Mar 06, 2024

Picture this: you’re trapped in yet another meeting, the clock ticks mercilessly, and the agenda seems stuck in quicksand. Sound familiar? In the fast-paced UAE, where time is gold, unproductive meetings can be a silent killer, draining energy and derailing progress. 

Meetings are an inevitable part of doing business, but employees often see them as major time-wasters. A study by Atlassian found that employees spend 31 hours per month in unproductive meetings. For organizations in the UAE looking to maximize efficiency, optimizing meetings is critical. But fear not, weary warriors of the conference room! With a few strategic tweaks, you can transform those soul-sucking gatherings into vibrant hubs of innovation and action. Let’s unleash the power of 7 time-saving techniques that will turn your meetings from dreaded meltdowns to efficient engines of success.

The Price of Improductive Meetings:

We’re not just talking about a few wasted minutes here. A recent study by Doodle found that the average UAE employee spends a whopping 4 hours per week in unproductive meetings. That translates to a staggering 16 weeks lost to inefficiency per year! Imagine the innovation, the progress, the achievements that could be unlocked if we reclaimed this lost time.

As a learning and development or human resources professional, you can help implement time-saving techniques to make meetings more productive. Here are seven strategies to consider:

1. Clarify the Purpose

Only hold a meeting if it has a clear purpose. Before scheduling, define:

• The specific objective and desired outcome
• Who really needs to attend
• Why the discussion can’t happen over email or chat

Harvard Business Review found that executives consider over 50% of meetings to be failures because they lack purpose and direction. Defining the purpose upfront provides focus.

2. Limit Attendees

The more people in a meeting, the less productive it tends to be. Exclude anyone who doesn’t directly contribute to the purpose. The ideal meeting size is 2-3 people. If more attendees are essential, use additional time-saving tactics.

A Yale University study found that once a meeting exceeds 7-10 attendees, productivity rapidly declines. Be choosy about who you invite to maximize efficiency.

As Stephen Covey famously said, “It takes as much energy to move a bad decision as a good one.” Let’s avoid moving bad decisions (and wasting time)!

3. Shorten Length

The Quora Census Report found that 49% of employees spend 1-2 hours per day in meetings. Cut back where you can. Consider making meetings:

• 45 or 30 minutes versus defaulting to a full hour
• Standing meetings to encourage brevity
• Structured with timed sections

If the meeting must be long, build in breaks every 45-60 minutes so people can refocus. Short, well-planned meetings prevent wasted time.

As Peter Drucker reminds us, “There is nothing quite so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.” Let’s focus on the right things, efficiently!

4. Set an Agenda

An agenda outlines what needs to be accomplished. Share it in advance so attendees come prepared. During the meeting, stick closely to the agenda to avoid going off-track.

Agendas also enable the chairperson to rein in discussions when needed and end on time. The tighter the agenda, the more productive the meeting.

5. Limit Presentations

Presentations often drag meetings out without enhancing productivity. Strictly limit presentation time with rules like:

• Max 3 slide decks with 5-10 slides each
• Presenters get just 10 minutes of total speaking time

Encourage presenters to be concise and allow 5-10 minutes for Q&A. Passive listening should not dominate productive discussions.

6. Designate a Facilitator

The chairperson/facilitator keeps everyone on task and the discussion on track per the agenda. They summarize agreements and action items to end the meeting.

Without a strong facilitator, discussions easily veer off-course, and time gets wasted. Select someone with good focus, organization, and time management abilities.

7. Follow Up Afterwards

It’s common for some loose ends and next steps to get lost after the meeting concludes. The chairperson should document minutes and email a summary with:

• Recap of decisions and agreements made
• Action items and owners
• Next steps and deadlines

This prevents repetition of discussions at the next meeting and keeps everyone aligned outside of meetings too.

With rising real estate and labor costs in the UAE, making every minute count is essential. Applying techniques like limiting attendees, designating a facilitator and circulating recap notes helps companies maximize productivity. Employees will be grateful for meetings that respect their time and keep them engaged.

Ready to Supercharge Your Meetings?

Beyond these 7 techniques, TrainingBooth goes a step further. We offer customized training programs and workshops tailored to your specific needs and challenges, driving employee skill development in the UAE. Our expert facilitators will guide your team through interactive sessions, equipping them with techniques for active listening, giving and receiving feedback, fostering inclusive participation, and leveraging technology effectively. We’ll even help you create a culture of continuous learning, where teams hold each other accountable for holding productive and focused meetings.

Here’s how we can help:

• Expert-led workshops: Our engaging training sessions equip your teams with the skills and knowledge needed to plan, facilitate, and participate in effective meetings.
• Customized learning solutions: We work closely with you to understand your specific challenges and design programs that address them head-on.
• Culturally sensitive approach: Our trainers are well-versed in the cultural landscape of the UAE, ensuring all materials and approaches resonate with your diverse workforce.
• Technology integration: We leverage cutting-edge tools and platforms to make learning interactive, accessible, and impactful.

Contact Us today and let’s embark on a journey to transform your meeting culture.

Don’t let unproductive meetings hold your business back!