Recently, a friend of mine called me with so much excitement in her voice that I thought she’d won the lottery. But no, it turned out that a morning meeting had been canceled. She was almost giddy as she exclaimed: “Now I can finally get some work done!”

I know the feeling. Like most leaders these days, it often feels like I’m rushing from one meeting to another. Most of the time, I look forward to meetings, but depending on my workload, energy level, the topic or the type of meeting, there are days when I’m less enthusiastic. The irony is that as one of our company’s leaders, I’m often the one who has set up the meeting. It’s humbling to realize that if I have mixed feelings about meetings, others do too.

Here’s a hard question for us to ask ourselves as leaders: Are our meetings helping our company culture or are they actually an added source of stress?

The true answer is probably both. We set up meetings at work for a variety of reasons: We need to share important company information, make key decisions or solve problems, manage work progress, brainstorm or share ideas, provide or ask for feedback, build team relationships and foster a sense of community. Sure, we all know we can send important information or updates in an email or a memo, but how can we accomplish team-related objectives without actually getting people together? 

On the flip side, how can we maintain positive company cultures and have high productivity when we are in meetings all day? This paradox is plaguing many organizations these days. 

None of us intentionally set up meetings to waste peoples’ time, but it is happening — and at a higher rate than in the past. 

If it seems to you that there are more meetings than ever, it’s true. Even before the pandemic, Harvard Business Review cited research that meetings overall have increased in length and frequency over the past 50 years. And a recent report from Microsoft showed that in particular, virtual meetings have continued to increase even after the pandemic.

Some of those increased meetings in recent years are a direct attempt to create a cohesive culture in the wake of the pandemic and the rise of the hybrid work environment. While the intention was good, many of these meetings are not helping build culture or increase productivity.

According to research from Slingshot, in 2023 many companies rushed to address “quiet quitting,” the phenomenon of workers disengaging and coasting until they eventually leave. To combat this trend, managers jumped in with even more frequent check-ins and meetings. This has actually compounded the problem, because many of these meetings are inefficient. 

According to Microsoft research, inefficient meetings are the most frequently cited barrier to productivity, with 68% of employees saying they don’t have enough uninterrupted time during the workday to actually focus on work.

“Despite constant check-ins and meetings, nearly half (45%) of employees say that more meetings have not resulted in increased productivity,” the Microsoft report says. Other meeting-related obstacles to productivity include challenges brainstorming in group meetings and difficulty catching up when you’ve joined the meeting late. Fifty-six percent of respondents reported it was difficult to summarize meetings and 55% reported that unclear next steps are barriers to productivity.

The overall effect of too many unproductive meetings is that workers leave feeling either micromanaged or overwhelmed by the meetings they attend. 

When people are overwhelmed, they disengage. We’ve all had folks decline or cancel meetings last-minute, zone off, or check their phones or email. Most leaders are guilty of these same behaviors — I fully admit I find it almost impossible not to jump at an urgent text or notification even if I’m in a meeting. But when our teams are not paying attention or are resentful of being in a meeting, it erodes engagement. And when we as leaders are distracted or are multitasking, we are poor role models and are actively sabotaging our own cultures. 

This is serious business, as culture is more important than ever. Research by Deloitte shows 94% of executives and 88% of employees believe corporate culture is important to business success. Common sense tells us positive culture improves engagement, prevents burnout and ultimately reduces turnover. In these days of hybrid work, meetings — including where we meet, when we meet, how we use our time in groups or teams and how we act when we are together — are becoming a more and more important component of company culture and a key driver of engagement. 

It’s painful to realize that despite our best intention to get people together, we may actually be making things worse for everyone. We still need to share information, make key decisions, brainstorm ideas and solve problems, manage work, and build relationships. So what is the solution? 

The answer is not “No meetings.” The answer is better meetings. 

Better meetings may mean that the time you spend together is more efficient, the facilitation or moderation more effective, the time shorter (or longer) or the platform better suited to the type of discussion. At the end of the day, a better meeting means you have achieved the stated objectives, advanced company goals, and everyone leaves feeling more supported and equipped to succeed.

Wouldn’t it be nice to get an email that a meeting is being shortened because the agenda was streamlined? Or to make a call telling a friend how excited you are to attend an upcoming meeting because you love how much you get done with your teammates when you’re together? Or to leave a meeting knowing exactly what you need to do next, energized about your work?

With a little planning, better meetings are within your reach. 

