3 reasons meetings fail

Here are the top three issues that make meetings ineffective:

1. Lack of focus. Multitasking employees are distracted. To encourage focus, state at the beginning that you will be stopping periodically to ask each person to share opinions and solutions. That will keep attendees focused.
2. Disengaged remote employees. Use virtual meeting software or streaming video to make remote workers feel more connected and involved.
3. Disorganization. Send an agenda out ahead of time. Ask employees to do prep work and plan to share it in the meeting.

— Adapted from “What Unproductive Meetings Are Costing You,” Laura Montini, www.inc.com.