This document discusses how to efficiently manage meetings to avoid wasting time and money. It notes that 47% of working time is spent in meetings, with around 25% of total working time being wasted in unnecessary meetings. Both employees and employers incur costs from inefficient meetings, with an estimated 55 days per year being wasted. It provides tips for meeting organizers, such as only holding meetings when necessary, creating clear agendas, starting and ending on time, focusing on important topics first, summarizing discussions, assigning action items and responsibilities, and circulating minutes. The overall message is that meetings should be managed effectively to avoid waste and achieve goals.

2. Save time and money in managing
meetings efficiently
From Planning to Achieving Goals

3. Waste of time ?
• 47% of working time is spent in
meetings, either group meetings or
one-to-one meetings. In the
estimate of almost everyone, at
least 50% of this time is wasted.
This means that as much as
25% of all working time is lost in
meetings of one kind or another.
• However, meetings are a necessary
business tool for exchanging
information, solving problems, and
reviewing progress.
• They must be managed and they
must be used effectively.
Waste of money ?
• From an employee point of view:
• 220 days p.a. @ 8hrs. x 0.5 = 1,760hrs.;
• 1,760hrs. x 0.5 = 880hrs.;
• 880/8=110 days p.a. are spent in meetings;
• 110 days x 0.5 = 55 days that could be used
for productive work.
• From an employer point of view:
• 55 days p.a. wasted for inefficient work;
• To those costs add the room, the utilities,
the usage of tools (e.g. projector) and the
catering if any;
• Add as well the room space occupied while
others may need it.
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Meetings: waste of time and money?

4. Think twice before setting a
meeting !
• Many meetings turn out, in retrospect, to be
unnecessary. There are other ways to achieve the
same goal. Something you can achieve it by
circulating a memo. You can have a conference
call. You can speak to people individually. You can
even postpone it to another meeting or another time
altogether.
• If a meeting is not necessary, avoid holding it
whenever possible. Ask yourself: “Is it necessary
for me to attend this meeting?” If it is not
necessary for you to attend, don’t go in the first
place.
• If it is not necessary for someone else to attend a
particular meeting, make sure that he knows he
does not have to be there.
If you waste your time, you waste
your reputation !
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Meeting vs. Communication ?

5. 4
IS IT AN IMPORTANT TOPIC ?
Can it be solved
by collaborating
without meeting?
DON’T MEET !
Or
reschedule.
Use other
collaboration
options: Telco,
Mail, Video…
Does it require
everyone to
attend?
Limit attendees
to essential
participants
Does have the
group authority
to act?
Is there still
value?
Can the key
participants and
decision makers
attend?
Is there Pre-work
requested of key
participants?
Add pre-work: do as
much as possible
before; cut down the
meeting
Is there an agenda
with clear goals?
Add agenda and goal:
define clear outcomes and
a process to get them.
Is there enough
time to get the
desired
outcome?
Is there a strong
meeting
facilitator?
Find a driver: someone who
can drive the meeting
towards its goals without
running over attendees.
MEET !
Alter goals or reschedule:
make sure meaningful goals
can be achieved within your
time frame, or reschedule
the meeting !
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
NO
NO
Yes
Yes
Yes
NO
AND /
OR
NO
NO
NO
NO
Yes

6. • If you have determined that the meeting is
necessary:
• Establish a clear purpose for the meeting in
writing a one-paragraph statement. Start with
this sentence: “We are having this meeting to
achieve this specific goal.” Then, write out the
objective of the meeting.
• The write the agenda points.
• A.O.B. may only appear if you distributed the
agenda with short notice. A.O.B will not be
discussed, it will be taken for the follow-up.
• Make out an agenda or a list of everything that has
to be covered in the meeting.
• Next to each item, put the name of the person who
is expected to address that particular issue.
• Distribute the agenda, if possible, at least twenty-
four hours in advance so that each person knows
what she will be expected to contribute.
• This applies to one-on-one meetings with your
boss, with your subordinates, with your customers,
with you suppliers, and whoever else.
Write an agenda
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7. Start and stop on time
• Set a schedule for the beginning of the meeting,
and set a time for the end of the meeting. If the
meeting is going to run from eight until nine, start
it at 8 o’clock sharp and end it at nine o’clock
sharp. The worst types of meetings are the ones
that start at a specific time but have no clearly
determined ending time.
• Don’t wait for the latecomer. Assume the latecomer
is not coming at all and start at the designated time.
It is unfair to punish the people who are on time by
making them wait for the person who gets there
late, if at all.
Do not re-start for latecomers !
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Be Punctual !

8. Cover important items first
• When you draw up the agenda, apply the 80/20
rule. Organize the agenda so that the top 20% of
items are the first items to be discussed. This way,
if you run out of time, you will have covered the
items that represent 80% of the value of the
meeting before the time runs out.
Summarize each conclusion
• When you discuss each item on your meeting
agenda, summarize the discussion and get closure.
Get agreement and completion on each item before
you go on to the next one. Restate what has been
decided upon and agreed to with each item before
you proceed.
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Keep your meeting under your control

9. 8
Manage the meeting efficiently
• No: Prepare the
room and test the
technology (PC,
projector, etc.)
• Yes: Then start! Do
not wait for people
who are late.
Is it time to start
the meeting?
• No: Then park the
current issues and
resolve it outside
the meeting.
• Yes: keep on going.
Are you on
schedule according
to your agenda?
• No: review the
discussion and find
out what decisions
have been taken.
There is no decision
without action!
• Yes: keep record of
it.
Are the next actions
to do following the
meeting?
• No: fix with
attendees: what,
who and deadlines.
• Yes: Make clear that
the meeting is over.
Do not allow the
meeting to drag on
discussing issues
not on the agenda.
Are there specific
individuals
responsible for
each action?

10. Keep notes and circulate minutes
• A key to getting maximum effectiveness from meetings is to keep accurate notes and to circulate the minutes
of the meeting within twenty-four hours, whenever possible. The person who keeps accurate minutes from a
meeting that can be pulled out a week or a month later can resolve a lot of potential misunderstandings.
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11. A meeting without task or decision is
called a conversation.