What is a Coffee Chat? (Plus Benefits and Tips)

About 28% of employees worldwide either work remotely full time or a few days a week. Though remote work benefits both employees and companies, it’s not without its challenges. One such challenge is keeping remote employees engaged. Only 38% of remote and hybrid workers are engaged with their organizations, and only 28% feel a connection to their organization’s mission and purpose. 

So what can you do to increase engagement, especially for the remote and hybrid members of your team?

That’s where coffee chats come in.

Coffee chats build connectivity and encourage collaboration. They provide an avenue for building relationships outside formal meetings or structured work environments. 

So what is a coffee chat, and how can you start leveraging them in your organization? Read on to find out.

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What is a coffee chat? 

A coffee chat (also known as “coffee roulette”) is an informal, conversational meeting between two or more colleagues. It may last anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, and can be set up as a face-to-face or virtual meeting. Coffee chat questions, ranging from ice breakers to career milestone conversations, help provide a bit of structure to these otherwise informal conversations. 

As the participants share a cup of coffee (or any other beverage), their focus isn't on formal agendas or presentations. Instead, the aim is building rapport, open dialogue, and organic connection. Think of coffee chats like a “virtual water cooler,” where spontaneous conversations happen outside of formal meetings.

4 benefits of coffee chats

Coffee chats are a versatile and effective tool for networking, learning and development, onboarding, and building a positive organizational culture. These informal interactions build personal connections and contribute significantly to growth and engagement.

1. Informal networking

Networking results in exchange of ideas, improved professional relationships, and new opportunities for individuals and organizations alike.

Coffee chats offer a more informal and relaxed setting than formal networking events, making it easier for individuals to connect on a personal level and establish meaningful professional relationships. That’s why Harvard Alumni Association has a program called Alumni Coffee Chats, which connects undergraduate students with alumni for informal conversations. In organizational settings, enhanced networking promotes better collaboration and helps build stronger teams.

☕ Best Coffee Chat Questions to Help Employees Network & Learn (With Examples)

2. Learning, development, and mentorship opportunities

Continuous learning and mentorship are crucial for personal and professional growth. They provide insights into different roles, industries, and necessary skills for career progression.

Coffee chats allow for the sharing of knowledge and experiences in a more casual, less intimidating environment.

3. Onboarding and integration

89% of new hires feel strongly integrated into company culture after a positive onboarding experience. By including coffee chats in the onboarding process, you make new employees feel welcomed and supported. They get to connect with their colleagues in a less formal setting, helping them integrate into the team more effectively.

4. Organizational culture building

A strong organizational culture enhances employee engagement, job satisfaction, and overall productivity.

Coffee chats foster a sense of community and belonging among employees, promoting informal communication and collaboration. This can lead to a more inclusive and positive workplace culture.

47% of workers find coffee breaks essential for relaxation and improving concentration, indicating the role such informal interactions play in enhancing workplace culture and employee well-being.

🪓 How to Break Down Silos In Your Organization

How to overcome coffee chat challenges

Here’s how to overcome some common challenges that come with introducing coffee chats in your organization.

Motivation and participation

For employees juggling many responsibilities and projects, a coffee chat may, at first, feel like just another thing to add to their already full calendars. If coffee chats feel optional or impersonal, employees may not prioritize them. On the other hand, feeling obligated to participate can lead to less genuine connections and enthusiasm.

Counter this challenge by:

• Planning coffee chats based on shared hobbies, project interests, or career aspirations.
• Framing coffee chats as valuable opportunities for connection, not mandatory tasks.
• Tracking participation and engagement and then offering incentives or recognition for active participation.

Creating inclusive conversations

Newcomers or introverts might feel uncomfortable initiating conversations with unfamiliar colleagues, struggling with small talk, or maintaining a natural flow of conversation. Dominating individuals or uneven participation can result in one person talking too much, leaving others feeling unheard and disengaged.

To resolve these challenges:

• Introduce fun and low-pressure coffee chat topics to initiate the conversation.
• Provide resources or training on small talk strategies for those who struggle.
• Encourage active listening and equal participation to ensure balanced participation.

Focus and continuity

Without a guiding topic or framework, proper instructions, or expectations, conversations can drift and lose focus. Irregularly held coffee chats or failing to build on connections can lead to a sense of disconnect. Busy schedules can make it difficult to find convenient times for everyone to connect.

Steer the participants in the right direction by:

• Base each coffee chat on a specific topic
• Send out pre-chat discussion guides
• Encourage participants to share insights and action items after a session
• Schedule coffee chats consistently

Demonstrating value

Unmet expectations or lack of tangible benefits can cause loss in motivation. If employees don't see the value in coffee chats, they may not participate. 

Get in front of this challenge and:

• Showcase how previous coffee chats led to positive outcomes
• Measure engagement and participation
• Highlight the benefits of coffee chats
• Ask for suggestions on how to improve coffee chat experiences

Using Coffee Chats by Together for virtual coffee breaks

When employees connect, great things happen. That’s why we’ve released Coffee Chats, a roulette-style employee matching tool that fosters spontaneous interactions and a collaborative workplace. 

Here’s how Coffee Chats enables “water cooler conversations” across your organization: 

1. Build connections & community

• Randomized matches - Coffee Chats matches employees across the organization at your chosen frequency, regardless of department or seniority level (but if you want the algorithm to take those into account, you can do that, too!)
• Informal networking - Coffee Chats opens the door for employees to connect with colleagues that they otherwise may have never met before.
• Coffee chat questions - Coffee Chats automatically populates questions to ask in a coffee chat, with the option to customize topics using AI. 

‍2. Boost employee engagement from "hire to retire"

Coffee Chats’ roulette-style matching tool can be used beyond simple ad-hoc “virtual coffee” connections, like:

• Study buddies - Connect employees with a mutual goal of achieving a specific certification or assessment.
• Onboarding buddies - Expedite the onboarding experiencing by matching new employees with tenured ones.
• Job shadowing - Bring employees together across departments to shadow the experience of others.
• Diversity groups & ERGs - Create focused programs for various groups at your organization, such as women, parents, BIPOC, and more.

3. Go beyond one-off connections

Though Coffee Chats was built for single session connections, the Together mentorship platform offers a suite of products designed for all types of social learning initiatives—including traditional mentorship, peer mentorship, and learning events. Whether members of your team are looking for spontaneous, “virtual coffee chat” type connections, or personalized, ongoing mentor-mentee relationships that focus on both personal and professional growth, Together’s employee development toolkit has you covered.

4 methods for measuring coffee chats success 

If you want your organization’s coffee chat program to succeed, you’ll have to measure its impact.

Being flexible and adaptable is crucial when refining coffee chat initiatives. Here’s why:

• Allows initiatives to align with evolving organizational dynamics and employee preferences.
• Lets you adapt based on feedback and demonstrates responsiveness and a commitment to improving the coffee chat experience.
• Enables customization to suit the unique needs of diverse teams or departments.
• Encourages experimentation and innovation in coffee chat formats and approaches.
• Ensures that initiatives remain engaging and relevant, sustaining participant interest over time.

Tracking progress is key to refinement. Platforms like Coffee Chats do this for you, automatically generating reports on enrolment, participation rates, goal completions, session feedback, and more.

Virtual coffee breaks are powerful tools to foster spontaneous conversations and a more collaborative workplace. And Coffee Chats by Together makes matching, scheduling, and reporting a breeze. Learn more about how Coffee Chats can help you build a more connected workplace by scheduling a demo with us.