Have internal meetings on fixed days

I was recently invited to do a course on structure with the business software developers Kalin Setterberg Data in Stockholm. They have taken a new grip on how they handle their meetings which I want to share with you today — with their permission, of course.

Instead of scheduling meetings here and there, wherever there is time in the calendar, they have all their internal meetings on Thursdays and every other Friday, which are therefore their designated internal meeting-days.

In between these days they can focus wholeheartedly on getting things done, have whatever external meetings with suppliers, clients, etc they need to have and do whatever else their respective jobs entail. But, if two colleagues need to sit down and have a meeting about something, it happens on a Thursday or every other Friday.

For you who prefer listening to reading, this post is also available as an episode of the “Done!” podcast:

At least three positive effects

So what is the result or effect of this approach? Well, my contact at Kalin Setterberg Data Josefin told me that, amongst other things,:

It has become easier to schedule meetings since the participants are, to a greater extent than before, available since they already know on beforehand not to schedule any external meetings during these days.
Meetings seldom get rescheduled or postponed since nothing ever ”suddenly comes up” that has to be attended to when the participants know that these days are set aside for these meetings alone.
The need for having small and spontaneous ”mini-meetings” between the actual meeting-days decreases since you know you will have plenty of time to meet and talk things out during the meeting-days, which in turn makes it easier to work with more concentration on other days.

Do this

If you think your office or organization should adopt some of Kalin Setterberg Data’s ways, then:

Think for a minute or two about what internal meetings you could schedule on the same one or two days every week. Make a list, why don’t you!
Suggest to your colleagues during the next, appropriate internal meeting (!) that you try it out, for instance, during the next quarter. If they agree, discuss:
- How many days do you need to set aside every week? Perhaps you do not need two full days, but one will be enough. Or, do you have so many meetings and at such frequent intervals that you even need three whole days?
- How often do you need to reserve days for internal meetings? More often than every other week? Or not even that often? The most important part is that you clearly designate fixed days so that everyone can ”block” these in their calendars.
Try it out, evaluate (probably during a Friday designated for this very kind of meeting!), and determine if it is worth keeping as a practice.

Less effort, more focus

The seemingly simple structure-related take Kalin Setterberg Data has taken on meetings could potentially help loads of the people I talk to in a variety of organizations and companies with what often frustrates them: meetings. Internal meetings will be scheduled and held with less hassle and hesitation (since it will become much easier to find a time when everybody is free), the meetings are not postponed, and focusing on getting other tasks done in between meetings becomes easier as well. It is quite an excellent idea, wouldn’t you say?

What’s your way?

Have you done something similar at your office? Share! Most of us can probably use a tip or two on how to better handle our meetings.

(Do you know this cure for unfocused meetings?)

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