Dear Bob ... When I worked in the computer operations group of a mid-sized software product firm, I pointed out to our boss that the technical staff was spending a minimum of 16% of our time in meetings: daily stand-up, weekly group, quarterly division. That equated to less time helping users, getting projects completed, upgrading servers, etc. He started excusing employees from attending certain meetings. A fe Dear Bob …When I worked in the computer operations group of a mid-sized software product firm, I pointed out to our boss that the technical staff was spending a minimum of 16% of our time in meetings: daily stand-up, weekly group, quarterly division. That equated to less time helping users, getting projects completed, upgrading servers, etc. He started excusing employees from attending certain meetings.A few observations about meetings: Meetings provide a sense of purpose for otherwise idle deadwood in a hierarchy, especially a bureaucracy. No real work ever gets done at a meeting. Meetings don’t foster communication, either, unless the results of the meeting are published and disseminated. Some managers consider it a personal affront if one does not attend that manager’s meeting, especially if that manager’s in your food chain (“What? Your real work is more important than sitting around a table in a stupor listening to deadheads drone on about something you don’t care about?”). Effective techniques to counter meetings (delegation is best, though, as you pointed out): 1) No agenda, no meeting; 2) No chairman, no meeting; 3) Set a time limit and stick to it; 4) Remove any furniture from the meeting room, except for a lectern, perhaps, for the scribe (you are taking minutes, aren’t you?) — meetings become amazingly brief when this is done.– Down with Meetings!Dear Down … I have to say, I think you’re being a bit too harsh. There are good and valid reasons to hold meetings. In particular, there are decisions that require discussion because with good group dynamics, the whole group is smarter than any individual member; and there are decisions that require discussion because they’re important enough to require consensus rather than acquiescence.And, there is value in staff meetings and all-hands meetings, to make sure that when everyone is doing their real work they’re doing it with a shared understanding of what’s important and why. Put it differently: A well-planned, well-structured meeting is an excellent vehicle for effective communication. What, really, is the alternative? Having everyone in an organization work with tremendous individual effectiveness, but pulling in opposing directions.Then there are all those other meetings. And without a doubt, there are plenty of meetings that never had to be held, plenty more that could have been more effective with a smaller invitation list, and even more that could have taken half the time if they were run well. I do, by the way, like stand-up meetings. Not for all situations, but for a daily operations review, a fifteen minute standup meeting is just the ticket.– Bob ——– Technology Industry