Team Check-Ins and Check-Outs

Summary

A check-in opens a working session and a check-out closes it. Each person answers one question, so everyone is present, seen, and heard. At NZZ we made them mandatory in every workshop: it felt weird at first, then it became part of the culture and built trust and empathy. I recommend them for any session longer than 40 minutes, and the questions below are a short list to start with.

Why rituals matter

Rituals help a team work well, can change culture and habits, and give a team a framework for being productive. Many workplaces have them. Walmart store workers start the day with a company cheer. Yelp salespeople bang a gong when they close a sale. Group rituals like these can strengthen a team’s bonds and its performance.

I learned about daily check-ins and check-outs when I started at Hyper Island. A check-in is a simple way for a team to open a process. Each member is present, seen, and heard, and the team sets its purpose. The emphasis is on presence, focus, and group commitment. A check-out closes the process and sets the context for what the team did. Each member is again present, seen, and heard, and the emphasis moves to reflection and closure.

How it works

Face to face, stand in a circle. Choose a check-in question that fits the session.

• What is one thing you hope to accomplish during today’s meeting?
• What has happened since we last met?
• What is the one thing you will need help with this week?

One by one, each person answers and takes a step forward. When everyone has checked in, you are done. Check in before every meeting or workshop and, if possible, at the start of each day.

At the end, stand in a circle again. Each person shares what they want to check out with: a feeling, a reflection, the most important thing they take with them, or what stood out. Choose the question to fit the group and the purpose of the session.

• What is today’s biggest takeaway for me?
• What will I choose to do differently next time?
• How was this experience for me?

One by one, each person answers and takes a step back. When everyone has checked out, you are done. Check out after every meeting or workshop and, ideally, at the end of each day.

What it did at NZZ

At NZZ, in the digital product department, we introduced weekly check-ins and check-outs and made them a mandatory part of every workshop. At first it felt weird to everyone.

That is how change works, in my experience. Something new feels different, uncomfortable, and challenging. Then it is like building a muscle: the more you do it, the easier it gets, until it becomes the new normal.

The check-ins and check-outs became part of the culture. People shared new things about themselves and got to know each other better, which built trust and empathy. The ritual also helped people arrive fully in a session and close it afterwards. Everyone valued the sense of closure.

I later introduced them at Vorwerk Home as well, where they brought the team closer.

Running it remotely

My team at the time was mostly remote, so face to face was not an option, and nobody wanted extra meetings. We ran a weekly check-in on Monday and a check-out on Friday in Slack. On Mondays we also shared what we planned to work on and where the team could help. On Fridays we shared how the week had gone, how happy the team felt, and what work was unfinished.

Is it for you?

I recommend check-ins and check-outs for every working session longer than 40 minutes. Give it a few weeks and see how your teammates feel about the ritual. Then start weekly check-ins and check-outs with your direct team, and move to daily ones. They are a fundamental part of Hyper Island, and I have not yet met a team that did not become stronger with the ritual. A few minutes a day pays off.

Questions to start with

These are the questions I would start with. Some I found online, some came as recommendations, and some I wrote myself.

From Dr Emily Anhalt’s favourite icebreakers

1. Who is one person who changed your life but doesn’t know it?
2. If you were a kitchen utensil, which one would you be and why?
3. What is one thing you love that most people hate, and one thing you hate that most people love?
4. If you were handed a megaphone and could blast out one message for the entire world to hear, what would you say?
5. What’s one thing that you’ve changed your mind about lately?
6. What would the title of your autobiography be?
7. If you walked into a room with everyone you’ve ever met in it, who would you look for?
8. What’s on fire (in a good way) in your life right now?
9. What is something that you learned much later in life than most people?
10. What’s a story from your childhood that, looking back, predicted what you do for a living today?
11. What’s something that you assumed was true for everyone that you later found out is only true for you / your family?
12. If you could win a lifetime supply of any one thing, what would you choose?

Getting to know each other

1. How would you describe what you do for a living to a group of five-year-olds?
2. What makes you geek out?
3. What was your favourite book as a child?
4. Which song do you have on repeat this week?
5. If you had a time machine and could make a single, one-way trip, where would you go?
6. What is one food you can’t give up?
7. What’s the most surprising thing that’s ever happened to you in another country?
8. Tell us something about yourself that would surprise most people who know you.
9. Are you an owl or a lark?
10. How do you recharge?
11. What would a perfect day look like for you?
12. What’s the most amazing thing you’ve seen in nature?
13. What characteristic do you most admire in others?
14. What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in the last year?
15. What’s giving you hope right now?

About work

1. Tell us about your very first job.
2. What do you like most about your job?
3. Describe your team in one word.
4. Which of your skills do you feel are underused at work?
5. What did you believe earlier in your career that you now see differently?
6. What is the best career advice you’ve ever received?
7. What advice would you give someone starting out in your field?
8. In one word, what is the greatest challenge you’ve faced this month?
9. If you could master any skill instantly, what would it be?
10. What one sentence would you most like to hear from your boss tomorrow morning?
11. If you were to start a company from scratch, what values would you build it on?
12. What would you be doing if you weren’t in your current job?
13. How do you think your colleagues see you?

What if

1. What strange room or feature would you build into your dream house?
2. If you could have any superpower, what would you choose and why?
3. If your house was on fire and you could only grab three things, what would they be?
4. If you could meet one person from history, who would it be?
5. If you had the chance to run a restaurant, what would you serve?
6. If someone made a film about your life, what genre would it be?

The TeamKit

For more on how teams form and the rituals that connect them, look at The TeamKit. It is a self-facilitated team formation process that helps teams choose the right tools and methods as they come together and agree where they are going. It requires no prior knowledge of team formation.