According to a recent study,  the best time for a workplace meeting is Tuesday at 3pm.  This is the office diary sweet spot, when more employees are available, motivated and willing to attend a meeting.

Keith Harris from Online Scheduling Service, When is Good, analysed 100,000 responses to 34,000 meeting requests sent by When is Good users.

3pm was the best time, particularly on a Tuesday, while 9am on a Monday morning was the worst time.  This isn’t a surprise given that people tend to rush into work and want to check emails, phone messages and get started on their work, before sitting in on a meeting.

Yet, one surprise finding was that workers are prepared to have lunchtime meetings.

According to Stephen Overell from The Work Foundation, people on the whole tend to be more creative and better at problem solving in the morning while afternoons are better for collaborating and team work.  So an afternoon meeting is the perfect time to meet.  Although, 3pm is a bit late in the day and a 2pm start might be better so that people can act on the information on the meeting straightaway.

While I find these results intriguing, I always try and schedule important meeting mid-morning as I find it hard to concentrate on important information around 3pm (which according to biological research is the time we need an afternoon siesta).  So could it be that employees like workplace meetings at 3pm because they can chill out and recharge their batteries?

Stephen Overell mentioned not to darken the room for a 3pm meeting.  So if you want to organise a company meeting to showcase that new corporate video, better do it in the morning!