Who scheduled that Friday afternoon meeting?

By: Vincent Scaramuzzo, President, Ed-Exec, Inc.

I rarely schedule a new Client call on a Friday afternoon.  Historically, the odds of us getting their search are dramatically low.  Why?  Maybe I am not my best at the end of the week.  Perhaps, our discussion gets forgotten over the weekend. Without question it is more difficult for all parties to be “in the moment”.  Finally, momentum gets lost.  A great new client call is often followed up with a signed search agreement and follow-up discussions to build a profile of the desired candidate.  However, these typically don’t happen on a Saturday (nor do I want them to) and it can be very challenging to re-start the momentum of that call on a Monday morning.

I believe the same applies to Friday afternoon meetings.  Who schedules these things any way?  It is common belief these folks are soul thieves, maybe trying to impress the boss, have no personal life, or are just not nice.  Perhaps all of the above.  It is one of the most demoralizing things for a team to be dragged into a conference call or meeting room on a Friday afternoon – especially in the summer.  Furthermore it is just not productive.

Employees are trying to wrap up their week so things are tidy and reset for Monday morning.  A meeting just delays that thus slowing the start to another productive week. As far as team moral its just a dark cloud that makes employees dislike who and where they work for.  They are human just like you and want to get in weekend mode.  Make plans with the family, likely cut out a little early for happy hour or dinner.  Nothing is worse than receiving a picture of your buddy on the golf course while you are stuck in a meeting room.

My advice.  Don’t be a soul killer by scheduling a Friday afternoon meeting.  Unless the sky is falling, no meeting should ever occur on a Friday afternoon.

Vincent Scaramuzzo is the President of Ed-Exec, Inc. A leading Education Executive Search Firm.  He has also been a contributing author to various education publications. As a specialist in the education field for over a decade, Scaramuzzo works nationally with Education Institutions, PK-12, and Educational Service Providers Nationwide.  He can be contacted at vincent@ed-exec.com 860-781-7641.