If your calendar is full of meetings as productive as a corporate meme, it may be time for a review. Your operational rhythm, also known as 'meeting cadence', is a combination of your plans and organic growth over time. Every so often, it's important to take stock and see if all your meetings are fit for purpose and adding value.
There is no cookie-cutter approach you can apply to meeting cadence. Every organisation is different and so much of it depends on your individual culture. But there are some steps you can take to weed out the underperforming meetings and streamline your operations.
1. Take stock. Review your calendar and those of your team members, and make a list of all the meetings that occur. Include in this list the purpose of the meeting, the attendees, and its frequency and duration.
2. Review the situation. Are your meetings empowering you and your team to achieve the strategic objectives? Look for opportunities to remove redundant or duplicate meetings. Prioritise meetings that work towards your strategic objectives. Use what you learn to build a new structure for your operating rhythm.
3. Keep cycling. Use this review as an opportunity to close the loop. Keep reviewing and adjusting your meeting cadence at regular intervals. Your company is constantly evolving, so your operating model needs to as well.
Meetings should generally fall within one of the following frequencies: annually, quarterly, monthly, weekly or daily. If upon review, you find your company is lacking a regular meeting cadence, there are plenty of frameworks available that can be adopted and adapted.
TAKEAWAY: Taking stock and reviewing your operational rhythm is an activity you should be completing regularly. If too many meetings feel like they could have been an email, it is definitely time to adjust your meeting cadence.