Recommendations to make meetings in large companies less painful and more productive
I am Ksenia, a product designer. I worked in a large company and had many meetings. There were days fully occupied with meetings, although I am a designer, not a manager. To avoid suffering in meetings, I formulated recommendations for organizers and participants, which became meeting etiquette.
Meetings are for discussions and finding solutions together. Maybe the issue can be discussed without a meeting — in an email or chat. Or, for example, nothing needs to be discussed, and you can just inform everyone by writing an email with the decision.
If a meeting is needed, formulate the goal. What should happen as a result of the meeting?
Don’t hold a meeting if some decision-makers are missing. Avoid inviting as many people as possible just in case.
Prepare documentation: an article in the Wiki, an issue in YouTrack, or something else. Write the subject and intro in the invitation with the links. Don’t send a meeting with the subject «To Talk» without a description unless you want to make people nervous.
Surely, you work with organized people. They plan their day, so today is already occupied with work, even if their calendar is empty. They also need time to prepare for the meeting.
30 minutes is enough to discuss most issues. If the meeting is longer than 1 hour, for example, a retrospective, schedule a short break. 5 minutes in the middle will be enough.
Take into account the different time zones of all your colleagues, as this ensures that everyone can participate at a convenient time.
At the end of the meeting, summarize the discussion and prepare clear follow-up actions.
Think about whether you are needed at the meeting, and define your goal. If you believe it’s better to skip it, discuss it with the organizer. Do not skip the meeting without telling anyone.
Read the documentation, and if necessary, refresh your memory on something else.
Don’t make other team members wait. If you realize you’re late, let the organizer know.
If you realize you’re useless at the meeting, ask if there are remaining questions for you, and if you may leave. That’s okay.
If you have been invited to the meeting, it means that it is important. You should pay attention to the discussion and not get distracted by other windows on your laptop. If you find it boring and want to distract yourself with your phone, refer back to the previous point.
Don’t invite someone to a meeting at the last minute if you realize they’re needed. They’re busy and not in the loop. It’s not certain they’ll quickly catch up, but you’ll definitely distract them.
If a question comes up, write it down. Usually, most questions are answered during the conversation.
Especially for those who remain silent, as everyone has a different temperament and not everyone dares to ask, it is important to know everyone’s opinion.
Good feedback is clear, specific, and helpful. Avoid criticizing right away, as even helpful criticism can block clear thinking, not to mention hurtful criticism.
Make sure everyone understands the final decision and next steps to avoid delays and misunderstandings.
Write an email to all attendees, summarizing the results and outlining the next steps, including responsibilities. This will help avoid misunderstandings, and meeting participants will be grateful to you.
