Unproductive meetings can be painful and expensive, but a opportunity to be addressed

What are some common causes of unproductive meetings?

One of the primary causes of unproductive meetings in organisations is the absence of a clearly defined meeting culture. Without educating employees and setting clear expectations about what constitutes a productive meeting, it’s unrealistic to expect them to run effective sessions. To truly enhance meeting productivity, a consistent and holistic approach is essential. Once this foundation is in place, we can begin to address some of the common causes of unproductive meetings:

• Too many people: The more attendees in a meeting, the harder it becomes to achieve meaningful outcomes. This challenge is often seen in organisations whose culture tries to avoid anyone feeling left out by inviting everyone.
• Meetings go too long: Many meetings could achieve the same results in a shorter time. It’s surprising how often people default to the standard meeting duration set by their calendar, without giving much thought to how much time is actually needed.
• Lack of preparation: As the saying goes, "Failing to prepare is preparing to fail." Without providing context and materials beforehand, you’re setting the stage for an unproductive meeting.
• Lack of accountability: Meeting organisers must be accountable for how everyone’s time is used during the meeting, and attendees need to hold them accountable to ensure the meeting stays on track. Repeatably failing to hold productive meetings can create a culture of distrust of meetings.

Why do inefficient meetings hurt the business?

Meetings are crucial for effective communication and collaboration within any organisation. However, they also represent a significant expense, making it imperative to reduce or eliminate unproductive meetings.

Meetings are often one of the largest line items on a business’s profit and loss (P&L) statement, yet few organisations have visibility into this substantial cost or take active steps to improve it. In a 100-person organisation, meetings can cost approximately $4 million annually. If 15% to 20% of these meetings are unproductive—a conservative estimate—that equates to $600k to $800k in wasted time each year. This figure only accounts for the direct cost of time; the real impact is much greater when considering the opportunity cost and the negative effect on employee morale in an environment plagued by unproductive meetings.

Ultimately, the key issue is the return on investment (ROI) the business is getting from this significant meeting expenditure.

Why do we need to examine our meeting productivity?

In the current economic climate, almost every expense within businesses is being reviewed and scrutinised. Yet, for some reason, most businesses overlook one of their biggest expense… meetings.

For small businesses, where resources are often limited and every dollar counts, the cost of unproductive meetings can be particularly damaging. Unlike larger organisations that might be able to absorb inefficiencies, small businesses feel the impact of wasted time and resources much more acutely. This makes it crucial for small-business owners to closely examine and optimise their meeting productivity.

Furthermore, in a small business, every employee's time is incredibly valuable. When team members are tied up in unproductive meetings, it not only drains financial resources but also diverts attention away from core business activities. This can slow down decision-making, hinder innovation, and ultimately impact the business’s ability to compete in the market.

Another key consideration is the impact on employee morale. In small teams, where collaboration and communication are vital, poorly managed meetings can lead to frustration and disengagement. This can create a ripple effect, reducing overall productivity and increasing turnover—a costly issue for any small business.

Therefore, by scrutinising and improving meeting productivity, small businesses can unlock significant savings, boost efficiency, and foster a more engaged and motivated workforce.

What are some actionable steps that we can take to start improving meeting productivity today?

Improving meeting productivity is essential for businesses that want to maximise efficiency and minimise wasted time. Meetings are a significant investment of time and resources, so it’s crucial to ensure they are as productive as possible. By taking a strategic approach, we can implement practical steps to enhance the effectiveness of their meetings.

1. Define and promote a good meeting culture: One of the most crucial steps is for the organisation to define what a good meeting culture looks like. This should be consistently promoted throughout the company and included in the onboarding process for new team members.
2. Reduce large group meetings: Each additional person in a meeting with over seven participants reduces productivity by 10%. Large meetings often contribute significantly to unproductive sessions. Limiting attendees to only those essential to the discussion can help keep meetings focused and effective. Project Manda’s AI Assistant and Recurring Meeting reviewer is a great tool to keep large group meetings under control
3. Make meetings shorter: Meetings tend to expand to fill the time allotted. Research indicates that shortening meetings can achieve the same outcomes while creating positive pressure for attendees to stay focused. Implementing "Speedy Meetings" across the organisation is a great start. Google has this feature that can be turned on for individuals. Alternatively, if you want to roll out speedy meetings for the whole business Project Manda can help with this.
4. Avoid back-to-back meetings: Studies show that several hours of back-to-back meetings can lead to high levels of stress and fatigue, making these meetings unproductive. Additionally, attendees often start preparing for the next meeting during the current one, which diminishes the effectiveness of both. Project Manda’s AI Bot can automatically break these cycles for you.
5. Come prepared: Proper preparation is essential, not just for the meeting organiser but also for the attendees. Using agendas can promote good preparation and ensure that only the necessary participants are included.
6. Have clear outcomes: Be explicit about the outcomes of the meeting, who is responsible for the next steps, and when they need to be completed. Clear accountability ensures that meetings lead to tangible results.
7. Review recurring meetings: Recurring meetings can make up over 50% of an organisation’s total meeting load. The effectiveness of these meetings often declines as time passes from their creation. It’s essential for organisers to review the duration, frequency, and attendee list of recurring meetings every three months. Project Manda tooling ensures organisers review their meetings every three months.
8. Create a culture of accountability: Meeting organisers need to be accountable for how everyone’s time is used during the meeting, and attendees should hold them accountable. Encourage an environment where attendees can call out poor meeting practices, fostering a company-wide commitment to better meetings.
9. Get visibility: You can’t change or improve what you can’t measure. Every business leader should know exactly how much is being invested in meetings within the business and what the return on investment is. Project Manda provides organisation-wide visibility on your investment in meetings.
10. Get feedback: We collect feedback for almost everything these days, but very few companies request feedback for their expensive meetings. Gathering feedback helps upskill meeting organisers, identify what’s working well, and pinpoint areas for improvement. It also provides a qualitative dataset on how productive people find meetings within the business. Make sure you are using tools like Project Manda or Fellow to collect feedback after meetings.

Want to know how to enable Speedy Meetings in Google? Find out here.