[bgruber]

Re: daily standups. A lot of what the OP criticizes standups for is what I like about them. The content is only half of it. In my experience, it can be very easy for a team to cease feeling like one and instead become a loosely-coupled collection of independent contractors. 15-20 minutes a day of forced synchronous communication goes a long way to making you feel like you're actually on a team and therefore act like it, and is well worth the minimal time. This is especially true if the team isn't all in the same physical space. It can be disruptive, so scheduling it at the right time is important.

Of course, if you already have meeting overload, standup is going to feel like the worst.

[therealdrag0]

I also like it when after the standup updates, most of us stick around and shoot the shit for 10 minutes. Good way to build camaraderie.