Meetings are one of our most-used processes at USC, but they're not always efficient
and effective. In fact, the opportunity for improvement is so great that the Office of Organizational
Excellence conducted a survey in February 2024 to learn more. Key findings are presented
below. Included are insights and recommended actions – things we can all do for fewer,
faster, and better meetings.
(See further below for Insights and Recommended Actions)
145 people from USC completed the survey.
They report attending 8 meetings (average per person) during the typical 5-day work week, but the number ranges widely – from 1 to 25 meetings per person across all respondents.
The average meeting lasts 54 minutes, with a range of 20 minutes to 2 hours.
The time spent in meetings really adds up. On average among respondents, each person spends 344 hours in meetings each year. That's nearly 9 full work weeks! If a team of six people attends meetings together, they're living through a total of 2,065 meeting hours per year.
On average for the full survey pool, respondents report that 58% of their meeting time is well spent. The remaining 42% adds up to 143 hours per year that could be saved and redirected. That's close to 4 full weeks per person that could be better used if all meeting time was productive time.
| If you want to see how much time you spend in meetings, and how much time you'd save with fewer and better meetings, use this meeting time calculator. (opens in a new window) |
| All too often, meetings are not designed in a way that effectively supports the purpose of the meeting. |
By the numbers: 36% of respondents said that meetings are sometimes designed to match the purpose, and another 22% said this is rarely or never the case.
Why it matters: When a meeting isn’t thoughtfully designed with the purpose in mind, it’s likely to spin off in unproductive directions and fail to engage participants.
What you can do: Start by getting clear on the purpose of the meeting, and design it accordingly. Here are five different meeting types – with tips and tools for each. (opens in a new window)
| Meetings to share information are the most common meeting by far – giving us a big opportunity to save time. |
By the numbers: 65% of respondents selected “inform” meetings as their #1 pick in terms of what gets done most often in the meetings they attend.
Why it matters: Meetings to share information dominate working hours, often resulting in evening and weekend work just to get regular work done. This impacts productivity and can cause burnout.
Notable quote: “Gaining 11.3 hours/week would be incredibly helpful – that’s time I wouldn’t have to steal from my nights and weekends to get things done, and it would go a long way toward my productivity and mental health.”
What you can do: Reduce the number and length of informational meetings, and whenever possible, skip the meeting altogether and share information via email, Teams, and other time-saving ways.
| Meetings to address and solve problems are relatively rare. |
By the numbers: Only 1 in 5 respondents selected “problem solving meetings” as one of their top two meeting types (from a list of five) – compared to nearly 4 in 5 who had “informational meetings” in their top two.
Why it matters: We end up playing whack-a-mole with problems, rather than effectively meeting to address the root cause of issues, since there isn’t time to problem solve with those who can inform a meaningful solution.
Notable quote: "I think a lot of meetings could be handled with a few emails."
What you can do: Commit to reducing informational meetings to make space for well thought out problem solving.
| Many respondents are especially frustrated with meetings that don't stay on track. |
Notable quotes:
“Limit story time and stay on topic during meetings.”
“Rein in individuals who go on excessively during meetings.”
“Stick to the time. Wave the wand on those who sidetrack the goal of the meeting.”
Why it matters: Your time and everyone's time in a meeting has value. And it carries an opportunity cost. Whenever you and others suffer through a rambling meeting, all your tasks are still there when the meeting wraps up – but now you have less time to do them.
What you can do: Agree on a few meaningful ground rules in advance of your meeting.
- Set a time limit for individual comments or suggestions, and stick with it.
- Avoid side conversations and interruptions during discussions.
- Encourage participants to silence phones and not respond to emails or texts during meetings.
- When people bring up new and different topics, write them in a “parking lot” to keep the meeting on track and ensure that the new points get saved for future reference.
| Less really IS more when it comes to meetings. |
Why it matters: By taking a few considered actions to improve, we can indeed have fewer, faster, and better meetings. Meetings are a process, and as with all processes, we can make them more efficient. We’ll save time, ease frustration, and make things better for everyone.
What you can do:
- Actively advocate for fewer, more purposeful meetings.
- Suggest a re-evaluation of all meetings to clarify their purpose.
- Be especially alert to serial meetings that occur every week or two – but produce very little.
- Use meetings for topics that truly call for conversation and interaction.
- Keep a tight agenda that drives the meeting’s purpose and outcomes.
- When meetings stray to unproductive topics and rabbit trails, quick intervene and get the group back on track.
- Conduct smaller, more-focused meetings that pertain directly to areas of responsibility.
Get tips and tools for fewer, faster, and better meetings.