Publications
Partners
Here's a handy guide:
When to arrive
Do show up early. The sooner people are able to start, the sooner you can dive in and get back to work.
Unless there’s an emergency of some sort (in which case you should always do your best to let at least someone know), try and slip into the meeting as quickly and quietly as possible.
If you need to leave early for another meeting
There are times when it’s unavoidable and you find that you have to attend back-to-back meetings. But what do you do? Should you rather leave your first meeting early in order to be on time for the second meeting, or do you wait for the meeting to end and arrive a little late at the next one?
A quick poll was conducted in our office and everyone voted that it’s better to leave the first meeting a little earlier in order to be on time for the second. But do let everyone in the first meeting know that you’ll be leaving early from the get-go.
Read more: 5 careers that don't need necessarily require maths
When arranging a meeting
By the same token, if you’re the one setting up the meeting, always try to make sure you select a time that suits everyone. Back-to-back meetings can’t always be avoided, but you can ensure that you’re not meeting at a time when everyone is out of the office.
According to Andrew Jensen.net, Mondays and Fridays are never good days to arrange large meetings, simply because on Mondays people are still in post-weekend mode and on Fridays people have already checked out.
Apparently early morning meetings should also be avoided, but I don’t agree with this, as I find my brain, and therefore concentration and productivity levels, a lot better in the morning than in the afternoon.
Don’t go over time
Meeting rooms aren’t available for the entire day (unless you’ve booked it), so bear in mind that there could be another group waiting for the room.
Going five minutes over time is acceptable, but the moment you see other people loitering outside, that should be your cue to wrap it up - stat!
Can you drink coffee/water or eat?
Well, personally, I think this depends on three things: your company’s corporate policy, the length and tone of the meeting or whether you have a medical condition that requires you to eat/drink something at certain times (this article where a reader with low blood sugar asks this question is a perfect example of this).
Read more: SA employees care more about good coffee than their own safety
If it’s a meeting that’s set to last for a good number of hours, from what I’ve observed, the chances are usually good that lunch will be provided. If all else fails, I think the protocol to follow here is to follow by example.
And, of course, if the person who set up the meeting brought some doughnuts and is passing it around, then it’s perfectly okay to eat them.
Do you have any strict policies when it comes to office meetings? Tell us about them.
