The use of charrettes is not necessarily limited to public workshops. Charrettes can be very effective processes for project sponsors when working “in-house” to develop a project vision before going public, or in testing concepts after a first project public meeting. Whether held publicly or in-house, a charrette requires careful preparation. The core management team should hold a half-day planning session to design the charrette. At minimum, this meeting should produce a charrette product list, a stakeholder analysis of the people who should attend, and a charrette ready plan listing the information that must be gathered and the research that must be conducted prior to holding the charrette. Because the scope of work and number of stakeholders is usually smaller, in-house charrettes are often shorter that public charrettes, lasting one and a half to three days.

Following is an excerpt from The Charrette Handbook describing an in-house workshop for a developer that takes place before a charrette and after a public kick-off meeting.

In the in-house charrette, the urban designers and planners, along with other members of the project management team, lead the process. The workshop requires intense involvement from the developer’s staff. These are the people whom the developer turns to for advice regarding project design, market, and economic and engineering feasibility. The developer’s staff opens the meeting with a summary of the performance requirements for the project and how it fits into their business or policy strategy. The project management team then leads the workshop by brainstorming a variety of conceptual approaches to the project. The team creates a series of conceptual approaches that are reviewed in a pin-up style meeting. The project management team considers the project mission, vision, objectives, strategies and measures, and all other previously agreed upon and given constraints for the project. The pin-up is an opportunity for all parties to be educated about alternative approaches to the plan. Through these exercises, all members of the project management team learn the design, market, economic, and engineering impacts and realities of the project. The developer leaves the workshop assured that the project management team understands the organization’s project goals. The project management team leaves with a greater understanding of the range of options and intricate project dynamics. Everyone is better prepared to enter the charrette with an understanding that will allow them to work efficiently and effectively.