Why developers hate meetings

Did you know that meetings are a horror for many developers? Sure, they are usually necessary to create structure and solve problems. However, they can also quickly be perceived as a waste of time. So today, we're looking at the reasons why developers typically feel an aversion to meetings.

Product Delivery

Table of Contents

The Maker and Manager calendars

Developers and managers generally approach their work differently.

Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, has coined two terms to illustrate the differences:

The maker calendar: Most developers work in long, uninterrupted blocks of time in which they concentrate and focus in order to manage their workload.
The typical manager's calendar, on the other hand, is full of meetings and different tasks.

‍

Meetings as a waste of time

Long uninterrupted blocks of work allow developers to maximize their productivity with a strong focus. However, meetings often interrupt these deep work phases and thus interfere with their work.

Astudyeven found that after interrupting a deep work phase, people need around 25 minutes to regain their focus. This means that a 30-minute meeting is more likely to turn into 55 minutes of lost focus.

In a typical manager's calendar, on the other hand, a small 30-minute meeting is no problem and fits naturally into the fragmented calendar.

That's why developers often see meetings as a waste of time.

Solution approaches: How to accommodate developers

Fortunately, there are solutions to the problem. We find the following three strategies to be the most effective:

Minimize the duration and frequency of meetings. Only schedule them when absolutely necessary and keep them as short as possible
Agree on alternative communication channels. Many coordination processes can be asynchronous and do not require a meeting.
Involve the developers when scheduling and organizing meetings. This way, they will fit better into their maker calendar. You will see how the meeting culture in the team relaxes over time and becomes less stressful for the developers.

The most important facts in brief

Developers hate meetings because they impair their concentration and productivity.
Interruptions to deep work phases cost you 25 minutes in addition to the meeting time.
Solutions: Minimize the duration and frequency of meetings and involve developers in the planning and timing of meetings.

‍