Friday, March 13, 2020
When People Come to Meetings Without Reading the Doc
Updated September 2026: in 2020 I wrote about setting up early morning calls with an onsite team, only to find on the first day that nobody had opened the document I had sent. I have rewritten it as a guide to getting people to read before the meeting.
I had planned the service request carefully, set out each team member's role and sent a detailed email to the onsite team for confirmation, with a recurring morning meeting. The next day I woke early and opened the call, hoping they had refined the document. They had not touched it, and reviewed it for the first time during the meeting. I was furious. After the review I said, in front of the leadership on the call, that the discussions would be more useful if the onsite team looked at the document beforehand, and I recorded it in the minutes. I only got a mild acknowledgement, and leadership then asked the team to work on the client's review comments.
Why do people come to meetings without reading?
They are busy, the document is long, or they do not know what they are supposed to do with it. A file sent with "please review" gives no reason to open it before the call, especially across time zones.
How do you get a document read before the meeting?
- Put a short summary in the email, so the main points are read even if the file is not.
- Ask for something specific, such as "confirm your owners in section 2 by 6pm".
- Keep the document short, with the decisions near the top.
- Send it early enough for the other time zone to have a working day with it.
- Use the meeting for decisions, not first reading.
Should you call it out in front of leadership?
Carefully. Raising it with leaders present can work, but it can also make people defensive. A better first step is a private message to the onsite lead. If the pattern continues, mention it neutrally in the minutes, as a fact about preparation rather than a complaint.
What if the meeting is wasted anyway?
Cut it short. Suggest ending early so everyone can read, and meeting again later the same day. People quickly learn that coming unprepared costs them time.
Are early morning calls worth it?
Only if they produce decisions. If they turn into reading sessions, move them to a time when both sides can prepare.