Traumatized by meeting fatigue but always happy to see each other and discuss together, at Médianes, we organize weekly exchange sessions via videoconference and/or in person, and we keep time free of meetings, open work slots, like a desert island.
Why is this topic key? Simply because it allows us to keep time for working and focusing on ongoing projects without meetings, but also to preserve time for exchanging with each other and for handling urgent matters.
The Médianes team, as of July 2023, consists of 10 people, combining media and studio operations. 10 people across five different cities and sometimes spanning two time zones. The challenge of scheduling time together, whether in person or remotely, is therefore key.
We test many things when it comes to protecting everyone's work time, but we're the first to make mistakes and not always follow these principles to the letter. Have an idea for improvement? A different way of doing things? Let us know!
1) "It could have been an email"
So before organizing a meeting, always ask yourself whether the meeting you're planning is necessary. Often, a written exchange is the best solution. Writing allows you to have clarity on the questions and points that need to be decided.
Always document your assessment in writing of what you'll need to discuss. Your counterpart will be all the more inclined to hold this meeting with you.
⟶ At Médianes, each use case has its own tool. To avoid certain meetings, we communicate in writing or via voice notes through our daily work tool (Slack), we send emails or exchange comments through your mail client (Spark).
2) "It would be good if you were in the meeting"
Really? Most of the time, we tend to invite more people than necessary to a meeting. People who could have been satisfied with a meeting summary instead, for example. Invite only those who need to be there and explain to them why.
Invite only those who are needed and keep track of your exchanges. Before inviting everyone, ask yourself who is really necessary for the meeting to succeed, or who might only need part of the information: for example, someone might only be needed at the start of the meeting, when information requires the full project team.
Did you miss a meeting or going to miss one? Want to know what was discussed at the last meeting? Ask for it to be recorded on video and request a summary to be sent to you.
⟶ At Médianes, all meeting notes are accessible to the relevant teams daily and automatically (Notion), while respecting project confidentiality and maintaining a clear separation between our studio and media activities through a logic of separate spaces. And our meetings are recorded in video via a dedicated tool (tl;dv).
3)
There's nothing worse than joining a meeting "on principle." A meeting should serve a specific purpose: unblock an issue, brainstorm ideas together, quickly review ongoing and upcoming topics, share knowledge, launch a project, etc.
Each meeting must follow a specific agenda. As the organizer, you are responsible for it. The earlier you can send your agenda in advance, the better. In any case, be sure to create/share it at the start of the meeting.
⟶ At Médianes, our agendas are created directly in Notion and follow an organization around two types of action:
4)
If a meeting cannot exist without an agenda, it cannot exist without meeting minutes, otherwise what's the point? At the start of the meeting, someone must be designated to take notes and prepare the minutes. This person can be the meeting organizer.
The agenda forms the basis of your meeting minutes. The minutes must address/cover the items defined in the
⟶ At Médianes, the meeting notes must be readable for people who didn't attend the meeting and must be shared in the dedicated Slack channel (or by email if the project involves people outside the team). Don't hesitate to mention directly the people who need to review it or take action accordingly.
If the meeting is part of a particular project/mission, the minutes must be added to the project tracking in our shared task list. This way, for each project/client, the relevant people can access the latest update.
5) "I spent my whole day in meetings"
It happens, but it shouldn't. To avoid spending your entire week in meetings, having your brain explode from talking through screens, and ending up without time to actually do the project, meeting time needs to be limited.
Respecting time is key. For your focus, creativity, and well-being alike. Rather than spending 30 minutes rehashing a topic without making progress, we would all collectively benefit from spending that time elsewhere. To work or to enjoy a terrace earlier. So you need to learn to say no to meetings: this can be done through a written message, a voice note, or by rescheduling to the following week.
- Your time is as valuable as that of the person you're meeting with. Arriving late to a meeting signals to them that your time matters more than theirs. Running late? Let them know and be sure to apologize. Going to run significantly over time? Suggest rescheduling.
- To avoid spending too much time, sticking to the agenda is key. A new topic comes up that isn't on the agenda? It will be addressed under another item.
- Do you feel like you're getting bogged down in a subject? Going in circles? Speak up and suggest that a decision be made or that time outside the meeting be dedicated to this particular topic. As the meeting organizer, you're also responsible for keeping it on track.
- Need focused time internally to work through a topic? Block off the necessary time on your calendar! That way, there's no risk of being interrupted by a meeting or finding yourself buried under a pile of tasks afterward.
⟶ At Médianes, all calendars are shared via Google Calendar. Meetings, unavailability, travel, focus time/solo projects, potential appointments: everything is indicated. A commitment to transparency that allows everyone to save time.
When scheduling a meeting, be sure to check the available time allocated to the project in the studio: each day represents a unit of time, and it would be a shame to burn through the available time too quickly! On the media side? It's time that could otherwise be spent on fieldwork, conducting interviews, editing articles…
6) "Shall we take stock?"
