positive employee relations.

Connect
 
Bookings

Appointment scheduling app for consultations with customers.

Bookings
 
TeamInbox

Shared inboxes for teams.

TeamInbox
 
WorkDrive

Online file management for teams.

WorkDrive
 
Sign

Digital signature app for businesses.

Sign
 
Office Suite

Powerful collaborative work platform for teams.

Office Suite
 
Office Integrator

Built in document editors for web apps.

Office Integrator
 
ZeptoMail

Secure and reliable transactional email sending service.

ZeptoMail
 
Calendar

Online business calendar to manage events and schedule appointments.

Calendar
 
Learn

Knowledge and learning management platform.

Learn
 
Voice

Cloud Contact Center Software for businesses.

Voice
 
ToDo

Collaborative task management for individuals and teams.

ToDo
 
Tables

Work management tool to connect people, processes, and information.

Tables
 
FREE
PDF Editor

Collaborative online PDF editing tool.

PDF Editor
 
Suites
Workplace

Application suite built to improve team productivity and collaboration.

Workplace

Human Resources

 
People

Organize, automate, and simplify your HR processes.

People
 
Recruit

Intuitive recruiting platform built to provide hiring solutions.

Recruit
 
Expense

Effortless expense reporting platform.

Expense
 
Workerly

Manage temporary staffing with an employee scheduling solution.

Workerly
 
NEW
Payroll

Payroll software with automated tax payments and filing.

Payroll
 
Shifts

Employee scheduling and time tracking app.

Shifts
 
Sign

Digital signature app for businesses.

Sign
 
Suites
People Plus

Comprehensive HR platform for seamless employee experiences.

People Plus

Security and IT Management

 
Creator

Build custom apps to simplify business processes.

Creator
 
Directory

Workforce identity and access management solution for cloud businesses.

Directory
 
FREE
OneAuth

Secure multi-factor authenticator (MFA) for all your online accounts.

OneAuth
 
Vault

Online password manager for teams.

Vault
 
Catalyst

Pro-code platform to build and deploy your apps.

Catalyst
 
Toolkit

Complete resource for any admin-related lookup queries.

Toolkit
 
Lens

Interactive remote assistance software with augmented reality.

Lens
 
Assist

Remote support and unattended remote access software.

Assist
 
QEngine

Test automation software to build, manage, execute, and report testcases.

QEngine
 
NEW
RPA

Automate manual, tedious, and repetitive tasks easily.

RPA

BI and Analytics

 
Analytics

Modern self-service BI and analytics platform.

Analytics
 
Embedded BI

Embedded analytics and white label BI solutions, tailored for your needs.

Embedded BI
 
DataPrep

AI-powered data preparation service for your data-driven organization.

DataPrep
 
NEW
IoT

Harnessing IoT analytics for real-time operational intelligence.

IoT

Project Management

 
Projects

Manage, track, and collaborate on projects with teams.

Projects
 
Sprints

Planning and tracking tool for scrum teams.

Sprints
 
BugTracker

Automatic bug tracking software for managing bugs.

BugTracker
 
NEW
Solo

The all-in-one toolkit for solopreneurs.

Solo

Developer Platforms

 
Creator

Build custom apps to simplify business processes.

Creator
 
Flow

Automate business workflows by creating smart integrations.

Flow
 
Catalyst

Pro-code platform to build and deploy your apps.

Catalyst
 
Office Integrator

Built in document editors for web apps.

Office Integrator
 
ZeptoMail

Secure and reliable transactional email sending service.

ZeptoMail
 
QEngine

Test automation software to build, manage, execute, and report testcases.

QEngine
 
Tables

Work management tool to connect people, processes, and information.

Tables
 
NEW
RPA

Automate manual, tedious, and repetitive tasks easily.

RPA
 
NEW
Apptics

Application analytics for all apps.

Apptics
 
Embedded BI

Embedded analytics and white label BI solutions, tailored for your needs.

Embedded BI
 
NEW
IoT

Build, deploy, and scale IoT solutions for connected businesses.

IoT
 
DataPrep

AI-powered data preparation service for your data-driven organization.

DataPrep

IoT

 
NEW
IoT

Low-code IoT platform and solutions for connected businesses.

IoT

Search Result

 
CRM Plus

Unified platform to deliver top-notch customer experience.

Try now
CRM Plus
 
Service Plus

Unified platform for customer service and support teams.

Try now
Service Plus
 
Finance Plus

All-in-one suite to manage your operations and finances.

Try now
Finance Plus
 
People Plus

Comprehensive HR platform for seamless employee experiences.

Try now
People Plus
 
Workplace

Application suite built to improve team productivity and collaboration.

