I had to schedule a meeting the other day. I knew it was only going to be about 10-15 minutes, but I had to fight the irresistible urge to schedule it for the default 30-minutes that Microsoft provides. This caused me to reflect on how much unnecessary time we spend in “meetings”. It’s not so much that we need to have “meetings” all the time, as it is that we need to get a couple of people together at the same time to make a quick decision that will take only a couple of minutes. It’s the type of thing where you could stop by someone’s office or desk and get the answer, except everyone is in different locations and/or has incredibly busy schedules.
So, going forward, if I think it’s only going to take 10-15 minutes…I’m going to schedule it for 10-15 minutes.
What do you think? Is there an incredible amount of time you feel is wasted on “default length” meetings? What are some of the things you do to keep your meetings brief and effective? Saving Changes...
Elizabeth HarrinDirector| RebelsGuideToPM.comLondon, England, United Kingdom
If it's going to be a quick meeting, we stand up - no point in getting comfy, it just prolongs the meeting for no purpose! The other thing is to make sure that people understand the purpose of the meeting, so you don't waste time scene setting when you convene, and people come prepared. Saving Changes...
Good points. I don't think there is a minimal time for a meeting, only a maximum (do I hear 30minutes!?). Only important thing is like you said, purpose of the meeting, the attendends should know what their role is (why are you there), and PREPARATIONS! (sorry, didn't mean to shout). Saving Changes...
Jennifer:
Stand up meetings product great results; 15 minutes; no more. I've used them over the years; IT staff love them.
Bas; these are informal stand up meetings. The less structure the better focus on issues, resolution, next steps.
Try it! Saving Changes...
Matthew SmithProject Management Consultant| Risk and Project ManagementQueanbeyan, Australia
Great question Jennifer. I often schedule 15 minute meetings. But only when the number of participants is small and the question to be answered, or the issue to be resolved, is familiar to everyone.
Meeting length should be determined by meeting purpose and meeting participant familiarity with the topic. Every meeting is also an opportunity for relationship building, so it should be carefully planned and recorded. You can damage relationships with team members and stakeholders by wasting their time. Saving Changes...
Mitch KraytonPresident| Krayton SeminarsDenver, Co, United States
Unless you work for Microsoft, you don't have to do anything the Microsoft way.
Meetings are called when people need to be all together to quickly resolve some issue(s).
Physical meetings are a nice change of pace from sitting at your desk and they provide an element of social interaction that is healthy.
The most important aspect of any meeting planner is Y are you calling the meeting? Then how many people will be involved. Then what outcome and measure of the outcome will end the meeting.
The more controversial the meeting and the more people involved, the longer the meeting will be. Sometime issues are not resolvable in sound-byte size time slots. You then have to lead the discussion to an agreeable reckoning point, to stop the meeting, assign tasks and follow up meetings until you get to the desired outcome.
Not all meetings need to be in person. Not all meetings need to be in real time. There are online collaboration tools that can move the project quickly to conclusion and that empower the members of the meeting to get results faster.
I fully endorse the idea of to-the-point meetings. There should be a time limit to end the meeting but minimum time should not be capped in any case. Daily Stand-ups are the agile norm these days and a meeting can be as short as 5 minutes. I personally feel no meeting should go over an hour in any case. Saving Changes...
I fully endorse the idea of to-the-point meetings. There should be a time limit to end the meeting but minimum time should not be capped in any case. Daily Stand-ups are the agile norm these days and a meeting can be as short as 5 minutes. I personally feel no meeting should go over an hour in any case. Saving Changes...
I fully endorse the idea of to-the-point meetings. There should be a time limit to end the meeting but minimum time should not be capped in any case. Daily Stand-ups are the agile norm these days and a meeting can be as short as 5 minutes. I personally feel no meeting should go over an hour in any case. Saving Changes...
I fully endorse the idea of to-the-point meetings. There should be a time limit to end the meeting but minimum time should not be capped in any case. Daily Stand-ups are the agile norm these days and a meeting can be as short as 5 minutes. I personally feel no meeting should go over an hour in any case. Saving Changes...
I fully endorse the idea of to-the-point meetings. There should be a time limit to end the meeting but minimum time should not be capped in any case. Daily Stand-ups are the agile norm these days and a meeting can be as short as 5 minutes. I personally feel no meeting should go over an hour in any case. Saving Changes...
