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Mastering Meeting Cadence: A Leader’s Guide to Running Effective Meetings
posted in Business Coaching
Adam Kreek
Meetings are either a powerful tool for alignment and execution or a waste of valuable time. The difference? Cadence and structure. A well-planned meeting cadence ensures that teams stay aligned, focused, and moving toward key objectives—daily, weekly, quarterly, and annually.
Here’s how to structure meetings for maximum impact.
1. The Daily Standup: Fast, Focused, and Essential
The daily standup is a brief, high-impact check-in to keep teams aligned. It should be:
Short (10-15 minutes max)
To the point (no rambling or problem-solving—save that for weekly meetings)
Actionable
Agenda:
- What did you accomplish yesterday?
- What are you working on today?
- Are there any blockers?
Why it matters: Daily standups improve visibility, prevent bottlenecks, and build accountability without bogging the team down in unnecessary discussions.
2. The Weekly Meeting: Level 10 Execution
The weekly meeting is the engine of execution. It ensures leaders stay aligned, key priorities stay on track, and issues get solved quickly.
Follow the Level 10 Meeting Framework (from EOS - Entrepreneurial Operating System):
Read more about level 10 meetings here.
- Check-in: Quick personal/professional updates (5 minutes)
- Scorecard Review: KPIs and performance updates (5 minutes)
- Rock Review: Progress on quarterly goals (5 minutes)
- Customer/Employee Headlines: Any critical updates (5 minutes)
- To-Do List Review: Did we complete our commitments? (5 minutes)
- Issue Solving: Identify, discuss, solve (IDS method) (30-45 minutes)
- Wrap-up: Next steps and commitments (5 minutes)
💡 Why it matters: The weekly meeting keeps leadership focused, solves problems in real-time, and reinforces alignment.
3. The Quarterly Meeting: Setting Rocks & Strategic Priorities
Every 90 days, teams need to pause and reset. The quarterly meeting is about:
Reviewing last quarter’s performance
Setting new Rocks (top priorities) for the next 90 days
Solving long-standing issues
Re-aligning on the bigger picture
How to Run a Productive Quarterly Meeting:
- Start with a review of the past quarter: What worked? What didn’t?
- Assess progress toward annual goals
- Define 3-7 key Rocks for the next quarter
- Solve major roadblocks
- Recommit to execution
Why it matters: Without a quarterly reset, teams lose focus, get caught in the weeds, and drift away from strategic objectives.
4. The Annual Strategic Planning Meeting: The Long Game
Once a year, leadership must zoom out and think big. This is where long-term vision meets execution.
Key Focus Areas:
Review last year’s progress (Did we hit our goals?)
Assess market conditions and competitive landscape
Set annual objectives
Align quarterly Rocks to annual priorities
Define the BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal)
The BHAG is the long-term, nearly impossible goal that inspires the organization—think 20 years down the road.
💡 Why it matters: Without long-term vision, teams stay reactive. This meeting ensures that short-term execution aligns with long-term success.
5. One-on-Ones: The Foundation of Strong Leadership
Meetings are great for alignment, but one-on-one meetings are where leaders build trust, engagement, and accountability.
Weekly or bi-weekly cadence
Focused on growth, feedback, and problem-solving
A two-way conversation, not a status update
Structure of a Great One-on-One (Inspired by The One Minute Manager)
- Check-in: How are you doing—personally and professionally?
- Progress on goals: Are you on track? What support do you need?
- Challenges: What roadblocks are you facing?
- Development: How can I help you grow?
- Feedback: What’s working? What needs improvement?
- Next steps: Clear action items and follow-ups
Why it matters: Employees who have regular one-on-ones with their managers are more engaged, productive, and less likely to leave.
6. Tying It All Together: Aligning One-on-Ones to the Bigger Picture
One-on-ones shouldn’t exist in a vacuum. They need to align with annual objectives, quarterly Rocks, and weekly priorities.
Annual Plan: Big-picture career and role growth
Quarterly Plan: How their work aligns with company strategy
Weekly Plan: Immediate execution and problem-solving
Why it matters: Leaders who connect the dots between day-to-day tasks and long-term goals create more engaged, purpose-driven teams.
Final Takeaways: The Power of Meeting Cadence
An effective meeting cadence ensures:
Daily alignment through standups
Weekly problem-solving through Level 10 meetings
Quarterly strategic resets through Rocks
Annual vision alignment through strategic planning
Ongoing leadership through impactful one-on-ones
When meetings are structured properly, they drive clarity, execution, and momentum. Leaders who get meeting cadence right don’t just run better meetings—they build stronger teams and more successful organizations.
Are your meetings driving results—or wasting time?
Review your current meeting cadence and make the adjustments needed to optimize for impact.
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Adam Kreek is on a mission to positively impact organizational cultures and leaders who make things happen.
Kreek is an Executive Business Coach who lives in Victoria, BC, near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and Seattle, Washington, USA, in the Pacific Northwest. He works with clients globally, often travelling to California in the San Francisco Bay Area, Atlanta, Georgia, Toronto, Ontario and Montreal, Quebec. He is an Olympic Gold Medalist, a storied adventurer and a father.
He authored the bestselling business book, The Responsibility Ethic: 12 Strategies Exceptional People Use to Do the Work and Make Success Happen.
Discover our thoughts on Values here.
Want to increase your leadership achievement? Learn more about Kreek’s coaching here.
Want to book a keynote that leaves a lasting impact? Learn more about Kreek’s live event service here.
Other popular blog posts:
Discover the ViDA Values Framework, a structured approach to defining and living your core values. Read this
After 18 years and thousands of speeches, here’s what Kreek has learned about motivating any audience—without the fluff. Check it out
Most people set goals the wrong way—here’s how CLEAR goals are better than SMART goals, and how they can help you achieve more, with less frustration. Learn more
–––––
Adam Kreek is on a mission to positively impact organizational cultures and leaders who make things happen.
Kreek is an Executive Business Coach who lives in Victoria, BC, near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and Seattle, Washington, USA, in the Pacific Northwest. He works with clients globally, often travelling to California in the San Francisco Bay Area, Atlanta, Georgia, Toronto, Ontario and Montreal, Quebec. He is an Olympic Gold Medalist, a storied adventurer and a father.
He authored the bestselling business book, The Responsibility Ethic: 12 Strategies Exceptional People Use to Do the Work and Make Success Happen.
Discover our thoughts on Values here.
Want to increase your leadership achievement? Learn more about Kreek’s coaching here.
Want to book a keynote that leaves a lasting impact? Learn more about Kreek’s live event service here.
Other popular blog posts:
Discover the ViDA Values Framework, a structured approach to defining and living your core values. Read this
After 18 years and thousands of speeches, here’s what Kreek has learned about motivating any audience—without the fluff. Check it out
Most people set goals the wrong way—here’s how CLEAR goals are better than SMART goals, and how they can help you achieve more, with less frustration. Learn more