Meetings make a crucial part of our workday hours – no schedule of an office worker is complete without them. Unfortunately, not all meetings are productive endeavors; many are considered a waste of time. If you ever wonder why you are in a meeting, or for no specific reason you're in a meeting—you're in good company.
A survey of 182 senior managers across industries indicates 65% said meetings keep them from completing their work. In addition, 71% said meetings are unproductive and inefficient.
Meetings are probably among the few things that flourished during COVID. As a result, most office workers found their time spent in meetings skyrocketed.
The hybrid work model has made communications harder than before. Nevertheless, we still strive to seek ways to communicate effectively, stay productive, and get the jobs done while the post-pandemic period lasts longer than most expected.
Here we have some simple but essential tips to solve problems and improve your meeting efficiency.
1. Have a well-defined agenda and stick to it
To many of us, meetings are essential in fostering relationships and ensuring information exchange. However, they can be fruitful only when a clear agenda is present, making the process functional and everything on track. Every participant knows what to expect and prepares for it accordingly.
A Good meeting agenda can always be broken down into issues and questions and a clear timetable, so no minutes are wasted on irrelevant topics. Without a plan, a meeting could quickly go out of control, becoming endless chatter that can get anywhere but a conclusion.
2. Replace the meeting with a mail or memo instead
The first question you should ask yourself before launching a meeting is—whether you need to meet. And if you do, is there a specific goal to meet?
Asynchronous communication and collaboration tools, like Skype or Teams, can quickly eliminate many traditional meetings. Instead, we can brainstorm, give feedback, and share ideas and perspectives when well-prepared, even if we can't meet in the same place at the same time.
3. Decide who should be invited
Most meetings have too many attendees than needed. Defining key stakeholders and starting with them helps you limit the meeting size effectively. Then including essential consultants may support decision-making. However, saving them for another meeting or reaching out through mail would be a much better alternative for anyone present as an advisor upon marginal matters.
4. Make everyone a leader
You've booked a room, and everyone's shown up. But this doesn't mean participation is there in the meeting.
Leaders in a conventional meeting imply monologue taking up much of the session, which is essentially against the very purpose of a meeting—communication and contribution.
Challenging the attendees to lead the discussion is an excellent way to spur engagement and ensure everyone stays focused during the session. Naturally, one will commit more time and effort in preparation when assigned to deliver a presentation. As a meeting rotates its host among all participants, each one is given an opportunity to grow.
5. Have it virtually, not face-to-face
Businesses are reconsidering traveling policies and embracing virtual meetings in a world more used to remote working. As digital tools continue to evolve, more methodologies and efficient ways will emerge for effective collaboration.
You may try having short online meetings instead of lengthy weekly gatherings. For example, setting aside 5 mins at the end so everyone can recap the action plans or additional questions or concerns. This highly condensed period helps you adapt to a more agile meeting, shifting from conversation to impactful decisions.
Another key here is to have the right tools that meet the goals and types of communication your particular business needs. Experts at AVer have developed video conferencing tailored to different contexts and sizes of meeting to enhance engagement and productivity. So, whether your meetings are attended by 3, 10, or more than 20, there will be an AVer solution for you.
More tips to come
If you want to be productive in a meeting, make sure you walk in prepared. Come back for our next post. More productivity tips await.