The Seven Sins of Deadly Meetings

1. The Seven Sins of Deadly Meetings By: Kristopher Fischer

2. Introduction • Deadly meetings = Inefficient meetings • Very costly • Bad for companies • More and more companies are team-based

3. Sin #1: Not Taking Meetings Seriously • Examples: Showing up late, talking about non-business related topics, trying to get out of meeting, etc. • Solution: attain mindset that meeting are important • Methods: management training course,

4. Sin #2: Long Meetings • Meeting costs accrue the longer the meeting • Recommended length: less than 90 minutes • Technology • Meetingware: allows people to speek whenever they want instead of waiting their turn. • Meeting meter (Bernard DeKoven) • Drawback: can increase meeting length.

5. Sin #3: Lack of focus • Irrelevant information is brought up that draws attention away from the matter(s) at hand. • Requires attendees to discipline themselves to remain on topic.

6. Sin #4: Lack of implementation • Solution: Convert from “meeting” to “doing” and focus on common documents • Make sure everyone knows what needs to be done

7. Sin #5: Veiled/Misrepresented Opinions • People sometimes don’t tell the truth • Solution: establish a system of anonymity • Potential problem: those who forward ideas might not get credit

8. Sin #6: Lack of Crucial Information • Decision that is vital to the discussion is not available. • Meetings held in isolated areas to help eliminate distractions. • Technology offers new ways to conduct meetings that doesn’t restrict information flow. • Virtual meeting rooms • Data retrieval

9. Sin #7: Recurring Errors • Meetings never get better. People make the same mistakes. • Practice makes perfect • Keep what works • Eliminate what doesn’t work • Make sure those who participate know of behavior that doesn’t work

10. Benefits • Reduce the cost of meetings • Increase efficiency and productivity of meetings • Faster data access • Promote ideas without fear of repercussions • Inspires people to implement what was discussed