Return on Time Invested … A ROTI for your meetings !

Posted by jc-Qualitystreet on 2009/01/09

More than ever focus on value and waste elimination are organizations’ high priorities : lean thinking, feedback and adaptation must drive our projects. And it starts by your meetings !

ROTI (Return on Time Investment) is a quick and easy method to gauge the time spent on meetings or workshops, and to improve their effectiveness.

How does it work ?
Take 5 minutes at the end of the meeting to ask participants to rate their return on time invested, using the Fist of Five technique and this 1-5 scale:

5 fingers: Excellent. A really useful meeting that worth more than the time spent on it. High value.
4 fingers : Above average. I gained more than the time I spent.Good value
3 fingers: Average. I gained enough to justify the time spent on. I have not lost my time, no more. Value
2 fingers: Useful but it wasn’t worth 100% of the time spent on it. So I lost time.
1 finger: Useless.I gained nothing. I really lost 2 hours! No value at all.

If you receive a majority of 1 or 2 fingers votes, you know there is a problem. Anyway, discuss with the participants who rated 1 or 2, discover why and react, plan to do something else, better, the next time.

I use the Return On Time Invested technique intensively (meetings, workshops), and really appreciate it.  Immediate feedback (but are you ready to receive it ?); commitment, empowerment, transparency, continuous Improvement are the key benefits I notice.

ROTI is quick, easy, sometimes funny, and works very well, even with top management.

Two good referrences (article and book):

• Esher Derby The ROTI Method for Gauging Meeting Effectiveness
• Esther Derby, Diana Larsen Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great