Source of truth · cadence and blocks

How to merge ceremonies into blocks and keep the cadence short, honest, and readable

This page is the practical operating view for merging, team sizing, and the weekly rhythm. Use it together with the Ceremonies page.

Back to Ceremonies Jump to blocks

Core team

Ideally 2–4 people

Five or more usually means the block should be split

Weekly rhythm

Front-loaded into early week

Monday and Tuesday carry most live ceremonies; the rest of the week stays open for deep work.

Overlays

14 days + monthly

AI learning and monthly strategy

Merge methodology

When to merge ceremonies

  • •Only merge ceremonies that require the same type of decision.
  • •Pre-read is mandatory for any block that combines more than one ceremony.
  • •If a meeting has no owner, no due date, and no decision, it is a candidate for removal or async handling.
  • •CTO joins only when strategic, architectural, or AI decisions are needed.

When to split

When a block becomes too big

  • •When the meeting turns into a status update for everyone.
  • •When the core team grows beyond 4 people and decision-making slows down.
  • •When the block mixes different decision types that do not share a single flow.
  • •When the block regularly exceeds 45 minutes, it should usually be split.

Core team size

SizeRecommendation
2–3Ideal for decision-making and deep work
4Still fine if a pre-read is prepared
5The point where overhead starts to grow
6+Almost always split into smaller blocks

Blocks

What to merge into shared blocks

Each block merges ceremonies with the same decision type. When possible, place shared blocks on Monday or Tuesday so the back half of the week stays open for deep work.

Incident & Ops Sync

Daily Operations Sync

Block

Same type of situation: blockers, incidents, ambiguity, and operational decisions.

Core team

System Owner

Only people with an active blocker or incident.

Split when

When it turns into a status meeting for everyone.

Priority to Ticket

Business Prioritization → Work Preparation → Weekly Delivery Planning

Block

Same flow: priority → work preparation → commitment.

Core team

Business OwnerSystem Owner

Product Engineer joins Work Preparation, CTO only exceptionally.

Split when

When a long business debate is needed or multiple alternatives are on the table.

Delivery Health

Product Delivery Review → Reliability Review

Block

Same type of evidence: what was delivered and how it behaves in production.

Core team

System OwnerProduct Engineer

System Owner and Product Engineers.

Split when

When incident and root-cause topics become more numerous than usual.

Service Health

Operations Review → Business Systems Review

Block

Same operational layer, viewed through infrastructure and user systems.

Core team

IT Operations OwnerBusiness Systems OwnerSystem Owner

Operations, systems, and ownership together.

Split when

When the issue needs a deeper operational or user-facing dive.

Strategy

Strategic Product Review

Block

One strategic decision block for CEO and CTO.

Core team

CEOCTO + Product Builder

CEO and CTO + Product Builder.

Split when

Never merge with delivery or operations.

AI Learning

AI Engineering Session

Block

Share know-how and improve AI practice across the team.

Core team

Whole IT team

Whole IT team; CTO only when he can bring or gain new know-how.

Split when

Keep it focused on sharing know-how, not status updates.

Change Gate

Release Readiness Review

Block

A control gate before release, not a recurring rhythm.

Core team

System Owner

Release owner and affected roles.

Split when

Keep it separate as an ad hoc release gate.

Weekly cadence

Front-loaded weekly cadence

Live ceremonies are front-loaded onto Monday and Tuesday, so Wednesday, Thursday and Friday are always deep-work days. The AI Engineering Session runs on alternating Mondays at the start of the week.

Monday

Priority to Ticket

The main decision block of the week: Business Prioritization, Work Preparation, and Weekly Delivery Planning. The AI Engineering Session runs here every other week.

Tuesday

Delivery Health + Service Health

Two short health ceremonies; for a small team, 15 + 15 minutes is often enough.

Wednesday

Deep work

No live meetings.

Thursday

Deep work

No live meetings.

Friday

Deep work

Deep work, with async updates at the edges.

14-day overlay

What repeats every other week

  • •Every other Monday: AI Engineering Session, at the start of the week.
  • •Wednesday to Friday stay deep-work days.

Monthly overlay

What repeats once a month

  • •First Tuesday of the month: Strategic Product Review.
  • •CEO and CTO should keep this block separate.
  • •Do not merge it with delivery or operations blocks.

Monthly calendar

Example monthly schedule

A combination of weekly blocks, 14-day overlays, and monthly strategy. In practice, live work is front-loaded; the first Tuesday of the month adds a separate Strategic Product Review for CEO and CTO.

MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFriday
Week 1
Priority to Ticket + AI Engineering Session
Delivery Health + Service Health + Strategic Product Review
Deep work
Deep work
Deep work
Week 2
Priority to Ticket
Delivery Health + Service Health
Deep work
Deep work
Deep work
Week 3
Priority to Ticket + AI Engineering Session
Delivery Health + Service Health
Deep work
Deep work
Deep work
Week 4
Priority to Ticket
Delivery Health + Service Health
Deep work
Deep work
Deep work

Do not merge

What should remain separate

  • •Keep Strategic Product Review separate.
  • •Keep Release Readiness Review as an ad hoc release gate.
  • •Use Daily Operations Sync only for active blockers and incidents.

Practical advice

How to keep the cadence healthy

  • •If a short block follows another, 15 + 15 minutes is often better than one long meeting.
  • •If a recurring meeting does not decide anything, rewrite it or remove it.
  • •If someone is in the meeting without a clear reason, remove them from the core group.
  • •If CTO attends without a decision to make, move them to optional or async pre-read.
  • •Support and incidents deserve their own capacity reserve and do not belong in planning.
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