Dear SaaStr: What’s a Good Agenda for A Weekly All-Hands Meeting? It’s a small team of 10 and half are developers so the engagement is pretty low.
For a small team, especially with half being developers who might not naturally engage in meetings, you need to make the weekly all-hands concise, relevant, and engaging.
Here’s how I’d approach it:
1. Set a Clear Agenda:
Keep it tight—30 minutes max. Start with a quick update on the business: wins, challenges, and progress toward goals. Developers especially appreciate structure and purpose, so make it clear why the meeting matters. Too informal, it’s just a random chat session on one wants. Use an agenda.
2. Highlight Wins and Progress:
Everyone loves this. Share a quick win or a milestone achieved by the team or an individual. Developers often work on long-term projects, so recognizing even small progress can boost morale and engagement.
3. Cross-Functional Update:
Use this time to break silos. Have each functional area (even if it’s just you and one other person) share a 1-2 minute update. This helps developers see the bigger picture and understand how their work ties into the company’s goals.
4. Encourage Questions:
Create a safe space for questions, even anonymous ones if needed. Developers might not speak up naturally, but they often have valuable insights or concerns. You could even seed a question or two to get the ball rolling.
5. Inject Some Fun:
End with something light—a quick team shoutout, a funny story, or even a 2-minute demo of something cool someone’s working on. It keeps the tone positive and helps build camaraderie.
6. Be Transparent:
Transparency builds trust. Share metrics, challenges, and what’s keeping you up at night as the founder. Transparency builds trust and keeps the team invested in the mission.
7. Rotate Participation. Don’t Have it All Be You.
If engagement is low, assign someone each week to share a brief update or demo something they’re working on. It gives everyone a voice and keeps the meeting dynamic.
The key is to make the meeting feel valuable, not like a chore.
Developers especially need to see the “why” behind the meeting—how it connects to their work and the company’s success. Keep it short, focused, and engaging, and over time, you’ll see more buy-in.
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