Calculate the true cost of meetings based on attendees and their time value. Make informed decisions about meeting necessity and duration.
Meetings are one of the most significant hidden costs in business operations. When you calculate the combined hourly rates of all attendees multiplied by meeting duration, the true expense becomes clear. A one-hour meeting with 10 people earning an average of $50/hour costs your organization $500 in labor alone, not including opportunity costs or lost productivity.
Formula: (Sum of all hourly rates) × (Meeting duration in hours)
Example: 5 people at $40/hr for 1.5 hours = (5 × $40) × 1.5 = $300
Formula: Total meeting cost ÷ Duration in minutes
Understanding cost per minute helps evaluate whether extending meetings is worthwhile.
Note: These are approximate ranges and vary significantly by industry, location, and company size. Use actual salaries divided by 2,080 (annual work hours) for accurate calculations.
Invite only people who need to contribute or make decisions. Optional attendees can receive meeting notes instead. Each unnecessary attendee multiplies the cost without adding value.
Schedule meetings for the minimum necessary time. Consider 25 or 50-minute meetings instead of 30 or 60 minutes to allow buffer time between meetings and maintain focus.
Distribute a detailed agenda beforehand with specific topics, time allocations, and expected outcomes. This keeps discussions focused and prevents scope creep during the meeting.
Respect everyone's time by starting promptly and ending as scheduled. Late starts and overruns multiply costs and disrupt other commitments, reducing overall productivity.
Meetings interrupt deep work, and it takes an average of 23 minutes to fully regain focus after an interruption. A 30-minute meeting can cost an hour or more of productive time per attendee.
Attendees often spend time preparing materials, reviewing documents, or gathering information before meetings. This prep time should be factored into the true cost of the meeting.
Post-meeting tasks like writing notes, sending summaries, and implementing decisions add to the total time investment. Effective meetings should minimize unnecessary follow-up work.
Time spent in meetings is time not spent on other valuable work. Consider what each attendee could accomplish with that time if the meeting were eliminated or shortened.