All of us in agency-land are being told (usually by people who have never created an ad) that we must be more efficient, we must cut down our hours, that we must produce more and do it with fewer people. The holding companies, those monoliths that most-often are our true creative directors, are demanding it. So, they say, push harder, demand more, come up with your ideas quicker--as if we could microwave creativity.
Well, as my ex-boss used to say, "here's the thing." Here's the thing, there's one way to improve agency efficiency. Eliminate meetings. Or, if you can't eliminate meetings demand that the meeting caller writes a short brief on the meeting: What's to be accomplished, who will do it, when will they do it by, when will re reconvene. Limit the length of meetings to twenty minutes and have a concise agenda with real life objectives. Also, have meetings standing up. No chairs. People think better while standing and progress will be made quicker.
I spend seven hours a day, at least, in meetings. Most people of my ilk do. If you want to stimulate, eliminate.
The other day, sitting in yet another meeting, I asked a question and when I looked around at everyone's faces, it was as if a disaster had hit. I simply asked, "What is the purpose of this meeting?" Nobody really knew.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you wholeheartedly. In this day and age meetings slow you down more than anything.
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