How to Turn Awful Meetings Into Awesome Meetings

We're spending too much of our time at meetings, and many of us feel like that's not time well spent, recent studies show. Workers today spend an average of 5.6 hours a week attending meetings, and a whopping 71 percent of them feel like it's not a productive use of their time, a Microsoft report indicates.

To address the root causes of ineffective meetings, GiveMore.com recently surveyed 1,600 people with a simple question: "What frustrates you most about meetings at work?" You may recognize some of their answers, but fear not.

We also propose suggestions on how to better organize your meetings to make them productive experiences that you and your fellow colleagues may even, dare we say it, look forward to. It starts at the top.

Corrective action "can be handled so easily by the leader," says Sam Parker, co-founder of GiveMore.com. "Almost all [causes of frustration] fall into that category. Respect your attendees by preparing well, communicating well and valuing everyone's time.

You should have one objective: Make your attendees better as a result of being there." GiveMore.com is a business specializing in meeting planning and execution.

Problem: Too much rambling and repetition. Solution: State what you have to say concisely and clearly, then move on.

Problem: Meetings don't start on time. Solution: Enforce start time with no exceptions, and don't backtrack for stragglers.

Problem: Discussion never stays on track. Solution: Come up with focused agenda, distribute it and stick to it.

Problem: There are no 'action points'. Solution: Make sure duties are assigned to attendees capable of doing them.

Problem: There is no point. Solution: Align purpose to well-established organizational objectives.

Problem: It's too long. Solution: Keep the agenda streamlined, stick to it, and respect ending times.

Problem: It's too boring. Solution: Require presenters to arrive prepared, with material that isn't redundant, and to actively engage participants.

Problem: 'We Have Meetings Just to Have Meetings!' Solution: Don't. Give e-updates on standard business.

By Dennis McCafferty / Baseline