Try now
Workplace
 
Marketing Plus

Unified marketing platform for marketing teams.

Try now
Marketing Plus
 
All-in-one suite

Zoho One

The Operating System for Business

Run your entire business on Zoho with our unified cloud software, designed to help you break down silos between departments and increase organizational efficiency.

TRY ZOHO ONE
Zoho One
Zoho Marketplace

With over 2000 ready-to-use extensions across 40+ categories, connect your favorite business tools with the Zoho products you already use.

EXPLORE MARKETPLACE
Marketplace
Skip to main content

How to use Lean Coffee to rethink and reinvent your meetings

  • Published : December 24, 2024
  • Last Updated : December 27, 2024
  • 118 Views
  • 7 Min Read

For many people, having a clear agenda is the golden rule for effective meetings. In theory, your agenda gives people a chance to prepare and keeps your meeting focused. But what if an agenda wasn’t a prerequisite for an effective meeting? What if forgoing the agenda altogether led to a more collaborative and productive sit-down? That’s the premise behind a Lean Coffee meeting.

What exactly is Lean Coffee?

Lean Coffee meetings are structured, but agenda-less discussions. Rather than showing up with a detailed list of what will be discussed, participants work together to determine what they need to talk about and then spend time digging into the topics they agreed upon.

The concept was created by Jim Benson and Jerry Lightsmith in 2009. Both have expertise in Lean principles and wanted to create a way for people to have structured, productive meetings without locking themselves into a predefined agenda.

Since its founding, it’s become a popular meeting format, particularly on Agile teams.

Lean coffee

How to run a Lean Coffee meeting

Lean Coffee meetings are agenda-less and informal, but that doesn’t mean these sessions are chaotic free-for-alls. While the focus is on collaboration and flexibility, there is still a general approach to running a productive Lean Coffee meeting. Here are six steps to run this type of meeting (and make the most of it).

1. Set up a Kanban board

Your entire Lean Coffee meeting will revolve around a Kanban board—a simple series of columns that indicate the status of a particular discussion topic. You’ll have columns for the following categories:

  • To discuss: All of the topics you generate will land here to start.

  • Discussing: When you’ve selected the topics you’ll discuss during that session, you move them to this column.

  • Discussed: Once you’ve exhausted a topic, you move it here.

Some people use alternative names for those columns. For example, you could name the first column “topics” instead of “to discuss.” But the above three categories capture the general concept and flow of information during a Lean Coffee session.

As the facilitator, get your Kanban board set up ahead of your session so it’s ready when your participants join. If your meeting is in-person, you can use a whiteboard and sticky notes. However, if you’re leading a remote session, you’ll need to opt for a digital, collaborative whiteboard.

2. Generate topics

TIMING: 10 minutes

A typical Lean Coffee meeting lasts 60–90 minutes. After welcoming your participants, you’ll all spend the first 10 minutes generating topics. You can assign a theme or leave things completely open-ended to collect the most ideas.

Each person uses sticky notes (whether real or virtual) to write down their topic ideas and add them to the “to discuss” column. Every idea gets its own sticky note.

3. Describe the topics

TIMING: 5 minutes

Once your group is done generating topics, you’re ready to figure out which ones you’ll discuss during that session. Before soliciting votes and opinions, get everybody on the same page by doing the following:

  • Briefly describe each topic so people understand what it is.

  • Group similar topics together.

  • Toss out duplicate topics.

Doing so whittles down your list and makes it easier for people to understand what’s on the table before casting their votes in the next step.

4. Cast your votes

TIMING: 5 minutes

One of the best things about a Lean Coffee session is that it’s collaborative. Everybody gets an equal say in what’s discussed, and that’s where this voting step comes in.

Every participant gets two votes (although, some people allow three votes instead) to indicate the topics they’re most interested in discussing. People can vote for the same topic twice, or they can split their votes between different topics. Either way, they’ll cast their votes by adding a symbol (such as a dot) to a sticky note.

Once everybody has voted, you tally the votes to identify the topics people are most interested in. Ideally, you’ll identify two to five key topics to focus on during this session. Move those topic sticky notes to the “discussing” column.

5. Engage in your discussion

TIMING: 10 minutes per topic

Now you’re ready to get into the good stuff: talking about each topic. Start with the topic that has the most votes and then work down from there.

Set a timer for 10 minutes (some teams do five minutes depending on how many topics they’re trying to get through) and discuss the topic in detail as a team. When time is up, work together to decide whether to continue the conversation or move on to your next topic.

Remember to maintain your collaborative and democratic spirit throughout these discussions. One person shouldn’t dominate the conversation, so solicit contributions and opinions from group members when you need to. That’s your job as the facilitator.

