when setting up a meeting with colleagues from all over the world I encounter usually one big problem:
the calendar of everyone is fully blocked.

Why is the Calendar full?

before the covid pandemic I encountered this problem mostly with managers. On the working level there was always a space for a meeting. But as it is easy to set up an online meeting, the calendar of everyone is full those days.
(This is even backed up by an article from the Harvard Business School.)

How to Deal with a Colleague that has no Time?

here is my 5 step approach to a fully blocked calendar of a colleague:

1. I call them or go to their desk in person.

2. I tell them what I need and (important!) why I need it.

3. I explain the benefits we have as company/department/team to him.

4. I ask how much time we would need for the discussion.

5. Finally I ask when they have a free spot for this discussion.

80% of the time they give me a slot in their calendar by moving a few things around or just decline a meeting where they can be absent.

the most important part is really the explanation of the "why". So it basically comes down to communication.

But what if that Fails?

I usually do the following if the person tells me that there is no space in their calendar for me:

1. I ask the colleague if another person in the department can support. (However this could lead to disappointment of the colleague as I would just replace him with another person. I probably won’t get support the next time.)

2. I ask the colleague if we can talk to the supervisor/manager quickly and probably release him from unwanted tasks. I literally ask what task would be awesome to remove and then both of us go to the office of the manager. I lay down my case in front of the manger and ask for support.

I would always prefer the second approach cause it leaves my colleague and me with good feelings cause the decision was made by the manger.

I did a pole last year about topics people want to know more about on linkedin. This article is a result of that pole. Thanks to everyone who participated.

do you have some strategies as well? Maybe you never thought it through, cause you did it naturally (I didn’t think of it either before I had the idea for this article).

let me know your thoughts!

thank you for your time,

daniel