Business Meeting Cost Calculator

Benjamin Franklin famously quipped, "time is money," in Advice to a Young Tradesman, Written by an Old One. This principle is especially true in today's world, where workers can do much more in the same span of time than ever before.

Yet, one of the most notorious and pervasive time sucks in the business world is the poorly planned staff meeting, in which little is accomplished and much time is wasted. Group meetings are necessary once in a while, but if they are pointless and/or too frequent, they can cost the company thousands of dollars per year in wasted productivity.

You can use the calculator on the left to estimate how much your company spends per year on meetings. The total cost depends on your employees' rates, the frequency and duration of the meetings, number of participants, and the cost of supplying refreshments. If the figure seems too high, try these tips to get the most of your sessions.

• Create a clear plan of the topics to be discussed and the order in which they are addressed.
• Don't drag out a meeting for more than two hours, after which your attendees minds will wander.
• Make sure everyone who is in the meeting has a reason to be in the meeting. If your focus is on a smaller subset of people, invite just those individuals and let the rest get back to work.
• If you are holding a meeting simply to disseminate information, and you don't anticipate lots of questions or comments, consider sending out a memo instead.
• Schedule meetings after lunch when everyone's hunger is abated. Everyone will be more focused and you won't feel pressure to buy refreshments.

© Had2Know 2010