Can IT solve the ineffective meeting problem?

Written by Jan Willem Brands, vice president at Barco

Meetings; can’t live with them, can’t live without them. There are roughly 25 million meetings per day in the U.S. and 67 percent of executives deem them to be complete failures. Meetings are increasingly viewed as a necessary evil teaming with inefficiencies, but it doesn’t have to be this way. IT can help lead the charge in making meetings more valuable and ultimately more collaborative for all participants.

IT Can Champion Device Agnostic Answers

Consider the following scenario: you’re in a meeting with an important client and they want to show you slides from a presentation they put together. Unfortunately, the projector in your conference room won’t connect to your client’s laptop or device that houses the slides. You’re stuck trying to find a solution like having the client email the information to you, which can eat up time depending on the file size, or tracking down IT to find a connector that will work with the client’s device – fun fact, the average IT professional walks 26 miles a year to start up meetings.

Understanding the frequency with which this common roadblock occurs, IT can look at implementing device agnostic, wireless solutions to help keep meetings on track.

They Mitigate Meeting Disengagement with Collaborative Solutions

There are various reasons why participation can dwindle in meetings; one of the most common is what I like to call the one-man show syndrome. We’ve all sat in meetings where one person takes over the conversation and leaves little room for others to interject. It’s a growing problem. In fact, a recent Harvard Business Review article shares that 20 to 35 percent of value-added collaborations come from only 3 to 5 percent of employees.

IT can help other leaders within its organization encourage better group dialogue by introducing technology that allows for easier information sharing. This way, all participants can get involved and play a role in decision-making processes instead of sitting on the sidelines.

Remote Workers Can Feel Included with the Help of IT

IT can also help alleviate some of the feelings of separation experienced by team members who don’t work onsite and can’t participate in in-person meetings. This is vital, because according to Global Workplace Analytics, 3.7 million employees now work remote at least half the time.

Without visuals or a way to see fellow team members, meetings can run stale for remote employees and hinder participation. Incorporating web cams and wireless collaboration systems into meeting environments creates a more collegial experience, delivering valuable and effective discussion opportunities and ultimately, breeding better working relationships.

IT is the Best Defense against Meeting Inefficiencies

It’s clear to see IT plays a critical role in creating environments that foster greater collaboration. With their unique understanding of common barriers faced by business users and breadth of knowledge when it comes to technology, IT professionals are the perfect match to combat meeting inefficiencies. By implementing device agnostic and collaborative solutions, IT can help change the perception of meetings and improve the sentiments of coworkers.