Andy Erickson
Get them talking How do you get people to participate in your start of shift huddle? What’s the trick to getting people involved?
Keep them talking What’s the purpose of our start of shift meetings?  Why do we do them? What are you looking for when you meet your crew in the moring? How do you handle it if someone on your team “zones out” during the meeting? Do you do all the talking at your toolbox meeting or do you get others involved?  Why? It can be difficult to read announcements or bulletins aloud to your crew and still make it interesting.  How do you do it? Who has the most effective toolbox talks?  What do they do differently?
Points to consider The way we run our morning toolbox meeting sets the tone for our crew.  If we just go through the motions, they’re going to work the same way. Preparation is vital.  Set aside time at the end of each day to jot down ideas for what you’ll discuss in the morning.  Arrive early and show up with a solid plan. Shake hands and greet people before the meeting starts.   Ask how their night or weekend went.  Get people laughing – not too much, but enough so folks wake up and smile a bit. Always start on time.  Speak loudly and make sure people are on their feet.  If you take the meeting seriously, they will too. Make it your goal to get every single person to say something during the meeting!  Ask questions and call on folks by name.  “What went well yesterday”, “who had someone help them out yesterday”, “what are we going to look out for today”, etc. Avoid reading aloud to your crew – it puts people to sleep!  If you have to read an announcement, pause frequently to ask people questions or add your own words.
Learn more How to run a morning huddle. A 7-minute daily huddle. Video: Tips for a Great Huddle Meeting