Expected to start teams meetings?

[surrpundedby]

I’ve started a new job and my diary for now is very empty with few meetings and there’s quite a lot of training material that I have to go through.

My manager is always in back to back meetings and he’s put two 30 minute catchups in with me for the first month. From experience meetings tend to overrun so I’ve waited for him to be ready for our call and then I’ll hop on as I’m just reading - or he might need a loo break or get a drink.

Today it got to 5 past our meeting and he messaged me to say “are you joining”. So I started the call and he said that I am expected to always start the meetings.

Obviously once I’m more busy I won’t even give it a second thought as to who starts a meeting, but this seems such a weird rule to me.

I don’t get it

you join the meeting at the start time? Particularly if you are sat there twiddling your thumbs!

I would never turn up late to a Teams meeting!

in my line of work our company (and our clients) join at the specified start time! We don’t wait for someone else to “start it”

My impression is that most people join the call on time and then mute until others join, even if you don’t expect them to be on time.

Yeah it’s bad form to just sit there and not join at the allotted time.

Surely you just join the call on time and wait?

Join the meeting at the allotted time and mute/camera off until someone else joins.
If running late send apology in the meeting chat. Pretty standard teams etiquette surely?

Yeah I just turn up and sit in the empty 'room' at the allotted time on mute and carry on with work in the background.

I think the bing of the 'meeting started' box is a useful prompt for a lot of people to join!

You join the meeting on time. If you’re not able to join on time you message the meeting chat to say you’ll be late (and an estimate of how late ideally). You can have camera & mic off if waiting for others.

The convention at my workplace is definitely for the more junior person to start the teams meeting and the more senior person to then join

I don't really care about these things and I wouldn't pull up any of my juniors for not doing it this way but it is definitely the wider convention

Are you new to this way of working? You should always join at the allocated start time, not wait based on assumptions of what your manager may be doing in any given moment. It’s normal to have back to back meetings in my place of work, and if anyone need a quick loo break they post a ‘be with you in 2 minutes’ messge on the call chat.

If the meeting is booked for a certain time, then that's the time you join the meeting.

If it were in real life you wouldn't hover around the meeting room and enter only when the other party arrives? Same on teams.

I’m not sat there twiddling my thumbs. I’m doing the training materials - which is a lot. More than any other company I’ve worked for.

And sometimes you can’t help turning up late to a teams meeting. You’re seriously telling me you’ve never once been in a meeting that’s overrun by 2 or 3 minutes?

You’ve used a lot of exclamation marks … you seemed very horrified by this … that’s quite worrying. Also you can’t be that busy at your job scrolling on Mumsnet at 3pm.

I’d just join at the start time and wait for other people to turn up.

I’ve never heard about the junior person starting the meeting but I can see how that might pander to some egos. Poor sods if that’s what passes for power!

I understand you’re trying to come across as whenever you’re ready to your boss but actually it screams rude because they’re waiting for you. Join and mute at the meeting time. Sometimes I join and then get a teams to reschedule or the person will call me when free- but I’m always available and on time.

It's not so much as you formally "starting" the meeting just whoever happens to join first will automatically start it. As you haven't got anything else to do of course you should be joining it on time (and then it automatically starts) it's very weird not to!

Meeting is scheduled for 2pm, you join it for 2pm. If manager is running late you sit there and wait, camera off if you want.

He didn’t stick to that rule though?

He was equally sat there waiting for me to start it.

Sure it doesn't matter who 'starts' the meeting. You just join when you're suppose to - at the start time.

Oh god just start the meeting, he's your boss,

Is he not rude as well for doing the exact same thing?

The manager would expect the direct report to join the meeting. Thry are more busy - so wait for the notification to join. It's been my experience at least.

You said he was in back to back meetings?
You starting your meeting gave him the nod to say sorry for to go now I have another meeting starting.

Yeah thank you, that’s my whole point.

He is demanding I start all meetings. So he’s seemingly happy to sit there until I decide to start the meeting.

I had a reason for waiting for him, and if he doesn’t think it’s valid or needed then fine. But I don’t see why there has to be a rule of the person less senior starting it?

Everyone should just join at the start time, or as soon as they available. Easy.

Can't imagine how much I would rip the piss out of anyone at my work if they tried to claim that "junior" people should be connecting first. In your case, just join at the time you are supposed to and let this other person join whenever.