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You can find an introduction to Progress Check Meetings in Chapter 18 of Where the Action Is. These resources will help you plan, run, and troubleshoot the specific Progress Check Meetings your team needs.

Definition

A Progress Check Meeting is used to confirm progress on a project or initiative and to maintain project momentum.

Questions Answered

  • Since our last progress meeting: What’s been done?
  • What still needs doing? What’s changed?
  • What do we need to focus on next?

Examples

  • The Project Status Meeting
  • The Client Check-In
  • The Sprint Demo

Purpose

  • Maintain project momentum.
  • Ensure mutual accountability.

Work Outcomes

  • Clarity about work progress.
  • Information about circumstances impacting the planned work.
  • Visibility into significant victories or setbacks.
  • Decisions on how to address potential changes to the project plan.
  • Documented decisions and action items.

Human Outcomes

  • Reassurance about the project.
  • Renewed project momentum.

Meeting Agenda Templates and Guides

How to Run a Project Status Update Meeting

Elise Keith - This meeting agenda template follows a standard format common in organizations with a well-developed Project Management Office. Most commonly scheduled as a weekly or bi-monthly meeting, this format is best suited for those managing cross-functional teams on moderately complex projects or programs.

How to Run a Weekly Update Meeting

Elise Keith - Inspired by the written report format put together by the fine folks at Weekdone, this meeting agenda template adapts the PPP status report into a status meeting where people can discuss the information they share. Used by product teams, technology companies, and entrepreneurs alike, the Progress, Plans &... [ more ]

Lucid Blog Posts

A Framework for Designing World-Class Team Cadence and Progress Check Meetings

Elise Keith (2022). Want to quickly make an enormous impact on the meetings in your organization? Roll out an effective strategy for your Team Cadence and Progress Check meetings.

A Framework For Productive Consulting Meetings (and Happier Clients)

Michael Zipursky (2019). With proper preparation and a specific agenda, your meetings will be productive and stress-free. Not only will this make your life easier, but your clients will appreciate it as well.


6 Reasons Most Efforts to Fix a Bad Meeting Culture Fail and How You Can Beat the Odds

Elise Keith (2019). At Lucid Meetings, our mission is to make it easy for teams to run successful meetings every day. Teaching teams the skills they need to run successful meetings seems like an obvious way for us to fulfill this mission, which is why we've now opened our first courses to students. We opened Meeting School now because, after over a decade of research and work with high-performing organizations, we know what works.

How often should you meet? Selecting the right meeting cadence for your team.

Elise Keith (2016). A team’s regularly scheduled meetings should maintain work momentum and strengthen the relationships between team members. The frequency of these regular meetings sets the team’s work cadence.

Glossary of Meeting Terms

General Term

Cadence (of team meetings)
A meeting cadence is a pattern of regular team meetings. Short, frequent meetings increase a team's work momentum. Groups that provide oversight, such as boards and committees, hold longer meetings less frequently.

Technique

RAID Analysis
RAID stands for Risks, Assumptions, Issues, and Dependencies. Teams may conduct a RAID analysis as part of their project planning meeting, then produce a RAID board which they can review, update, and revisit during...
Weather Report
A weather report is a way to run meeting check-ins and check-outs developed by Diana Larsen for teams who meet on weekly basis. During the check-in, each person gives their weather report for the previous week’s work...

Meeting Type

Status Update
A status update is a regularly scheduled meeting, typically about a project, to exchange information. They can be held at various times during the project with different stakeholders.