Dated 26th Jul, 2000

As a corporate animal, you must be the rarest if you have not at least spent a couple of hours this week (or any week) at a meeting wondering why you were there, or wished you were somewhere else, actually getting something done! Crores are squandered by businesses- holding unnecessary meetings, having little or no agendas for meetings, and including people that don't need to be there. I have often felt that the "Boss Group" in corporates often justifies its existence by holding long tedious and pointless meetings. It appears that the higher up we get, these time-wasting, frustrating, contentious, non-productive assemblies consume most of our time.

There is no excuse for holding or attending expensive, pointless, frustrating meetings. Either the meeting itself can be avoided by accomplishing the same objective some other, less time consuming way, or the factors that make the meeting expensive, pointless or frustrating can be mitigated.

The whys

Whether you call the meeting or have "been summoned" to attend one, your time will be spent much more effectively (and your frustration level will be much lower) if you understand the specific objective of the meeting. Unfortunately, many meetings are called without a proper agenda. People simply meet out of habit or custom or because they feel it is the expected thing to do. What is to be accomplished at such meetings should be clear and make sure that there has been the desired outcome. If there has been no outcome at all (a circumstance which is commoner than you think!), you and all attendees have wasted your time (and, importantly, Money!).

Examples of successful objectives:

To work out solutions to a common problem.

To take review status of a project when there are many interdependencies.

There is some outcome that can best be produced by several people with different specialisations across different divisions.

To start or close a project and to convey important communication.

Avoid bootless meetings

When not to have a meeting:

When dealing with personnel issues like hiring, firing, negotiating salaries or dealing with disciplinary and corrective actions. This is a need-to-know-area, and despite `transparency' this is best discussed in camera with those concerned.

There is inadequate data or poor preparation. (If you haven't had time to prepare, it is more acceptable to reschedule than to `fake it.')

The information could be communicated better by some other means. (E-mail, Intranet, telephone, memo, or one-to-one discussion.

The subject matter is confidential.

Your mind is made up or you've already arrived at a decision. Often meetings are called by the 'biggies' to justify a decision that they have already made!

The subject is not important enough to justify everyone's time.

There is too much anger or hostility in the group. Airing one's feelings or `clearing the air' often only results in "I'll get back at you!" attitudes.

The wheres

Typically, we invite people that we "think should be there" but we don't really give much thought to why we want them there or what we want that person to do. Decide in advance what roles need to be filled to ensure you reach your objective and then determine the best person to fill that role. The right people are determined by the meeting's objective. Who needs to be directly involved in the task at hand? Who can be informed later? Generally speaking, every person in the room must have an absolute need to be there. Each person added to the meeting adds to the amount of time it takes to communicate circumstances, arrive at mutually acceptable decisions, and move along the agenda. Each person invited to the meeting should understand his or her role or expected contribution. If they don't, they shouldn't be there!

Stick to the point

When pertinent matters are raised (as they frequently are) it is important to capture them. One of the main benefits of meetings is the synergy and creative thought that happens when people get together to discuss an issue from several angles. However, getting sidetracked makes you less likely to gain your objective in the time allotted. Capturing the asides by minuting them, or delegating responsibility for action on the digressions immediately has considerable merit. Also when it appears that only two or three members are taking active part in a well- populated meeting, it is an indication that most of the others have tuned out and perhaps it is only those two or three who need to meet!

Talking the talk

Although we've been taught since we were school children that we must play nicely with others, wait our turn to speak, and treat one another respectfully, we've also all been in meetings where those basic niceties get conveniently forgotten. Speaking out of turn, interrupting, raising voices, and ignoring points of view robs the individuals involved of credibility and robs the meeting of any potential for synergy. Once meetings turn into a free for all, it is best for the sensible to leave. Nothing constructive is going to be decided, and if any decisions are taken, they are likely to be the wrong ones.

Evaluation of meetings

Many organisations at home and abroad have taken to evaluating their meetings. Every participant in the meeting could be requested to evaluate the outcome of the meeting, but this takes time. It might (God forbid!) need another meeting to discuss the evaluations! One of the most effective ways is to calculate every participant's cost to the company per minute, and work out the cost of having them all there for the duration of the meeting. If it is found that the cost saving effected by the company is greater than the cost of holding the meeting, the meeting has obviously been proved worthwhile. If not, and this is most often the case, the meeting has been a waste of time and money!

The last word

Meetings don't have to be frustrating, vague, hostile, and ineffective. By putting some time and effort into preparing for them and considering the factors in this article, you may actually find yourself looking forward to them! The people invited to them may not admit it right away, but they may find themselves looking forward to them, too! (Or at least not dreading them!)

Abhimanyu Acharya

abhimanyuKindia.com