You can find an introduction to Workshops in Chapter 27 of Where the Action Is. These resources will help you plan, run, and troubleshoot the specific Workshops your team needs.
Definition
Workshops are custom-designed meetings, usually over two hours, than can be used to achieve a myriad of goals.
Questions Answered
- We have lots of questions to answer (and will devote two or more hours to answering them).
Examples
- Project, Program and Product Kickoffs
- Team Chartering
- Design Workshops
- Value Stream Mapping Strategy Workshops
- Team Building Workshop
Purpose
- To focus and complete one or more tasks.
Work Outcomes
- Group formation and identity creation.
- Commitment and clarity on execution.
- One or more tangible results. Real work product comes out of Workshops!
Human Outcomes
- A shared memory and experience; possible bonding.
- Insight into other team members’ perspectives.
- New knowledge.
Related Resources
Meeting School:
Online Education
Learn the meeting skills and systems that deliver results.

Meeting Agenda Templates and Guides
How to Create a Working Team AgreementElise Keith - Teams use this process to gain clarity about how they’ll work together over the next 3 to 6 months. These agreements increase team productivity and alignment by reducing confusion, duplication, delays, and misunderstandings. |
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How to Refresh Your Strategic PlanPaul Axtell - All strategic plans become outdated quickly, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to start over. This relatively short meeting agenda template will help your team identify important changes in your circumstances and knowledge that you can use to refresh your strategy and keep it relevant. |
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How to Run a Kaizen EventDan Prock - A kaizen event, also known as a kaizen blitz or lean event, is a 4-hour to multiple-day working session aimed to remove process “wastes”. Wastes include over-production, over-processing, lost time, defective products, poor service, extra inventory, information gaps, poor ergonomics, and untapped employee abilities... [ more ] |
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How to Run a Project Kickoff MeetingElise Keith - This is the meeting agenda template the team at Lucid Meetings uses to run kickoffs for smaller projects. It covers all the basics, and gets everyone involved to create a strong mutual commitment to the project's success. During this meeting, you'll lead two separate discussions using techniques developed by expert... [ more ] |
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How to Run a Strategic Plan Quarterly Refresh MeetingElise Keith - During this meeting, teams review their strategic progress and establish targets for the next 90 days. Part retrospective, part working session, and part time-out, running a Quarterly Refresh makes sure your organization’s strategy stays present in everyone’s mind, up-to-date with changes in your environment, and... [ more ] |
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How to Run a Value Stream Mapping WorkshopDan Prock - A value stream map makes it easy to visualize the process used to get value to the customer. Functional teams visualize their group’s work and information flow so that everyone is able to see, understand and improve the making of the product or service. The aim is for the work to flow better for customers and get... [ more ] |
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The Complete Toolkit for Strategic Planning with Remote TeamsAnna O'Byrne - A strategic plan is a formal map that explains how your company will execute a chosen strategy. The plan should spell out where an organization is going over the next year or more and how it’s going to get there.Strategic planning with a remote team can present both challenges and opportunities. Although this is... [ more ] |
Lucid Blog Posts
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.
Tricia Harris (2017). After years of practice, global companies should be familiar using technology for distributed teams. However, the equipment they’re using tends to be out of date compared to smaller, more nimble companies.
Dr. Patricia Thompson (2017). In this type of high-stakes meeting, your goal is to manage your emotions, while also helping the participants to manage theirs. In this way, they can improve their objectivity in the moment, reduce the likelihood of being swayed by knee-jerk emotional reactions, and listen more effectively.
Ingrid Bens (2016). When you run an unstructured meeting you constantly have to fight to maintain control. When you have a clear structure, you look organized and in charge. The choice is clear.
Elise Keith (2015). We decided to test out all the online sticky-note, brainstorming, and decision-making tools we could find to figure out just which ones work best for quick collaborative sessions during a meeting.
Elise Keith (2015). I love ♥♥♥ running this meeting. Every time, no matter how small or simple or boring the project, we learn something new in this meeting. People who normally barely pay attention start to offer ideas. Clients volunteer to tackle issues, find funding, and hunt down resources. New opportunities arise, and catastrophes are averted.