37signals works in 6-week cycles, which begin with a Kickoff and wrap up with a Heartbeat. In this week’s REWORK podcast, co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson break down the purpose and benefits of the Kickoff and Heartbeat documents and share tips for implementing this process across an organization.
Key Takeaways
00:40 - When 37signals started using Kickoffs and Heartbeats
02:13 - Details of the Kickoff write-up process
07:34 - How much input Jason and David have in the Kickoff
13:43 - What Kickoffs & Heartbeats look like for departments with ongoing work
17:37 - The Heartbeats as an opportunity to highlight and celebrate the work of individual employees and team
22:50 - The benefits of writing up work summaries for institutional history
Links and Resources
Shape Up
Books by 37signals
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
