Three steps to better meetings

PwC Australia chief Luke Sayers created a stir in May when he banned all staff meetings between 10am and 4pm.

But Sayers was simply recognising what many of us already know – often internal meetings are a waste of time, producing few, if any, results.

Recognising the problem, Inc.com has produced a handy list of things anyone can do to make sure they’re getting the most out of people when it’s time to meet.

Here are three that we think are crucial, based on hours locked up in stifling rooms:

• Meet where the action is: “Meetings are about actions,” Inc.com’s Jeff Haden writes. “So why would you ever want to meet in a conference room when no product, no services, no nothing is ever produced in a conference room?”
• Don’t allow people to ‘think out loud’: People should show up to meetings with concrete ideas.
• Follow up individually: Don’t hold follow up meetings with everyone involved in the first meeting. Follow up with people who have tasks to complete individually.

More suggestions from Haden about how to improve the effectiveness of meetings are available on Inc.com.

Find out why PwC’s Luke Sayers declared a pox on most staff meetings.

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