Inefficient meetings cost the US economy between $70bn and $238bn per annum.
The modern workplace is more collaborative than its antecedents, largely due to the proliferation of new technologies which make communicating remotely easier and faster than ever.
Communication technology is not a meeting panacea, however. A new infographic created by Cincinnati Bell Inc (CBTS) indicates that improper use of technology can waste employee time, not to mention become a major source of stress and frustration for workers.
The infographic estimates that the cost of inefficient meetings to the US economy is between $70bn and $238bn per annum. Every day, there are between 36m and 56m meetings in the US.
Almost 12 hours of the 40-hour work week are spent preparing for or attending meetings.
The figures indicate that technology could, counter-intuitively, have a role to play in time-wasting. During a 38-minute conference call, eight minutes are wasted trying to start the meeting and an additional 13 minutes are wasted dealing with interruptions and distractions.
Screen-sharing takes, on average, five minutes to set up, figures indicate.
These interruptions often leave employees chagrined and frustrated, with 89pc of office workers reporting stress during meetings when technology fails or is difficult to use, and 79pc of employees saying they would be more willing to use things like screen-sharing during calls if the execution of the technology wasn’t so awkward.
Data collected by Igloo Software sought to determine what most irritates people about meetings. Of those surveyed, 76pc said they felt meetings were often unnecessary.
More than half of employees barbed that meetings often fail to stay on topic, while 58pc said they found repetition to be the most grating.
While 83pc of workers said that they needed technology to collaborate, evidently there is a failure by employers to better streamline the introduction of newer technologies to the workplace. For more information, check out the infographic below.
Infographic: CBTS
