meeting-agenda

Quick Start

Tell me:

1. What is this meeting about? (topic, decision needed, or problem to solve)
2. Who needs to be there? (names and roles)
3. How long should it be? (default: 25 minutes)
4. Is this recurring or one-off?

I'll check your past meetings, stakeholder profiles, and PRDs to build a focused agenda with pre-reads, time boxes, and clear outcomes.

Shortcut: /meeting-agenda decision on X with Y and Z -- and I'll draft the full agenda.

More shortcuts:

• /meeting-agenda 1:1 with Maya -- Weekly manager 1:1
• /meeting-agenda sprint planning -- Sprint planning with eng team
• /meeting-agenda difficult: scope negotiation with Sales -- Conflict resolution meeting

Meeting Agenda Skill

Generate clear, purposeful meeting agendas that drive decisions and action. Every meeting should have a clear goal, timeboxed topics, and defined outcomes.

Step 0: Meeting Necessity Diagnostic

Before creating an agenda, first ask these diagnostic questions:

1. Is this meeting actually necessary? Could the outcome be achieved async (Slack thread, shared doc, or /catalyst-pm-ops:status-update)?
2. Who genuinely needs to be there? If someone is only there "to stay informed," they should get notes instead.
3. What specific decisions or outcomes are expected? If you can't name one, the meeting probably should not happen.

If the PM realizes the meeting is not necessary, suggest an async alternative:

• For alignment: Shared doc with comment deadline
• For updates: /catalyst-pm-ops:status-update sent to stakeholders
• For quick decisions: Slack thread with a 24-hour decision deadline
• For feedback: Async review in design tool/Google Docs with specific questions

Only proceed with agenda creation if a synchronous meeting is genuinely needed.

Recurring vs One-Off Meetings

Ask which type this is -- the approach differs significantly.

Recurring meetings need progressive agendas that evolve week-to-week:

Week 1: Deep dive on one topic (60 min)
Week 2: Rapid updates + decisions (30 min)
Week 3: Planning session (45 min)
Week 4: Retro + learnings (30 min)

For recurring meetings, check thoughts/shared/product/meeting-notes/ for previous agendas and notes. Reference what was discussed last time, carry over open items, and avoid repeating the same format every week.

One-off meetings need a clear single outcome and should default to 25 minutes. If you cannot define the single outcome, push back on scheduling it.

When to Use This Skill

• Before scheduling any meeting (if no agenda, don't schedule)
• Converting vague meeting requests into structured discussions
• Preparing for stakeholder reviews, planning sessions, or decision meetings
• Ensuring cross-functional meetings stay focused and productive

Core Principles

1. Every Meeting Needs a Clear Purpose

• ✅ "Decide on pricing strategy for Enterprise tier"
• ❌ "Discuss pricing"

2. Time Limits Force Prioritization

• 30-minute default (enough for most topics)
• 60-minute max (beyond this, break into multiple meetings)
• Each agenda item gets a time box

3. Pre-Read > Presentation

• Send context before meeting (docs, data, proposals)
• Use meeting time for discussion, not information transfer
• "Read this doc before the meeting" should be expected

4. Output-Driven

• Every meeting should produce: Decision, Action Items, or Alignment
• If it doesn't, it shouldn't be a meeting

Workflow

Step 1: Define Meeting Metadata

Meeting Title: [Clear, specific title]

Date/Time: [When]
Duration: [15/30/45/60 minutes]
Format: [In-person / Zoom / Hybrid]

Attendees:
- [Name] - [Role] (Required)
- [Name] - [Role] (Required)
- [Name] - [Role] (Optional)

Meeting Owner: [Who's driving this meeting?]
Notetaker: [Who's documenting?]

Step 2: State Meeting Purpose

## Purpose

[One sentence: What is this meeting for?]

