56. How Engineers Can Make Meetings More Efficient

16.9.2026

Successful Speaking for Technical Professionals

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9:28

“Meetings are a symptom of bad organization. The fewer meetings the better.”
— Peter F. Drucker, management consultant and author

One of the most frustrating activities for engineers is attending inefficient meetings.

Engineers are taught in engineering school to always use the most efficient design. Why can’t this apply to the meetings they attend?

The truth is, meetings can be more efficient if you follow the three steps in this podcast.

References

MIT Sloan School of Management — Meredith Somers, “5 Ways to Avoid Ineffective Meetings,” June 17, 2020. Recommends cataloging issues in advance and measuring meeting effectiveness through decisions made and problems solved.
Atlassian — “How to Run Effective Meetings in the Era of Hybrid Work,” February 24, 2022. Addresses agendas, meeting objectives, attendee selection, decision-making, action items, and when information should be communicated asynchronously.
Atlassian — “How to Write an Effective Team Meeting Agenda.” Recommends prioritizing agenda items, defining meeting purposes, allocating time to topics, and giving participants advance preparation time.
Atlassian — “How to Turn Meeting Action Items Into Trackable Work.” Defines effective action items around an owner, specific action, scope, expected outcome, and deadline.
Atlassian/Confluence — “Meeting Minutes Template.” Recommends documenting agenda items, decisions, action items, owners, and deadlines while using time-boxes to maintain meeting focus.