Why a project team delivering business change needs to meet weekly

Meeting every week is a commitment. Some people don’t like the prospect of meeting week in and week out and there is always a seemingly valid reason to beg off a project team meeting or attempt to make them less frequent.

When it comes to delivery and execution of a project, there are very clear underlying reasons and principles why making space and priority for weekly meets are a tried-and-tested structure for project team meetings.

Frequent enough for a material update. Neither too often nor too seldom, weekly should give project team members enough time to focus and get some work done on their workstream deliverables, to allow for a tangible update and demonstrable progress each and every time.

Assures accountability. Discussing the project every single week keeps the project top of mind and is the best way to assure accountability for the work. Everyone involved knows you are going to discuss deliverables on your meeting day, so everyone more naturally stays on top of activity on a weekly basis. When you meet weekly, people involved can’t set the project to the side.

Celebrates progress frequently. Projects can often feel like one endless trudge along a dark tunnel with no discernible difference between one step or another. This is why milestones matter, and milestones big and small can be highlighted and discussed in a project team meeting. Not only do they help measure progress, but they give opportunities to celebrate the string of small victories and way markers on a project, building team morale as you go.

Enables learning. Projects are complex things that, in essence, must be ‘learned’ by those taking part in them. Weekly meetings are a form of “spaced repetition”. Spaced repetition builds a habit of learning and engagement that leads to success. Hundreds of studies have demonstrated that spaced repetition, also known as distributed learning or spaced practice, helps people learn better. Specifically, it helps them to retain information for longer periods of time compared to sessions during which learning is "massed", commonly known as cramming. By maintaining a regular rhythm of spaced learning, it gives project team members a better chance of learning about the project and retaining that information to ease decision-making.

Develops a team dynamic. Long-term relationship building is critical in a project-driven organisation. “Benign neglect” is where relationships deteriorate over time. It is not always intentional, but it is almost always damaging. Meeting weekly makes that virtually impossible. It’s this process of building relationships that leads to better collaboration, problem-solving and decision-making amongst team members. Weekly meetings are platform for team building, creating space for team members to discuss their tasks, share ideas, and seek help if needed. Important decisions related to the project are often made in these meetings. It ensures that all team members are involved in the decision-making process, leading to better and more inclusive decisions, which ultimately leads to better project success.

Makes risks and issues easier to deal with. Lastly, and this point can’t be underestimated – it’s incredibly useful to spot risks and issues as soon as possible. The longer you wait, the more difficult they are to tackle. Meeting weekly and the related discussion point to review existing risks and issues, or highlight any emerging ones, underlines and encourages the need to stay vigilant about these things, so that they can be addressed when they are easy to do.  

All of this leads to better project delivery. Time and time again, my work has shown me that there is a direct and dramatic linear correlation between attending project team meetings regularly, and getting the work done.