5 Types of Unnecessary Team Meetings
Unnecessary meetings are a major source of waste and inefficiency in organizations.
They also are very painful for the team members, who often spend a lot of time sitting in meetings that do not help them get their work done.
While it’s true that team members need to spend time together to share ideas, coordinate activities, and develop solutions, there are many unnecessary meetings which should be avoided at all costs.
Here are five types of unnecessary meetings that you should try to avoid:
1. Progress Update Meetings
Even meeting organizers know that progress update meetings are a waste of time.
The best solution is to involve team members regularly, where they can share their progress with each other.
In addition, the meeting should decide what they need to work on next.
These meetings serve the purpose of sharing information about current projects and plans with team members.
But status reports can be sent in many other ways, including weekly reports and bi-weekly reports that give more details about the status of different tasks.
Instead of having status report meetings, team members can simply send updates to each other via e-mail or use the group’s chat room to communicate.
2. Irrelevant Meetings
Besides status meetings, irrelevant meetings are the worst.
Irrelevant meetings are those which are held just to invite all department members, even when they don’t have any work to do.
They can also be those which are held to discuss the minutiae of what is going on in other teams, or the general process of an initiative that has already been approved by the leadership.
This type of meeting is one of the most obvious ways to waste time. It often causes friction among team members who feel that they have been invited just to sit around and waste time.
There are better ways to spend time, such as solving actual problems that need attention.
3. Regular Team Meetings with No Goals
While it is necessary for the management team to decide on the direction of the company, this does not mean that every single internal project needs to be discussed.
Bad meetings can destroy a team and can quickly cause internal conflicts.
If every project has to be discussed at every meeting, there is no time left for the other critical tasks that need to be done.
While some projects will require more attention than others, a regular team meeting should not be required for every project.
Sometimes, it is necessary to get a large amount of information about a particular project.
However, if there is no urgent need for the management team to meet on this topic, then it is better not to meet at all.
4. Meetings with No Specified Time Limit
Long meeting time, like over three hours, means that the work on the floor is halted. We should avoid these types of meetings because they mean less time for productive work.
The purpose of any meeting is to exchange information and ideas about what needs to be done, or why something needs to be done in a particular way.
Time limit is important to avoid extended meetings and the risk of not being able to finish a project.
If we feel that a meeting is going on too long, we should bring up the subject of time limit.
If there is no apparent goal for the meeting, then it could be beneficial to split into smaller groups or work in smaller teams.
5. Non-Urgent Team Meetings
Unlike kickoff meetings, which are often mandatory, there is no real reason to hold non-urgent team meetings.
In fact, the term “non-urgent” may not even be appropriate most times.
If you struggle to figure out when to hold team meetings, look at the upcoming tasks on your project and decide if they are urgent.
If not, don’t hold a meeting about it. Instead, assign the task to someone who can complete it in a timely manner.
Don’t Waste The Entire Team’s Time
With meeting, there are many types of unnecessary meetings that should be avoided in order to increase the productivity and efficiency of your organization.
By using these tips, you will make sure that your meetings are efficient and effective.
This means you will meet less with people and more time doing the things that you need to get done.
About the Author
I hope that my post has helped you know more about Startups. Feel free to leave a comment and tag me and I will answer them. Follow my profile to get the latest content I post to stay ahead of the curve.
I am the Founder of Cudy Technologies, a full-stack EdTech startup helping teachers and students learn better. I am also a mentor and angel investor in other Startups of my other interests (Proptech, Fintech, HRtech, Ride-hailing, C2C marketplaces, and SaaS). You can also find me on Cudy for early-stage Startup Founder mentorship and advice.
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