Let’s face it, some meetings are just unnecessary. Research conducted by Harvard Business School and the London School of Economics found that 25-50% of meeting time was considered wasted. With so much to do everyday, productivity is paramount and time is money. So why can’t we organize effective meetings that are worth attending? According to software company Altassian, the estimated cost of unnecessary meetings to US businesses in terms of wasted salary hours at $37 billion.
Don’t get me wrong, meetings are a essential to get everyone on the same page about the project, but leaders must inform their team effectively so that it brings value and progression.
“The average employee spends 31 hours in unproductive meetings every single month”. So how do we reduce this number? By focusing on organizing effective meetings and using strategies like implementing a method called the Swiss Trains Approach we can make the face-to-face time of meetings valuable again. The Swiss Trains Approach is when you schedule a meeting for a very specific time, like a train, say 10:13am. This approach can keep attendees on track and curious as to why you are so specific. Another time saving approach is to host meetings virtually through a collaborative online tool like GoToMeeting.
If these methods are not your cup of tea or it just doesn’t make sense for your project check out the infographic below for 9 ways to organize effective meetings.
If you’re looking for other methods to have productive meetings or just want to try something new, adopt one of the styles above and try it out.
What meeting style do you use? How productive is it? Help out your fellow project planners and schedulers by letting us know in the comments below.
Source: Just Say No: How Your Meeting Habit Is Harming You