Yes, but it depends on the subject! Some subjects require daily, weekly, or monthly check-ins. Most can be handled in writing. When direct exchange is necessary, we recommend setting specific, limited time slots.
⟶ At Médianes, we try to organize our schedule in half-day blocks: all meetings and check-ins should be scheduled within a single half-day as much as possible, so we can free up the rest of the day from meetings. We also try as much as possible not to schedule meetings in the morning (and yes, we did say « try »).
If the calendar is already full, it can wait until the following week. Need to fit it in quickly? Let's discuss it and see where we can add an extra time slot and/or reschedule an existing appointment.
7) "Should I send you an invite for Friday at 6pm?"
No. Simply no.
When should meetings be held?
Throughout the year, set aside full or half days for meetings, and be sure to keep some time free of meetings.
⟶ At Médianes, our weekly and monthly meetings are scheduled based on the topics at hand, and time slots are reserved to ensure there are periods without meetings.
Some people are morning people, while others are night owls. Depending on who you’re dealing with, you may want to prioritize certain times. But generally speaking, it’s best to avoid meetings before 9:30 a.m. and after 5:00 p.m., and to schedule meetings in the afternoon.
How long should the meeting be?
Tailor the duration of your meeting to its objective, and create agenda templates based on the type of meeting (follow-up, workshop, etc.).
- A follow-up appointment can last less than 15 minutes and up to 30 minutes. Does it take less time than that? That's great!
- Need to cover a lot of topics? 45 minutes is the ideal length for a meeting: it gives your conversation partner a chance to take a break and clear their head before their next appointment.
- Need to organize a workshop? It should take about 1 to 1.5 hours (note that for in-person sessions, this duration may vary).
- Is the meeting running over? Always set aside some time (15 to 5 minutes) before the end of the meeting to let everyone know how much time is left.
"According to Forbes, CBS, HBR, and the rest of the world, the ideal meeting length is 30 minutes, and 'if there’s no agenda, there’s no meeting.' Shopify, for its part, has cut 322,000 hours of meetings. ” — Great advice to find in the Mona newsletter from My Little Paris.
What tools? What nomenclature?
Be sure to choose the tools that are best suited to your specific uses and needs, and always use the same terminology.
⟶ Chez Médianes, une fois la réunion validée (accord par Slack), la personne chargée d’organiser la réunion regarde via notre outil d’agenda partagé (Google Agenda/Cron) quelles sont ses disponibilités. Elle s’assure ensuite de sécuriser un ou des créneaux dans l’agenda, avant de transmettre une invitation via Google Meet si c’est une visioconférence.
The Cron calendar software also offers very useful reminder features to help you avoid being late for meetings or letting them run too long.
When it comes to naming conventions, we make sure to always follow the same format: the meeting title begins with the project name, followed by a dash and the purpose of the meeting. For example: “Médianes — Project Update” or “Politico x Médianes — Progress Update.” If it’s an in-person meeting, we include the venue address and factor in the necessary travel time before and after.
To keep a reliable record of our discussions and allow everyone to follow along with the meeting in case they are absent, we record our discussions using video software (tl;dv).
Cron, Spark, Slack, tl;dv… To learn more about our internal tools, check out our dedicated article.
8) “I need to schedule a meeting. What exactly do I need to do?”
It's not enough just to avoid meetings. Sometimes you have to organize them, and that's perfectly fine. Here are a few tips on how to do it.
10 Tips at a Glance
- Before scheduling a discussion, define the objective, the participants, and the time required: Is it a discussion on a specific topic with your manager or a colleague (15–30 minutes), or a workshop or brainstorming session with the entire team (45 min/1 hr/1 hr 30 min)? Would an email be more effective? It’s up to you to decide.
- To get a quick response, check the person's calendar—either through Spark or directly in Google Calendar.
- Does that person seem available? Send them a quick message (on Slack) to suggest setting up a time slot. You never know—maybe a train trip hasn't been added to their calendar yet.
- Next, create an event in a shared calendar tool (Google Calendar). Will it be in person, by phone, or via video call? Be sure to specify! Then choose the video conferencing tool. At Médianes, the whole team uses Google Meet, but if needed, we can also meet on Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Also, include “tl;dv” in your invitation to suggest recording the conversation.
- Create an agenda (Notion) and share it with the relevant people (Slack). There may already be a template available for the meeting.
- Before the meeting, share the meeting objectives with your classmates. You are responsible for ensuring the meeting runs smoothly (timing, topics covered).
- During the meeting, take notes on the dedicated note (Notion): the agenda is automatically converted into meeting minutes.
- At the end of the meeting, create a list of tasks and the actions to be taken (who/when).
- After the meeting, share your minutes with the relevant people (via Slack or email), and add them to the project tracking sheet (Notion) if necessary.
- Next, make sure the meeting's conclusions are properly followed up on!
To go further
- If you're interested in organizational and management topics, you can sign up to receive our behind-the-scenes newsletter for free every month.
- Find out about the tools we use, our work practices, and how we’re organized throughout the year at Médianes.
