Lean Coffee: The Structured, Agenda-Less Meeting Format

Lean Coffee is an agenda-less, yet structured, meeting where attendees build the agenda of topics they want to discuss, vote on the topics, and then discuss them each within a timebox. This article will breakdown the Lean Coffee concept and give suggestions for some tools you can use to facilitate a Lean Coffee event.

What is Lean Coffee?

The Lean Coffee meeting format is an excellent way to get people together and share knowledge. You can also use it to brainstorm and encourage participation. While the specific process may vary depending on the number of people and maturity of the meeting, there are a few key components that make it a perfect way to start a meeting.

First, a Lean Coffee meeting is informal. Instead of a traditional meeting with a pre-set agenda, participants propose topics and vote on them. The topics that get the most votes are then discussed during a limited time frame. After the discussion, the group decides whether to continue or change topics. As such, the meeting is highly productive.

Lean Coffee is a new format for meetings. It is easy to learn and adopt. It aims to minimize the amount of time wasted during meetings. This approach allows for focused conversation without a rigid agenda. The meeting starts with an icebreaker activity, such as sharing your favorite coffee order. Then, there is a five-minute presentation followed by an open discussion. Finally, the meeting ends with an overview of the meeting and action items.

Another key element of Lean Coffee is the concept of incremental progress. While the quickest way to implement a change is to introduce it all at once, some changes may take time. For these, incremental progress is the best way to go. A team can start with a small change, then move on to bigger changes. This way, they can stay in sync with what customers want and need.

When you should use Lean Coffee

Lean Coffee is a process of brainstorming. It requires a lot of thought and can be mentally draining, so it's beneficial to take breaks for a short amount of time. Taking a break can help your team process their ideas and add their voice to the discussion.

Besides having the ability to boost productivity, lean coffee is also an effective way to bring your team together. Whether it's to kickstart a new project or to discuss your current projects, lean coffee allows everyone to voice their ideas and concerns equally. It can even be used to welcome new team members, as it allows them to raise questions and cement ideas.

Lean Coffee is a great method for brainstorming, and it's a proven strategy. Unlike a traditional meeting, a Lean Coffee session doesn't require a leader and requires little or no prior planning. Each person in the room proposes topics, and a vote is taken to decide which topic gets the most votes. The topics are then discussed for about eight minutes, and then the group moves on to the next topic. At the end, the facilitator summarizes the takeaways and wraps things up.

Another key benefit of Lean Coffee is that it allows teams to prioritize unfinished business. Because the agenda is democratically decided, a team can dive into a specific theme or idea. Moreover, you can use templates for your Lean Coffee sessions, which can be exported to a JPEG, PDF, or spreadsheet.

Tools to use for a Lean Coffee session

A Lean Coffee session is a great opportunity to network with your co-workers. This method encourages collaboration and knowledge sharing by setting "off-the-wall" topics. These topics will generate discussion and get the creative juices flowing. Here are some tools you can use to make your next Lean Coffee session a success.

A virtual meeting tool like Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams are good options for a Lean Coffee session. These services can hold meetings online, and have breakout room features. This feature allows you to break up into smaller groups, and then rejoin the larger group at a later time.

Another useful tool for a Lean Coffee session is the Lean Coffee Template. Using this template, teams can prioritize unfinished business and explore themes. In the template, questions and topics are listed and voted on by the group. The template also has icebreakers to encourage active participation.

Tools like Miro and Mural have Lean Coffee templates you can use to help you get started. Below I have included some screenshots that show what these templates look like.

This is the Lean Coffee template in Mural.

These are some of the Lean Coffee templates available in Miro.

Where to find Lean Coffee Events

I have held Lean Coffee meetings at work, but if I am looking for Lean Coffee events outside of my sphere, I use Meetup.com. Here is an example of a Lean Coffee meetup that is focused on LeSS (Large Scale Scrum) in Agile that takes place in the Twin Cities (Minnesota) that I attend monthly.