Meeting rooms: Where productivity goes to die
Are meetings costing you more than you think?
Are the bulk of your meetings actually valuable? Are they a genuine opportunity for innovation, or more of a drain on energy and team goodwill? You're not alone if you're grappling with these questions.
Gallup data shows that senior executives spend more than two days a week in meetings, yet consider a staggering 67% of these meetings to be 'failures.' And beyond the sheer time drain, consider this: unproductive meetings cost businesses an estimated $37 billion a year.
So, what if saying 'no' to a meeting today could save your organisation time and money tomorrow? And if it was so easy, why aren't organisations doing that?
The Great Meeting Revolution
Current meeting culture was designed for a bygone era. And while we're clinging to a formality that's more nostalgic than functional, we're also staring at a surge in meeting frequency. According to AMEX's Global Meetings and Events Forecast, not only will in-person meetings spike, but virtual and hybrid meetings are also on a steady climb.
So given what we know about just how those meetings are going -- what can we learn from this? Let's look at some real-world case studies.
Learning from Dropbox and Asana
Dropbox and Asana dared to disrupt their meeting cultures, and the payoff was immense. At Dropbox, the exec team cancelled all recurring internal meetings for a two-week experiment called "Armeetingeddon". During this period, employees were encouraged to question the necessity of each meeting before reinstating them, and meeting hosts were prohibited from rescheduling recurring meetings for two weeks post-experiment. The organisation found it so effective, that it inspired another experiment over at Asana.
Asana's experiment became known as the "Meeting Doomsday," cancelling all small recurring huddles for 48 hours. Once again, this brief pause gave everyone a moment to question the necessity of each meeting before reinstating them. For many, those meetings were seriously reduced, or never reinstated.
And here's the kicker: The Asana experiment unlocked an astonishing 11 hours per team member per month – practically two and a half work weeks a year!
One team member even gained back 32 hours monthly. Overall, the teams refined their approach, turning 30-minute discussions into tight 20-minute chats, making weekly sync-ups monthly, and shifting certain updates to asynchronous formats. Time to reconsider what meeting culture looks like in your space, wouldn't you agree?
Weighing the Hidden Costs
Meetings come with both costs and benefits, and the key is to make them intentional. Meetings are not the enemy; aimless meetings are. So, how can you make yours matter?
Ask yourself...
Are your meetings purpose-driven, or are they ticking a routine box?
What if you could reclaim two and a half work weeks per year—what impact could that have on your projects or well-being?
How often do you reassess the necessity and format of your recurring meetings?
Are you clinging to traditional meeting formats, or are you open to innovative, time-saving approaches?
Flip the Table, Not Just the Script
The reality is most organisations aren't going to embrace an experiment like Dropbox or Asana's, so re-thinking meetings will start with you. Audit your meetings, be honest, and dare to innovate. It's your choice to let meetings drain your resources or to harness them as your most potent asset.
Ask yourself...
When was the last time you audited your own meeting practices?
Do you use meetings effectively?
What steps have you taken to make your meetings better?
Are you brave enough to disrupt the 'meeting as usual' culture?
Meetings culture stands on the brink of change. Will you take the step?
