The Cost of Meeting Overruns

How Meeting Overruns Drain Your Budget

Meetings that run over their scheduled time are a silent budget drain. A 30-minute meeting that regularly runs to 45 minutes costs 50% more than planned -- and the downstream effects are even worse.

The Direct Cost

For a meeting with 8 people at $85/hr that overruns by 15 minutes:

Planned cost (30 min):    8 x $85 x 0.5 = $340
Actual cost (45 min):     8 x $85 x 0.75 = $510
Overrun cost:             $170 per occurrence
Weekly overrun cost:      $170 x 5 = $850
Annual overrun cost:      $170 x 260 = $44,200

The Cascade Effect

Overruns cause a domino effect across the organization:

1. Late to the next meeting -- the overrun causes the next meeting to start late, which overruns, and so on.
2. Cancelled deep work -- the stolen 15 minutes often comes from a block of focused work time.
3. Rushed decisions -- when people know they are running late, they either rush to a poor decision or defer it entirely.

Why Meetings Overrun

• No agenda -- without a structure, discussion drifts.
• No timekeeper -- no one is watching the clock.
• Late starts -- starting 5 minutes late means ending 5 minutes late (or more).
• Scope creep -- topics outside the agenda get raised and discussed.
• Social pressure -- no one wants to be the person who "cuts off" a senior leader.

How to Prevent Overruns

1. Use a visible timer (like this tool) so everyone sees the cost accumulating.
2. Schedule 25 or 50 minutes instead of 30 or 60 to build in a buffer.
3. Assign a timekeeper who has explicit permission to interrupt.
4. Use a "parking lot" for off-topic items to be addressed later.
5. End 5 minutes early as a cultural norm.