How To Increase Productivity With Meetings

(not kill it)

“When they are well-run, ideas and decisions flow through meetings like oxygen through veins, invigorating every aspect of the business, stimulating new ideas and pushing strategy forward, making it healthy and strong” – Dean Brenner – The Latimer Group

In a recent study of over 19 million workplace meetings it is estimated that a loss of $399 billion dollars will be accrued in the USA during 2019 (source). Meetings are expensive. Think about the time cost of each meeting per employee in attendance. To get the most out of a meeting you want to remember that you are spending money to maximise efficiency. Here are some easy steps to make sure your meetings are working toward your company’s vision and not against it.

Put the Organ in Organisation

Think of your company as a living organism, think of it as a value factory; with an aligned vision, processes, and fuel you will be able to create a valuable product or service. Persuasive Communications Expert Dean Brenner likens a meeting to the blood of an organisation and the various other components of the functioning as organs, all working toward the shared goal of creating something of value. 

Let the Blood Flow

Being like the blood of an organism, meetings distribute nutrients (information) and oxygen (systems, processes and action steps) to the various limbs and organs (departments) of the body. You want your meetings to provide all attendees with just enough information for them to be self dependant in achieving their tasks, while remaining confident that they are adhering to the vision of the company. The heart trusts that the veins and arteries will deliver blood to the fingers and toes.

Action Steps

The simplest way to make the most out of your meetings is to adhere to these four simple guidelines

• Organise
  • Prepare your meeting ahead of time. Email your attendees an agenda in advance so they know what the meeting is about, what to expect, and why they are needed. Go through a list of the items you want to discuss, and allow time and space for questions and feedback. As the leader you will need to keep the meeting on track. If the focus points start to veer away from the agenda, or other speakers start to dominate, gently guide the meeting back onto the rails and keep to the schedule.
• Invite 
  • Invite as few people as possible. Trust that the individuals at the meeting will be able to effectively communicate the information you give them to the relevant areas. Remember your job is to see the larger picture. Your employees are tasked with achieving specific goals and outcomes. Give them the information and trust needed for them to achieve these goals on their own. If you cannot trust that your employees will effectively communicate the information given then read our article about workplace culture here for an overview about creating trust in the workplace.

• Provide Action
• • Provide clear and concise actions for people to do at the end of the meeting. This is the main purpose of the meetings. A meeting will always be to solve a problem, inform employees of new information, or swap information amongst various departments. You want each attendee to know exactly what the meeting was for, and walk away with something new either to know or to do. 

• Get Feedback
  • Ask for feedback. As a whopping 33% of all meetings are considered a waste of time you are going to need to know what your employees want out of a meeting so you can provide that. Include a process that asks questions about meetings. How would your employees like to have them? Are they useful to anyone but management? What could you do better? These are all questions you must answer if you want to create a positive culture that maximises efficiency and increases productivity. Finding out what your employees think is crucial in being able to provide them with value, purpose, and a sense of autonomy.

TL;DR

Meet and Yeet

Many employees hate meetings. They waste time, money, and patience. But run correctly they invigorate the organisation with purpose, action, cohesion and productivity. Use your meetings to disseminate new information, and review the old. Ask your employees how they would best be served by meetings to accurately incorporate their experience into your management style. Most of all, set an agenda, provide guidance and concise action steps, and invite only the people that need to be there. Talk the talk to walk the walk. Think about what to do and then do what you think. Meet and yeet. Stop spending money to waste time and use your meetings to give life to the organisation.