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4.5 Meeting System: Cadence, Formats, Decision Log

A meeting is a manufacturing process. The inputs are expensive man-hours; the output must be a decision or a synchronized plan. If a meeting occurs without generating a written decision or action, the process yield is zero. It is waste.

This chapter defines the practical toolkit for operating the organization. It distinguishes between the tactical rhythm required of Middle Management and the strategic cadence required of Top Management.

Universal Roles & Hygiene

Successful meetings are determined before the calendar invite is sent. Regardless of seniority, two roles must exist for every session.

The Chair (Organizer)

  • Responsibility: Design the outcome.
  • Mandate: Distribute the agenda 24 hours in advance.
  • The Invitation: Must include the "Goal" (e.g., Goal: Select Vendor A or B). If the goal is undefined, the meeting is unauthorized.

The Scribe (Rotating)

  • Responsibility: Capture the truth.
  • Mandate: Record decisions and action items in real-time.
  • Constraint: The Chair cannot be the Scribe. Facilitating debate while typing reduces cognitive control. This role rotates among team members to enforce discipline.

The Manager’s System (Team Level)

Middle managers act as the transmission gear, converting high-level strategy into specific execution. The manager’s meeting architecture must focus on alignment, unblocking, and technical resolution.

A. The Team Sync (Weekly)

  • Purpose: Align the immediate function (e.g., SMT Engineering, Procurement) on the week’s execution plan.
  • Organizer: Functional Manager.
  • Preparation: The Manager must review all WLR-OT notes prior to the start.
  • Agenda:
    1. Cascading: Disseminate directives from Executive meetings.
    2. Inter-dependencies: Identify cross-functional needs (e.g., "Engineer A needs Part X from Procurement").
    3. Load Balancing: Re-assign tasks from overloaded staff to those with capacity.

B. The Work Session (Ad-Hoc)

  • Purpose: Solve a specific, isolated problem (e.g., "Root Cause of PCB Warpage").
  • Trigger: A blocker exists that cannot be resolved via asynchronous text.
  • Constraint: Invite only the necessary subject matter experts.
  • Output: A technical decision or a process change document.

C. The Retrospective (Post-Project)

  • Purpose: Process improvement. Focus on "How the work was done," not "What was done."
  • Timing: After a major Batch completion, NPI milestone, or sprint end.
  • Format:
    1. Keep: Successful behaviors to standardize.
    2. Stop: Inefficiencies or obstacles to remove.
    3. Start: New tools or protocols to pilot.

The Top Management System (Company Level)

Executive leadership operates on longer horizons (Monthly/Quarterly) and focuses on resource allocation, financial health, and systemic risks.

A. Weekly Operations Sync (Tier 2)

  • Purpose: Synchronize departments for the next 5-10 days.
  • Organizer: COO / Operations Director.
  • Focus: Variance Analysis. Discuss only Red/Yellow metrics (e.g., Yield drops, Schedule slips).
  • Output: Production Schedule for the week; Allocation of shared resources.

B. Monthly Business Review (MBR)

  • Purpose: Review system health, financials, and multi-week trends.
  • Organizer: CEO.
  • Agenda:
    1. P&L Review: Budget vs. Actuals.
    2. Quality Trends: Systemic issues (e.g., Supplier defect rates).
    3. People: Headcount planning and culture health.
  • Output: Revised financial forecast; CapEx approval/rejection.

C. Quarterly Planning (QBR)

  • Purpose: Strategic direction for the next 90 days.
  • Agenda: Retrospective of previous quarter -> Market Context -> Strategy Setting (OKRs).
  • Output: Finalized Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) for all departments.

Execution: The Decision Tracking Loop

Decisions vanish in email threads. A Single Source of Truth (SSOT)—a shared live document or dashboard—must exist where all meeting outputs are logged.

The Protocol:

  1. The "Loop Back" (First 5 Minutes):
    • Open the SSOT.
    • Review "Open" actions from the previous meeting.
    • Mark as "Done" or "Escalate." Excuses are irrelevant; if an item is stalled, re-assign or unblock immediately.
  2. The Commitment (Last 5 Minutes):
    • The Scribe reads back the new Action Items.
    • Chair: "Owner A, report is due Tuesday. Agreed?"
    • Owner A: "Agreed."
    • Scribe: Logs entry in the SSOT.

DOR (Decision/Owner/Resolution) Log Template:

ID

Item / Decision

Owner

Due Date

Status

01

Decision: Use IPC-A-610 Class 2 for Client X (Class 3 rejected).

QA Mgr

N/A

Ratified

02

Action: Order stencil for new layout.

Eng. Lead

Oct 15

Open

Final Checklist

Component

Standard / Requirement

Meeting Invite

Must include Agenda and Goal. Send 24h prior.

The Scribe

Mandatory. Rotate role among team. Never the Chair.

The Artifact

Use a Shared Live Document (SSOT). No email minutes.

The Loop Back

First 5 mins of every meeting: Review previous actions.

Attendance

Mark non-essential staff as "Optional".

Start/End

Start strictly on time. End 5 mins early for bio-breaks.

Preparation

Manager: Reviews WLR-OT. Exec: Reviews Variances.

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