6. Decide what to do with your leftover topics

You’ll inevitably have topics left in your “to discuss” column at the end of your meeting. You can either save them for your next meeting or ditch them and start completely fresh the next time you come together.

You get to decide what works best for your team. However, if you’ve pushed off a topic two or three times, it’s a solid indicator that people aren’t all that interested in digging into that subject, and you can likely safely remove it from your backlog.

What are the benefits of Lean Coffee?

A Lean Coffee meeting might seem like it goes against everything you thought you knew about running productive meetings. But, as counterintuitive as this approach is, it offers many compelling benefits.

Democratize your decision-making

Rather than handing down topics from on high, everybody gets a hand in shaping what’s discussed during the meeting. When people contribute to the decision-making, they’re more likely to be engaged in and enthusiastic about the discussion.

Focus on the most important or relevant topics

We’ve all been in meetings where unnecessary tangents take over. Lean Coffee’s collaborative approach allows you to filter out the noise and drill down to the topics that team members feel are most pressing and pertinent.

This can lead to more lively discussions and debates rather than wasting time on topics that are nothing more than fruitless distractions.

Stay flexible and adaptable

Not locking yourself into a rigid agenda means you have the wiggle room to meet the current needs and priorities of the group.

For example, perhaps you recently received a piece of user feedback that could influence the future direction of your product. That’s an important and potentially time-sensitive topic, and a Lean Coffee meeting means the team can bump it to the top of the list.

Run more inclusive meetings

It’s easy for more introverted voices to get lost in meetings. Only 48% of introverts say they’re satisfied with their participation levels in meetings, compared to 85% of extroverts.

With a Lean Coffee meeting, everybody has an equal voice in deciding which topics will be discussed. Since this happens with silent and independent voting, it gives even your most introverted team members a low-pressure way to contribute and steer the meeting.

Reduce meeting fatigue

People don’t get tired of meetings; they get tired of useless meetings. Because the group works together to determine what should be discussed, meetings inherently feel more relevant, focused, productive, and valuable. That alone goes a long way in making meetings seem less draining and groan-worthy.

5 quick tips for running your Lean Coffee meeting

One of the great things about the Lean Coffee meeting format is that it’s relatively straightforward. Following the six steps above will help you run a productive first session, but here are five more tips to keep in mind as you facilitate this meeting.

  1. Set clear expectations: The Lean Coffee concept might be unfamiliar to many of your participants. During your first meeting, spend a few minutes explaining the approach, why you’re running your meeting this way, and how members are expected to contribute.

  2. Use the right tools: A Lean Coffee meeting is commonly associated with a whiteboard and sticky notes. Those are the go-to tools for an in-person session, but that doesn’t mean you can’t run this meeting remotely. Look for a simple and intuitive collaborative whiteboard to make it easy for every person to contribute.

  3. Establish time limits: Keep your meeting on track by setting time limits for each of your discussion topics. Use a timer to make sure you don’t run over your designated timeboxes.

  4. Know your role: As the meeting facilitator, you’re there to guide the discussion, not dominate the conversation. While you can participate in suggesting topics, it’s usually better to step aside and stay exclusively focused on facilitating the conversation rather than actively contributing.

  5. End with action items: At the end of your meeting, spend a few minutes summarizing your next steps and aligning on who owns those action items. Any type of meeting is most productive when it leads to real action and tangible outcomes.

Skip the agenda and increase your impact

There are plenty of times when a meeting agenda is warranted. However, there are other situations when skipping the agenda in favor of a collaborative Lean Coffee meeting is the better way to go. For example, a Lean Coffee meeting is a great fit for when:

  • Discussion points aren’t clear or fully defined

  • Attendees have various concerns to address

  • You want to brainstorm or tackle issues as a group

  • You’re leading a recurring meeting with constantly evolving topics

Keep in mind that you don’t need to go all-or-nothing on the Lean Coffee approach. For example, you can stick with a more traditional, agenda-driven meeting most of the time and then opt for a Lean Coffee meeting for a quarterly team check-in.

Commit to experimentation, and you’ll land on the style and cadence that achieves the ultimate goal of any meeting: pulling the best contributions out of your team.

Related Topics

  • Kat Boogaard

    Kat is a freelance writer focused on the world of work. She writes for both employers and employees, and mainly covers topics related to the workplace such as productivity, entrepreneurship, and business success. Her byline has appeared in The New York Times, Fast Company, Business Insider, Forbes, and more.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked

The comment language code.
By submitting this form, you agree to the processing of personal data according to our Privacy Policy.

You may also like