A step-by-step reference for every tool in the Seven Chairs toolkit. No training required — most users are productive within five minutes.
Choose from the preset meeting types (Weekly Progress, Design Coordination, CQV Planning, etc.) or select 'Custom Meeting' to define your own. Each preset pre-loads a suggested duration and typical role mix.
Tip: The preset types are calibrated for pharma manufacturing construction projects. Start with the closest match and adjust from there.
Enter the meeting duration in hours and how many times per year it recurs. The calculator multiplies these automatically to produce annual cost figures.
For each of the 20 standard project roles, assign one of four tiers: Must Be There (essential decision-makers), Nice to Have (optional attendees), Inform After (read the summary instead), or Not Involved. The loaded hourly rate for each role is pre-populated.
Tip: The Seven Chairs rule: if you have 8 people invited, only 7 chairs are set out. This forces you to ask who is truly essential.
The calculator shows per-meeting cost, annual cost, and — critically — the annual 'Nice to Have' waste: the money spent on attendees who did not need to be there. This is your primary optimization target.
Use the Export button to download a formatted cost report. Share this with your project team or sponsor to build the business case for meeting reform.
Click 'Add Meeting' or use one of the 15+ preset meeting cards. Each card represents one recurring meeting type in your project. Build a complete picture of your weekly and monthly meeting cadence.
Tip: Start with your top 5 most frequent meetings — they typically account for 80% of total meeting cost.
For each meeting, assign Must / Nice / Inform / None tiers to each of the 20 roles. The card instantly shows per-meeting cost and annual total. The amber 'Nice to Have' waste figure is your savings opportunity.
Filter meetings by project phase (Pre-Construction, Design, Construction, Commissioning, etc.) to focus on one phase at a time. This is useful for phase-gate reviews and handover planning.
Click the 'Sort' toggle in the filter bar to reorder meetings by annual Nice-to-Have waste, highest first. The top 3 cards receive a ranked savings badge (#1, #2, #3 Savings Opp.). Tackle these first.
On any meeting card, hover to reveal the action icons. Click the lightning bolt (⚡) to open that meeting in the Productivity Simulator with all roles pre-loaded. Experiment with removing Nice-to-Have attendees and see the savings in real time.
Click the clipboard icon (📋) on any meeting card to jump directly to the Engagement Scoresheet with the meeting name and date pre-filled. Run the scoresheet during the actual meeting to track who contributed.
Click 'Export Report' to download a full text report including an Executive Summary, per-meeting breakdown, and an ROI Narrative that translates annual savings into recovered FTE months.
Tip: The ROI Narrative uses a $100/hr average loaded rate. Adjust the narrative text for your specific project rates before sharing with sponsors.
Either open the Simulator directly and configure a meeting from scratch, or click the ⚡ icon on any Calendar meeting card to pre-load that meeting's full role configuration automatically.
The left panel shows the current meeting cost with all assigned roles. This is your baseline — the cost of the meeting as it is currently run.
In the right panel, toggle individual roles between Must / Nice / Inform / None. The cost display updates instantly. Each toggle shows the marginal cost of that role's attendance.
Tip: Focus on roles currently marked 'Nice to Have' in your Calendar. These are your easiest wins — they are already flagged as optional.
The simulator shows the delta between baseline and optimized cost, both per meeting and annually. It also shows the number of chairs removed and the percentage cost reduction.
Use the simulator output to have a direct conversation with the meeting organizer. The numbers make the case — 'removing these 3 roles saves $28K/year' is a concrete, defensible proposal.
Track real-time contributions during a live meeting to identify chronic non-contributors.
Navigate to Meeting Score (/score) and click the 'Scoresheet' tab. Alternatively, click the clipboard icon on any Calendar meeting card to open the Scoresheet with the meeting name and date pre-filled.
Enter the meeting name, select the meeting type, set the date and start time, and enter the organizer's name. These fields are used to label the session in the Score history.
Use the Quick Add panel to add attendees by role. Select Must Be There or Nice to Have tier for each. You can also enter a specific person's name for each role slot.
Tip: Add all attendees before the meeting starts. During the meeting you will only be tapping contribution buttons — you do not want to be typing names while someone is speaking.
When an attendee speaks, tap their name to expand their panel, then tap the contribution type: Raised a Key Concern (5pts), Drove a Decision (5pts), Spoke on an Action Item (4pts), Answered a Question (3pts), Provided Context (2pts), or Acknowledged Only (1pt). Each contribution is timestamped.
Click 'Close Meeting & Score' to generate the engagement summary. The summary shows each attendee's total score, contribution breakdown, and a participation label (Silent / Minimal / Active / Engaged). The cost impact of silent Nice-to-Have attendees is shown in amber.
Click 'Post to Meeting Score' to write this session to the Score history. The system maps each attendee's engagement score to a participation rating (Delivered / Partial / Silent) and computes an overall meeting score (0–100). You will be taken directly to the History tab where the new session is highlighted with a 'Just posted' badge.
Tip: Review the posted session immediately to verify the data was captured correctly before the meeting context fades.
Track participation history and surface chronic 'Don't Speak' patterns over time.
In the 'Log Session' tab, select a meeting type, date, and duration. Add each attendee by role and mark their participation as Delivered (spoke to their agenda items), Partial (spoke but minimally), Silent (did not speak), or Absent.
Tip: The fastest workflow is to use the Engagement Scoresheet during the meeting and post directly to Score. Manual logging is for retrospective entry.
The History tab shows all logged sessions in reverse chronological order. Each session card shows the overall score (0–100), attendee participation breakdown, and the meeting date and type.
Navigate to the 'Patterns' tab. Roles that have been Silent or Absent in 3 or more consecutive sessions are flagged as 'Chronic Non-Contributors' in red. These are your highest-priority reassignment candidates.
Click 'Reassign in Calculator' on any chronic role to open the Meeting Cost Calculator with that role pre-loaded. Change their tier from Must Be There to Inform After and calculate the annual savings.
Tip: This is the core feedback loop of the Seven Chairs system: observe → score → identify → reassign → recalculate savings.
Generate role-aware meeting invitations that communicate attendance expectations upfront.
Fill in the meeting name, date, time, duration, location or Teams link, and the organizer's name.
For each role, select Must Be There, Nice to Have, or Inform After. The invitation will communicate these tiers explicitly to attendees.
Tip: Being explicit about attendance tiers in the invitation sets expectations before the meeting and reduces the number of people who show up 'just in case'.
List the agenda items. Each item should be tied to a decision or action — not just a topic. This forces the organizer to clarify the purpose of each agenda point.
Click 'Copy Invitation' to copy the formatted text to your clipboard. Paste it into your calendar invitation in Outlook, Teams, or any other scheduling tool.
Answer the questions across six health dimensions: Meeting Necessity, Attendance Discipline, Agenda Quality, Decision Velocity, Follow-Through Rate, and Time Respect. Each dimension has 3–5 questions rated on a 1–5 scale.
The radar chart shows your project's meeting health profile. Dimensions below 3.0 are flagged as priority improvement areas.
Each low-scoring dimension generates a specific, actionable recommendation. These are calibrated for pharma manufacturing construction project contexts.
Run the health assessment at the start of each project phase. Track whether scores improve as you implement Seven Chairs practices.
Tip: Share the radar chart with your project sponsor as evidence of meeting culture improvement over time.
Data note: All data entered in this toolkit is stored locally in your browser (localStorage). Nothing is sent to a server. Clearing your browser data will erase your saved meetings, scores, and scoresheets. Export your Calendar report and Score history regularly to maintain a backup.