Remote Planning Poker: a guide to best practices

Around a table, the facilitator sees who is drifting off, who is hesitating, who wants to speak. On a video call, those signals fade: you need a tool that makes the state of the session visible, and more structured facilitation.

• Physical cards are replaced by an online tool that keeps votes secret until the reveal.
• Discussions are harder to manage: everyone talks at once, or nobody does.
• Attention drifts faster, between notifications and other tabs.

A good remote Planning Poker tool must be simple: if half the team has to create an account or install an extension, the session starts fifteen minutes late. The key criteria:

• No sign-up: a link to share, a nickname, and you are off.
• Votes synced in real time, with a simultaneous reveal.
• Several decks (Fibonacci, t-shirt sizes, custom deck).
• The list of stories to estimate, and an export of the results.
• Roles: facilitator, voters and observers.

The Planning Poker was built for exactly this: free, no account, works in any browser, on desktop and mobile.

1. 1Send the invite with two links: the video call and the Planning Poker room.
2. 2Add the stories to the room before the session, with a link to their ticket so everyone can check the details.
3. 3Remind everyone of the reference story and the scale, especially if new members joined the team.
4. 4Plan shorter sessions than in person: 45 minutes at most, with a break if needed.

• Ask people to turn their cameras on if possible: hesitations and reactions are easier to read.
• Share your screen on the current story while presenting it, then let everyone vote in the tool.
• Wait until everyone has voted before revealing. Nudge latecomers without putting them on the spot.
• After the reveal, call on the outliers by name rather than asking “any comments?” into the void.
• Timebox each discussion, for example to five minutes, then vote again.

Remotely, an estimation session can quickly get dull. A few light touches help keep attention without undermining the exercise:

• Celebrate consensus: when everyone plays the same card, it is a small team win.
• Use reactions to respond without interrupting.
• End with a recap of the session: stories estimated, consensus reached, average voting time.

In The Planning Poker, participants can throw emojis at other players, and at the end of the session the facilitator can present a hall of fame that awards titles based on how each person voted.

When part of the team is in the room and the rest is remote, have everyone vote in the online tool, including the people in the room, from their laptop or phone. That way everyone is on an equal footing, and remote votes don’t get overlooked.