A weekly review can become a sequence of updates that everyone could have read. A stronger review uses a short written update as the starting point and reserves discussion for the parts that need the group.
Start from the last commitments.
Open the previous action list before creating a new one. For each commitment, record the delivered result, a revised date with a reason, or a decision to stop the work. “In progress” is not enough context to decide whether help is needed.
Distinguish movement from activity.
Ask what changed for the project or customer, not how busy someone was. Use a short update with three fields: result, obstacle, decision needed.
| Activity update | Decision-ready update |
|---|---|
| “We worked on onboarding.” | “The first flow is ready to review; we need a decision on which identity fields are required.” |
| “We are waiting on security.” | “The review is due Friday. If it slips, the pilot date moves; the lead needs to confirm a fallback.” |
Timebox the agenda around unresolved work.
A practical starting agenda is five minutes on previous commitments, ten on changes, ten on blockers and decisions, and five on the next commitments. Adjust the timing to your team; it is an agenda design, not a target to defend.
- Move detailed problem-solving to a smaller follow-up if the whole group is not needed.
- Write a decision question before debating it.
- Give each unresolved blocker an owner and a next check date.
End with a short readback.
Read the new decisions and commitments aloud. Let people correct owners, dates and deliverables while everyone is present. Send a concise record that leads with changes and decisions, with background available below.
MAKE IT YOURS
Your editable template.
Replace the bracketed prompts, remove what you do not need, and save a version for your team.
WEEKLY REVIEW Team / project: [Name] Week ending: [Date] Meeting owner: [Name] Shared update location: [Link] PREVIOUS COMMITMENTS Commitment: [Deliverable] Owner / original date: [Details] Result: [Completed evidence / revised date / stopped] Reason or decision needed: [Details] WHAT CHANGED Result since last review: [Observable change] Impact on outcome / date / scope: [Details] What others need to know: [Short update] BLOCKER OR DECISION Question: [Specific decision required] Options and trade-off: [Brief comparison] Decision owner: [Name] Decision / next step: [Record] Owner and next check date: [Details] NEXT WEEK Commitment: [Specific deliverable] Owner: [Confirmed name] Due date: [Date] Dependency: [If any] Evidence of completion: [What we will inspect] CLOSE Decisions read back: [List] Actions read back: [List] Items moved to a smaller follow-up: [Topic / people / date] Next review: [Date] Prepared with the MeetriX resource library. Adapt to your organisation. https://meetrix2.lisan.com/resources/weekly-review/
