Ten polls, ready to ask.

All-hands

The whole company in one room or one call. Ask the mood first, the hard question in the middle, and take questions last.

6 questions.

[emoji] How are you arriving today?
- 😀
- 🙂
- 😐
- 😕
- 😫

[rating] How clear is where the company is heading, 0 to 10?

[choice] Which of these should we talk about more?
- Strategy
- Customers
- Money
- People and hiring
- Product

[word cloud] One word for the last quarter

[text] What should we stop doing?

[q&a] What do you want to ask the leadership team?

Sprint retro

The same questions every sprint, so the answers can be compared. Track the first one and watch the line move.

7 questions.

[rating] How did this sprint feel, 1 to 5?

[word cloud] One word for this sprint

[choice] Was the sprint goal clear?
- Yes, from day one
- Mostly
- Not really

[text] What went well?

[text] What slowed us down?

[ranking] Rank what to fix first
- Unclear tickets
- Too many meetings
- Slow reviews
- Changing priorities

[text] One thing to try next sprint

Weekly check-in

Four taps on a Friday, answered in their own time. Send it every week with the same wording.

4 questions.

[emoji] How was your week?
- 😀
- 🙂
- 😐
- 😕
- 😫

[rating] How manageable was your workload, 0 to 10?

[yes or no] Did you get the help you needed this week?

[text] Is anything getting in your way?

Project kickoff

Before the plan is fixed. Finds the worry nobody wants to be first to say.

6 questions.

[rating] How clear is the goal of this project, 0 to 10?

[choice] What worries you most?
- Time
- Scope
- People
- Money
- The unknowns

[ranking] Rank what matters most
- On time
- On budget
- Quality
- A happy client

[text] What is the one risk nobody has said out loud?

[yes or no] Do you know what you are doing first?

[q&a] Questions before we start

Training check

In the last five minutes of a session, before people leave the room. Change the options to your own sections.

5 questions.

[rating] How confident are you using this, 0 to 10?

[choice] Which part needs another pass?
- The first part
- The middle
- The last part
- None, it is all clear

[yes or no] Was the pace right?

[text] What is still unclear?

[word cloud] One word for today’s session

Client review

Sent to a client team after a milestone. Nobody is put on the spot in front of their own colleagues.

5 questions.

[rating] How well are we delivering what you expected, 0 to 10?

[choice] How is our communication?
- Too much
- About right
- Too little

[text] What should we do more of?

[text] What should we stop doing?

[rating] How likely are you to recommend us, 0 to 10?

Decide without a meeting

A choice that needs everyone’s view and nobody’s calendar. Rename the options, set a closing time, send.

4 questions.

[choice] Which option should we go with?
- Option A
- Option B
- Option C
- None of these

[rating] How strongly do you feel about it, 0 to 10?

[text] What would change your mind?

[yes or no] Do we need a meeting about this?

Stop, start, keep

Three typed questions and one honest number. Hold typed answers for approval if the room is large.

4 questions.

[text] What should we stop doing?

[text] What should we start doing?

[text] What should we keep doing?

[rating] How sure are you that we will act on this, 0 to 10?

Is this meeting working?

The last two minutes of any meeting that repeats. Ask it once a quarter and do what it says.

4 questions.

[yes or no] Was this meeting worth your time?

[choice] This meeting should be
- Shorter
- Less often
- Left as it is
- Replaced by a poll

[rating] How heard did you feel today, 0 to 10?

[text] What one thing would make this meeting better?

Offsite warm-up

To get every phone out and every thumb moving before the real questions. Swap in your own arguments.

6 questions.

[emoji] How awake are you?
- 😴
- 🥱
- 🙂
- 😃
- 🚀

[choice] Coffee, tea or neither?
- Coffee
- Tea
- Neither
- Both, at once

[yes or no] Is a hot dog a sandwich?

[ranking] Rank these lunches
- Tacos
- Pizza
- Sushi
- Salad

[word cloud] One word for your weekend

[text] What is the best thing you have watched lately?