The scourge of ineffective meetings & how the six-hat approach can help
The seemingly never-ending series of meetings that feels more like a waste of time than an improvement.
Minutes? More like hours of meetings
According to this survey, 47% complained that meetings wasted their time the most at work.
45% felt overwhelmed by the number of meetings they attended. The amount of time spent in meetings has been rising at a steady rate of 8-10% since 2000. And boy, does it feel like it.
But what has caused us to be indifferent towards this rise? It seems like “a quick call” or blocking your calendar for “10 minutes” has made this problem even worse. It implies an acknowledgment that meetings can be a waste of time and most of them could very easily have been an email, but it’s a superficial verbal acknowledgment that does nothing to improve the situation.
It’s a common sentiment that the number of meetings has gone up to such an extent that they are now compromising the amount of time that needs to go toward the actual execution of the work that is being discussed.
Meeting Mayhem: Why are we still here? Just to suffer?
Ok, jokes apart, why are ineffective meetings and an excessive number of them so bad? Is it just to the annoyance of the employees, but something that cannot be done away with, a necessary evil? Or does it affect productivity and indicate some major flaws in the way a team or even an organisation, functions?
In large organizations, employee surveillance is standard practice. When it comes to mid-sized companies and smaller teams, however, it doesn’t seem to be as acceptable. The need for managers to surveil and hover over their team members, however, is still just as acceptable if not more. So how do they fulfill this need without employee surveillance systems? Meetings.
Having frequent meetings may seem a good thing at first glance. They are often presented as an indication that the team and/or the manager values collaboration, that everyone is always on the same page, communication is smooth and nothing is left to chance. On the contrary, however, the need for frequent and unnecessary meetings shows a lack of alignment, and the need to constantly monitor and dare I say, babysit one’s team members.
Consequences of Ineffective Meetings
As mentioned before, some may see the frequent nature of meetings as a necessary evil, but here’s why they are wrong.
According to a survey by Salary.com, 47% of employees consider meetings to be the biggest waste of time at work. In addition, 39% of employees admitted to dozing off during a meeting, and 91% admitted to daydreaming.
A study by Bain & Company found that 15% of an organization's collective time is spent in meetings, and 50% of those meetings are deemed unnecessary. This means that organizations are wasting a significant amount of time and resources on meetings that don't contribute to the bottom line.
According to a survey by Harvard Business Review, 63% of meetings don't have a set agenda, and 37% don't have any agenda at all. A study by the University of California found that it takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back on task after being interrupted.
So, no, it’s not just employees being lazy or difficult when they complain about having too many meetings, it’s objectively worse to have them.
Why haven’t we tried to change this?
As always, we face some challenges. And unsurprisingly, as always, it is a reluctance towards change, the need to control and dominate, and what can only be termed as a mistrust of one’s employees. As discussed in my previous blog post here, productivity paranoia once again rears it’s head, becoming the very thing it sought to destroy.
Existing power structures and hierarchies make it difficult for team members to suggest improvements in the culture around meetings, especially because it seems to be a sensitive area, reinforcing the notion that they are lazy, or unwilling to comply.
So…now what?
We know what the problem is, we know what the challenges are to implementing the solution, but what is the solution itself?
Although a rise in the number and ineffectiveness of meetings is on the rise as a whole, the particular problems that lead to this situation are different with every organization, so it goes without saying that the solution cannot be a one size fits all.
But maybe there’s something that can get us started in the right direction.
The Thinking Hats and why they need to be in the meeting room
I am sure we have all heard about the 6 thinking hats idea for creative thinking and problem solving. So how do they translate to something that can be implemented in a meeting room?
White Hat: Objective, Analytical, Factual
This hat focuses on neutral facts and figures, bringing clarity and objectivity to discussions.
Start meetings with objective facts, providing a clear understanding of the issue at hand.
Red Hat: Emotional, Intuitive, Gut-feeling
Expressing feelings and intuitive reactions, the Red Hat provides an emotional perspective to discussions.
Encourage team members to openly share their emotions and gut reactions, fostering a more expressive and engaged environment.
Black Hat: Cautious, Critical, Skeptical
A critical thinker, the Black Hat challenges ideas, identifies risks, and provides a cautious viewpoint.
Critically assess ideas, identifying potential pitfalls and minimizing poor decision-making.
Yellow Hat: Positive, Optimistic, Constructive
The Yellow Hat emphasizes positivity, highlighting the value and benefits of ideas and plans.
Focus on the positive aspects of ideas and plans, fostering a constructive atmosphere and balancing critical perspectives.
Green Hat: Creative, Innovative, Inventive
Encouraging creativity, the Green Hat stimulates fresh ideas and explores new possibilities.
During brainstorming sessions, stimulate creativity, generate innovative ideas, and explore new directions.
Blue Hat: Organized, Strategic, Controlled
As the organizer, the Blue Hat sets objectives, controls the process, and ensures a structured approach.
At the beginning of the meeting, set objectives and outline the situation, ensuring a structured and organized approach. Return to the Blue Hat at the end to summarize discussions and draw conclusions, providing clarity and closure.
In the face of the rising epidemic of ineffective meetings, we've delved into the core issues, consequences, and challenges that contribute to this productivity drain. Yet, every problem holds the potential for a solution, and in this case, it lies in the simplicity and power of the Six Thinking Hats.
If you want to read more, you can start here. And here’s a short quiz that will give you a better idea about how effective your current meetings are.