Make Every Meeting Count
Too many meetings and ineffective meetings are highly wasteful. If a meeting is necessary, make sure it’s worth everyone’s time. Here’s how both attendees and organisers can ensure meetings are effective and productive.
For Attendees
Should You Even Be There?
The best meetings are the ones we don’t need to have! Before accepting an invite, ask yourself:
- Does it have to be a meeting? Can the same outcome be achieved via an email, a shared document, or an async discussion?
- Do I need to be there? Understand your role in the meeting and why your presence is necessary.
What to Expect When You Attend
- A clear purpose, an agenda, and a desired outcome.
- An understanding of why you need to be there.
- The right to challenge if the above expectations aren’t met.
How to Show Up Effectively
- Be on time, visible*, present, and engaged.
- If you realise during the meeting that you don’t need to be there, politely excuse yourself – it’s not rude, it’s efficient.
- When committing to actions, use commitment language: “I’ll do X by this time.”
- If can’t make it and you decline, explain why.
*cameras on unless a large team meeting like a town hall
For Organisers
Should It Even Be a Meeting?
Before scheduling, consider:
- Is this truly necessary? Can the same outcome be achieved via an email, a shared document, or an async discussion?
- Do you have a clear purpose? If not, don’t book it.
- Can you meet the further guidance below? If not, rethink your approach.
Expect attendees to challenge if your meeting lacks clarity.
Get the Right People in the Room
- Don’t invite people just because you’re unsure if they need to be there.
- If decisions need to be made, fewer attendees are better.
- Don’t invite people just for awareness – share the output instead.
Set the Right Duration
- Can it be 30 minutes? 15 minutes? Avoid defaulting to an hour.
- Adjust your calendar settings for shorter meetings by default (Outlook/Gmail has options for this).
Choose the Right Time
- Consider attendees’ working patterns.
- Avoid disrupting deep work (engineers, designers). Best times are often after stand-ups or after lunch.
Facilitate Effectively
- Keep the meeting focused and ensure it meets its objective.
- Be inclusive – don’t let the loudest voices dominate.
- Pre-reads: Send any information you want to go over well before the meeting, don’t waste people’s time trying to read something as a group for the first time
- Be quorate or cancel if key people don’t turn up – don’t waste people’s time if you’ll end up needing to have the meeting again.
Summarise and Track Actions
The organiser is accountable for:
- Sending a summary with key decisions, actions, owners, and deadlines.
- Tracking and following up on agreed actions.
Additional Tips
Recurring Meetings
- Use meeting notes to track progress.
- All actions should have owners and dates
- Make sure tracking actions is part of the agenda
- Regularly review the cadence – is the meeting still needed? Do the right people attend?
For more, check out: Avoiding Bad Meetings and What to Do When You’re in One.