At all times remember the basis of meeting-nomic theory is that meetings are the product, not the means, of corporate output and that in any healthy meeting-nomic system TMT (total meeting time) must increase. It has been shown that a yearly TMT rate of increase of 10% shows that managers are “doing their job” but is not high enough to cause an attrition through suicide rate in excess of HR targets.

Once the meeting clearing point has been reached and all employees are fully booked and all conference rooms are filled the micro-meeting-nomic parameters must be manipulated in order to maintain the desired 10% year-over-year TMT increase.

Several of the important indicators include: total attendees in a single meeting, applicability of the meeting, and content repetition.

Total Attendees: the more the merrier rule. A meeting with 50 attendees is better than 2 meetings with 25? Why? The attendee chaos multiplier. The more people in a single meeting the more likely that one or more attendees will begin a side conversation potentially missing information that will then have to be covered in a “break out session”. TMT is increased. Also larger meetings tend to be more difficult to start on time and generally run over, thus a 60 minute meeting will by necessity occupy 70, 80 or even 90 minutes. TMT is increased.

Applicability: the less you need to know the better. By inviting attendees to a meeting they are only marginally involved in, a manager can simultaneously involve more attendees (see Total Attendees above) and invite additional interruptions by people unknowledgeable of the meeting details. This also allows a manager to create a situation where information is only shared verbally during meetings. By lacking any sort of written record employees become scared they will miss something and will feel compelled to attend every meeting possible, even “double dipping” when possible.

Content Repitition: Play it again Sam. One of the easiest and yet most overlooked methods of increasing TMT is to hold the same meeting again and again. If one staff meeting a week is good, two is better. Three staff meetings a week covering the same topics repeatedly with just enough variation so make it seem slightly original is optimal. Adding a forth meeting would be regarded as obviously superfluous, but a forth or even fifth meeting a week is possible through only modest subterfuge. Break out staff into smaller groups and hold “individual manager” meetings, “group level” meetings  and “project level” meetings. Ensure that a minimum of 50% of the content is repeated.

By utilizing the inputs in micro-nomic-meetings it is possible to keep Total Meeting Time increasing at the middle manager job protecting, upper management appeasing level of 10%.