Workplace Basics: Meetings
Here are five things to keep in mind when booking a meeting at work
Booking a meeting at work? Here are 5 main things to keep in mind while gathering people on the clock including:
Event Description
Who/attendees
Time
Etiquette
Meeting wrap up
The big thing with a meeting invite is that we want all the details included so that, theoretically, anyone could join and understand right away the purpose of the meeting, when it is happening, what they need to prepare for the meeting, or otherwise have context for the meeting.
Also, especially if you have a hybrid crew or crew in different time zones, take the time to reiterate in writing the date, time, and location of the meeting, whether it be a meeting for your in-studio crew or if you are using zoom, google meet, teams, etc.
Event Description Checklist
Reiterate date and time in event description, don't just leave it to the calendar booking software
Reiterate meeting location (boardroom, zoom, google meet, etc)
Attach or link applicable reference
Animatic
Contact sheet
Client reference/drawover
Network paths
Shotgrid playlist
State the purpose of the meeting (i.e. why are we gathering?)
Meeting title should reflect the purpose of the meeting
Ex, "Line 4 Ep 112 Team Check-in" is preferred over "Animation Meeting"
If applicable, ask attendees to come prepared (ex, having watched an animatic, read a script or document, etc)
Sometimes in Production you’ll hear us lament sarcastically, how expensive a given meeting is. Think about it next time you’re in a multi-departmental meeting. Even a thirty minute meeting with a few supervisors, your Art Director, a few Prod staff, and say, your CG supervisor can be very expensive if you think about a half hour’s worth of wages for everyone.
Therefore, be considerate about who needs to attend a meeting vs. who can be optional, and perhaps it might be a bit of a mix where certain people join halfway through, or be dismissed at a certain point.
Meeting Attendee Checklist
Have you checked the calendars of key attendees to ensure the meeting time works?
Mark people as optional, can elaborate in event description as needed
Ensure the meeting is booked on the correct calendar (ex, if it is on your personal calendar and should be on the Layout calendar, adjust accordingly)
At the start of the meeting, quickly recap why we are here and verbally remind optional folks they can leave
If using Gmail: add individual emails, not aliases (sometimes if you add a group and one person declines, it won't show up for anyone else)
If there are multiple Prod staff attending a meeting, confirm who is taking notes, who is recording, etc
When considering time needed for a meeting, remember that if you only need 10 minutes or 40 minutes, book that exactly so that the time can be used elsewhere. Also be conscientious of booking meetings the first or last hour of every business day. Meetings booked during these times should be especially organized as we want to start the day off right. Conversely, EOD is often when people are focused on deliveries.
Meeting Timing Checklist
Ensure there is a reminder that goes off at 5 minutes before a meeting starts!
Check meeting length - ok to book a 15-20 minute meeting if that is all you need, no need to stick to half-hour increments
Is this meeting booked at a time that works for key parties
i.e. you might have folks in multiple time zones
Does this meeting fall within show or studio guidelines
ex, if your workplace has a No Meeting Wednesdays, you better not be booking a meeting on a Wednesday!
Check - can this meeting be an email instead?
Meeting etiquette includes being present and prepared to present your materials/question succinctly and clearly. Ahead of or at the start of the meeting, remember to establish who is taking notes and where (i.e. google doc, email, shotgrid, etc).
I suggest also that if you are planning on screen sharing, ensure that your chat notifications are set to whatever status will prevent messages from popping up on your screen while you screen share - its distracting and especially if you are screen sharing with an outside party like the client, you don’t want them to see your internal communications.
Meeting Etiquette Checklist
Verbally remind attendees if we are going to record a meeting and note in event description
If you are hosting or leading the meeting, your camera should be on
Greet people as they come in, thank them at the end
IF WITH CLIENT - set your hangout or chat status to do not disturb (or whatever status will prevent chat notification pings happening in the background)
Remind anyone else on your team who might be screen sharing to do the same!
Remind the relevant team that their supervisor might be screen sharing with client, and to please hold messages for the next hour or whatever
IF WITH CLIENT - do a quick check at start of the meeting to ensure artists are muted (to eliminate b/g noise, keep conversation focused, etc)
Once a meeting is over, ensure that next steps or action items are clear for those who attended. This could be via recap or a summary in the notes, or the relevant group chat. Distribute the recording or circulate the notes in a timely manner after, especially if your meeting was a review with artists. For example, if you were doing dailies, you should publish the notes ASAP after dailies wraps so that your artists can address the notes efficiently. If the meeting was a carry over from a conversation happening in an email, ensure you answer that email to close the loop on that topic.
