By: Natasha Archary
The hidden costs of meaningless meetings is hitting productivity and bottom lines hard.
This according to Advaita Naidoo, Africa MD at Jack Hammer, the largest executive search firm in Africa.
Naidoo says inefficient meetings which take up time in employees’ work days can actually hurt more than help a company, affecting the attention span of staff and limiting time to complete tasks.
A 2022 survey by Microsoft polled 31 000 people in 31 countries, showing that the number one disruptor in an employee’s work day was unnecessary and meaningless meetings.
Online meetings which were a convenient way to engage with colleagues and stakeholders during Covid-19, have taken over most office environments, giving team leaders a tool to call a meeting for the most minute and trivial things.
Something that could have been communicated or addressed in an email, is now being brought to an employee’s attention in a meeting which is leading to increased employee dissatisfaction.
5 ways meaningless meetings cost your company
A waste of time and resources which could have been used for other productive activities
It’s not only time spent during the meeting that is wasted but the time ahead of the meeting which is spent in preparation.
The interruption to the work day, where employees have to now switch from productive work to the meeting mentally, and then back again after the meeting is disruptive.
Costly exercises
Arranging in-person meetings where travel is involved is a costly exercise that requires travel costs, accommodation, catering, and refreshments.
A reduction in employee engagement and satisfaction
Meetings can be boring, frustrating, and demotivating for employees if they are not relevant, interactive, and meaningful. An extreme frustration is sitting in an endless meeting from which nothing of value arises, all while knowing how much real work awaits at the end of the meeting.
A block on creativity and innovation
If meetings are too structured, rigid, or formal, only a few employees may make the contributions, leaving others feeling discouraged.
A delay in action and results
Firstly, if a decision needs to be made and can be made quickly and efficiently between the relevant parties via immediate communication, but is delayed until a meeting date in the future; and secondly, if decisions are not followed by effective execution.
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