What We Can Do About Meeting Without Meaning
Unnecessary Meetings Nerve - Yet They Often Persist Week After Week. How Can We Break "We've Always Done It This Way" Routines?
Those who spend their entire day in meetings that keep them from their actual work experience only one thing in the long run: frustration. Many companies still cling to bad meeting routines, simply because "we've always done it this way." How can teams break out of this cycle?
Unfortunately, there's no patent remedy for changing bad meeting routines, says Teresa Stockmeyer, a trainer and consultant for team development. However, there are many small adjustments that can be made - if desired. The prerequisite is that at least some meeting participants want to make changes. Teams can take various measures to break out of existing meeting structures.
1. Adapt Structures
This includes setting and sharing the goal and agenda of a meeting in advance. The number of participants should be limited, and a moderator should lead the meeting. Ideally, the person responsible for moderation also ensures that the meeting time is not exceeded. It can also be beneficial to record meetings. "This allows everyone to stay informed without having to participate," says Stockmeyer.
2. Take an Active Role
Those who are annoyed by unnecessary meetings should have the courage to address the issue. Teresa Stockmeyer advises not to simply endure meetings that feel unproductive and pointless. Instead, actively question them and gather feedback to see if others feel the same way.
Taking an active role also means asking before meetings what contribution or expertise is expected. Teams can work together to make the current purpose of a meeting visible and reach an agreement on whether this purpose should continue to be fulfilled.
3. Regularly Gather Feedback
After each meeting, a quick evaluation should take place to learn what worked well and what can be improved, according to Teresa Stockmeyer.
4. "Kill All Meetings" Experiment
Those who want to take a more radical approach can start the "Kill all meetings" experiment for one to two weeks. This involves ruthlessly clearing one's own calendar and, if necessary, the team calendar as well, Stockmeyer advises. This quickly shows where exchange is missing and where it is not necessary.
What also helps to reduce unnecessary meetings is to ask yourself various questions in a thought experiment: "What meetings or summaries would I need if I returned to my workplace after a three-week vacation?" or "Which meeting participations and summaries can I do without for three weeks and still be able to work after my absence?"
False Goals: Why We Hold Onto Senseless Meetings
There are many reasons why we hold onto unnecessary meetings, according to team consultant Teresa Stockmeyer. It often has to do with hidden, partly unconscious goals of meetings. It could be that meetings are secretly serving social exchange or status presentation and self-promotion, rather than addressing business matters.
Teams may also cling to joint appointments without a real reason, because they supposedly bring structure to the workday, strengthen a sense of belonging and motivation. However, the opposite effect often occurs. Instead of structuring the workday, it is fragmented by constant meetings - "especially if meetings are poorly timed or happen too frequently," says Stockmeyer.
Instead of feeling like they belong, employees may feel like they're constantly in meetings, especially when people are invited who contribute little to the actual topic - just to satisfy the need to "include everyone in meetings or exclude no one".
Employers could encourage their teams to adapt meeting structures by setting clear goals and agendas in advance, limiting the number of participants, and assigning a moderator to ensure meetings stay on track and are not excessively lengthy. Employees who are frustrated with unnecessary meetings should take an active role by questioning their purpose and gathering feedback from their colleagues to see if others share similar sentiments.
