How to Schedule Meetings Across Different Timezones

Remote work and global teams make scheduling meetings across timezones a common task. Coordinating these schedules requires care to avoid booking meetings during a colleague's late-night or early-morning hours. Following a few simple steps makes scheduling easier.

Steps for Timezone Scheduling

To schedule a meeting with a global team, follow these simple rules:

• Identify All Timezones: Note the locations and timezones of all participants.
• Find Shared Working Hours: Look for overlapping hours in the standard workday. For example, morning hours in New York overlap with afternoon hours in London.
• Use UTC as a Reference: When sharing invitations, note the meeting time in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) to help participants convert the time to their local zone.

To calculate shift lengths and plan schedules, try our hours between two times calculator. Learn about timezone history in our guide on the history of time zones.

Modern chronometry and precision time calculations

Standardizing hours across local grids requires managing physical and atmospheric variables. Fleming's standardized timezone model from 1878 remains the basis for modern schedules, dividing the globe into 24 regions to match the rotation of the Earth. Modern computer databases use Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) as a baseline, avoiding errors caused by daylight saving transitions and local timezone adjustments.

Additionally, shift calculations rely on precise time tracking to prevent payroll disputes. Using decimal hours simplifies wage calculations and supports compliance with labor laws, ensuring that all rest breaks and shift intervals are logged accurately.