It is common to hear this comment from the organizers in any virtual session. This is a negative tactic because delaying the start of a meeting has a negative impact on the time dedicated to business activities, rewards tardiness, and penalizes punctuality.
Here’s why we should begin promptly:
**Time is valuable**: If 50 colleagues wait 3 minutes in a session, we lose 150 minutes of productive time. Multiply this across thousands (or millions?) of daily virtual sessions happening in all companies around the globe, and we’re wasting significant working hours!
**Professionalism matters**: Important events like Global Town Halls start on time. Our functional events deserve the same respect.
**Alternatives exist**: Many sessions offer multiple attendance options or are recorded, allowing latecomers to catch up if they missed something relevant.
**Early minutes are rarely critical**: The first few minutes typically cover housekeeping information, not crucial content. (“Do you see my screen?”, “Can you all hear me loud and clear?”, “Write down your questions in the chat/Q&A…”, “Feel free to ask”, “Our speakers today are…”, “Scan the QR code as we will use …”, “This session will be recorded”, “We will share the slide deck later….”, “My name is XX and I moderate ….” etc.).
**Punctuality benefits everyone**: Maintains schedule integrity. Respects early attendees’ time. Demonstrates professional organization
**Solutions for latecomers**:
– Coordinators can briefly recap critical lost stuff (if any) at the end for late joiners
– Latecomers can review recordings or attend alternate sessions
**Addressing the root cause**: We should also tackle the issue of back-to-back meetings by:
– Adhering to scheduled meeting times
– Ending meetings 5 minutes early
– Inviting only relevant participants
Starting on time will stop wasting hundreds of hours we can dedicate to business-related activities. Also reinforces a culture of punctuality and respect for everyone’s time. It’s a small change that can significantly impact our productivity and professionalism.
Call to action: If you are organizing a virtual session, starting late must be an exception, not a rule. If you are an attendee, ask the organizers to start right on time.
Will be happy to hear your thoughts!
About the author:
Jorge Fragoso, MS
Jorge Fragoso currently serves as the Global Field Based Medical Excellence Lead at Sanofi Vaccines, where he coordinates strategic initiatives for Medical Science Liaison teams worldwide.
Born and educated in Mexico City, Jorge holds a Biology degree and a master’s degree with honors in Neurosciences from the National University of Mexico.
Since joining Sanofi in 1991, Jorge has cultivated extensive expertise across Sales, Marketing, Business Support, e-business, Training, and Medical functions through his 33+ year tenure in the pharmaceutical industry. After excelling in various roles within Pharma Mexico, he advanced to the Latin America Regional team in 2010. Since 2015, Jorge has been orchestrating key global initiatives for Sanofi Vaccines. This diverse professional journey has equipped him with a comprehensive, cross-functional perspective of the pharmaceutical landscape.
Beyond his core responsibilities, Jorge actively contributes to numerous corporate initiatives including Simplification, Digital Transformation, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, and WeVolunteer. He currently serves as President of AGE Connection (a local NGO oriented to fight against ageism) and Make-A-Wish volunteer.
Have an opinion on this article? Send a message to the editor.