Example:
- "Decide whether to build or buy our analytics platform"
- "Align on Q2 roadmap priorities across product teams"
- "Review user research findings and identify top 3 insights"

## Success Criteria

This meeting will be successful if:
- [ ] [Outcome 1: e.g., "We have a go/no-go decision on Feature X"]
- [ ] [Outcome 2: e.g., "Engineering understands scope and timeline"]
- [ ] [Outcome 3: e.g., "All blockers are identified with owners"]

Step 3: Pre-Meeting Requirements

## Pre-Read (Required Before Meeting)

Please review before attending:
- [Document 1: Link + "5 min read"]
- [Document 2: Link + "10 min read"]
- [Data/Dashboard: Link + "quick review"]

Time required: [Total time to prep]

If you haven't reviewed the pre-read, please decline the meeting.

Step 4: Build Time-Boxed Agenda

## Agenda

### [Time: 0-5 min] Context Setting
- Quick recap of background
- Confirm goals for this meeting
- Assign notetaker

### [Time: 5-20 min] [Agenda Item 1]
**Goal:** [What we're trying to accomplish]
**Format:** [Discussion / Presentation / Brainstorm / Decision]
**Presenter:** [Who's leading this section]

Key questions:
- [Question 1]
- [Question 2]
- [Question 3]

### [Time: 20-40 min] [Agenda Item 2]
**Goal:** [What we're trying to accomplish]
**Format:** [Discussion / Presentation / Brainstorm / Decision]
**Presenter:** [Who's leading this section]

Key questions:
- [Question 1]
- [Question 2]

### [Time: 40-55 min] Decision Time
**Decision needed:** [Specific decision to make]
**Decision maker:** [Who has final say]
**Options:** [List options A, B, C]

Vote/discuss to reach decision.

### [Time: 55-60 min] Next Steps & Closing
- Recap decisions made
- Assign action items with owners and due dates
- Schedule follow-ups if needed

Meeting Type Templates

Product Review Meeting

# Product Review: [Feature Name]

**Purpose:** Review [Feature] design and decide on go-to-build

**Duration:** 45 min | **Owner:** [PM Name]

---

## Pre-Read (15 min)

- PRD: [Link]
- Design mockups: [design link]
- User research summary: [Link]

---

## Agenda

### [0-5 min] Context

- Problem we're solving
- Strategic fit

### [5-15 min] Solution Walkthrough

- Design demo (Designer leads)
- User flow explanation

### [15-30 min] Q&A and Feedback

Focus areas:

- Technical feasibility (Engineering)
- User experience concerns (Design)
- Edge cases and risks (Everyone)

### [30-40 min] Decision Discussion

- Go / No-go / Needs changes
- If "needs changes": what specifically?

### [40-45 min] Next Steps

- Decision: [Go/No-go/Iterate]
- Action items with owners
- Timeline confirmation

---

## Success Criteria

- [ ] Decision made: Build / Don't build / Iterate
- [ ] If build: Engineering timeline confirmed
- [ ] If iterate: Specific changes documented

## Estimated Prep Time: 20 minutes

- Review PRD: 10 min
- Review design mockups in design tool: 5 min
- Skim user research summary: 5 min

Strategic Planning Meeting

# Q2 Roadmap Planning

**Purpose:** Prioritize Q2 initiatives and align on goals

**Duration:** 60 min | **Owner:** [PM Name]

---

## Pre-Read (20 min)

- Q1 retro doc: [Link]
- Q2 initiative proposals (6 proposals): [Link]
- Company OKRs for Q2: [Link]

---

## Agenda

### [0-10 min] Q1 Retrospective

- What worked
- What didn't
- Lessons for Q2

### [10-40 min] Q2 Initiative Review

Review each proposal (5 min each):

1. [Initiative 1]: Impact, effort, strategic fit
2. [Initiative 2]: Impact, effort, strategic fit
3. [Initiative 3]: Impact, effort, strategic fit
4. [Initiative 4]: Impact, effort, strategic fit
5. [Initiative 5]: Impact, effort, strategic fit
6. [Initiative 6]: Impact, effort, strategic fit

### [40-55 min] Prioritization Exercise

- Stack rank initiatives
- Discuss trade-offs
- Confirm capacity (what fits in Q2?)

### [55-60 min] Final Decisions

- Committed: [List of initiatives we're doing]
- Backlog: [List of initiatives deferred]
- Action items: Owners for each initiative

---

## Succ