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12 Ways to Improve Your Meetings

1. Know why you are having the meeting. A great deal of communication, information sharing or problem-solving can be done via email, memos, phone calls or quick conversations between two people or small groups. So ask yourself the real reason for the meeting. As best-selling author Adam Grant says: “There are four reasons to meet: to decide, learn, bond, and do. If it doesn’t serve one of those purposes, cancel it.”
2. Determine how much time is appropriate. Just because you have traditionally allocated a certain amount of time to a meeting doesn’t mean that is still the right amount. If you regularly run out of time, the meeting may need to be lengthened or work needs to be done in advance to prepare. Conversely, if you can get through the agenda in half the time, cut it down. And if you have finished your business before the time is up, end the meeting.
3. Select the right environment, platform and technology. Some meetings are better done face to face in order to connect with the other person or team, effectively present information or data, observe body language or integrate interactive elements. That might mean the meeting should be held in person; then it is critical to ensure you have the right room and the technology in place. Sometimes you may want to hold a meeting off-site to eliminate distractions. Meetings that are more perfunctory can be held via phone call.
4. Set a clear agenda with desired outcomes defined. Every single meeting should have an agenda that includes the purpose of the meeting, items of business to be addressed, desired outcomes, assignments and next steps. State what decisions need to be made and who has authority to make them. If decision-makers are not present, either table the meeting or be clear about how you’ll make recommendations and obtain the approvals needed.
5. Apply the 40-20-40 Rule. Many people show up at a meeting and dive right in without spending adequate time getting ready or they conclude a meeting without following up after the interaction. In their book “How to Fix Meetings,” best-selling authors G. Allcott and H. Watts recommend that leaders use this allocation: 40% of your time spent on preparation, 20% in the meeting, and the remaining 40% for follow-through. While it may seem unintuitive to spend less of your time in the actual meeting, work before and after may make the actual meeting more productive. 
6. Stick to your agenda and stay on time. It is a sign of respect to start and end meetings on time, so set that expectation and adhere to it as the leader no matter if the call is virtual, phone or in person. If you need a break between back-to-back meetings, build that in as it is hard to end early when you are in the moment. It can be tempting to shift from the stated agenda, go down “rabbit holes,” engage in deep dives or try to solve problems that should be addressed at another time. I admit that I have been known to derail a conversation by chatting about life outside of work or even joking around; while it’s fun to have those conversations, going off topic can waste people’s time. 
7. Set guidelines for engagement. If you are taking the time to have a meeting, set some norms. Do you expect people to be in person? If the meeting is virtual, is having cameras standard for your organization? Whatever you decide, be direct and clear. Balance concerns around privacy with needs for engagement; employees do not want to feel that their boss is monitoring their behavior via cameras, but if you have set clear norms, people will be able to better plan in advance.
8. Include everyone in the conversation, or don’t have the meeting. If people are not involved in a meeting, they will not be engaged. Interaction is especially important in a virtual meeting where folks can easily tune out or be distracted. Even if someone’s role is mostly listening, at minimum do introductions, an ice breaker, a check-in part way through the meeting or a close. 
9. Use artificial intelligence tools where appropriate. For confidential meetings, using AI aids is not desirable or advised. But for day-to-day meetings or project management, AI tools can help. I’ve been amazed by how accurate some of the note-taking or summarizing functions are. These tools can save time and keep everyone organized. 
10. Determine follow-up items and next steps. There’s nothing worse than having a great meeting only to forget what you decided or resolve or wasting time sorting through emails and notes to figure out what happened. Using the 40-20-40 approach, take good notes during the meeting and summarize them as soon as possible afterward. Send minutes, assignments and resolutions to participants or stakeholders and keep those notes in a place where they can be located easily. Make sure people know follow-up tasks, who is responsible and deadlines. 
11. Ask participants for feedback. For regular meetings and one-on-ones, schedule time periodically to talk about the meeting itself. Is the meeting needed? Is the agenda working? What could be improved? What could streamline the conversation? For one-off meetings, conduct surveys or directly seek after-action feedback on the best way to approach these in the future. Approach the feedback with an open mind and with the goal of improving not just the meeting itself but the overall employee experience.
12. Define your meeting culture in alignment with your company culture. Your meeting style should reflect your company vision, mission and values. If you have a casual culture, making your meetings too formal won’t work, and the corollary is true. But you can be intentional, organized, efficient and authentic at the same time. Your meetings should reflect the best version of your desired culture. If your goal is to be a great place to work, consider how you can also be a great place to meet.