Recession drives re-think of meeting madness
~ workers told to cut face-to-face meetings as staff waste 8 weeks a year offsite ~
9 June, 2009
Research[1] has found that UK staff spend the equivalent of eight weeks a year in face-to-face meetings. Those in Scotland and the south-east of England come off worst, spending over six hours a week locked away in meetings. The national average is five hours per week.
The results come from the findings of independent research commissioned by Parity, a provider of IT and business solutions, into work patterns and collaboration within UK businesses.
The study found that 40 per cent of businesses are instructing staff to reduce the number of face-to-face meetings they attend as a direct result of the recession. This rises to 53 per cent in London and is highest among middle and senior management. Reasons for the cuts are largely down to cost-cutting measures and travel restrictions, staff shortages, and the need to maximise productivity by increasing time spent in the office.
“As the recession bites, more and more organisations are cutting the amount of time employees spend away from their desks,” explained Simon Wayne, managing director at Parity Solutions. “While people may think they prefer the traditional meeting format, face-to-face meetings often end up wasting vast sums of money in travel costs and unproductive ‘dead time’, and could just as well be hosted from employee’s desks.”
Cutbacks are likely to receive a mixed reception. When it comes to internal meetings, 89 per cent of respondents said they prefer to meet face-to-face, with women and junior managers in particular favouring a sit-down with colleagues rather than phone or email updates. Staff are more flexible with external meetings though. Around one in ten said they would be happy replacing external face-to-face meetings with webinars or email updates, while a quarter of respondents in London would prefer to speak to contacts via video conferencing.
“Virtual meetings mean we can enjoy the benefits of real-time, interactive conversations without having to leave the office,” said Wayne. “ Unfortunately though, too many organisations are stuck in their ways. Businesses often have the technology in place to allow teleconferencing and webinars, but staff receive little encouragement or no education in how to make the most of the technology, and not enough is done to ensure its benefits are truly realised.”
“Collaborative technology needs to be user-friendly and fit for purpose so that it can be adopted widely, helping organisations stay afloat while staff remain as productive as possible in the downturn.”
NOTES TO EDITORS
About the research
The research was conducted by Vanson Bourne online in April 2009 with 523 business professionals from a variety of company types and sizes.
Vanson Bourne is a specialist IT market research consultancy, whose clients range from global corporations to small, highly specialised start-ups. The company provides research expertise and market insight using analysis and advice based on incisive and rigorous research into their market environment.
About Parity
Parity is a business and IT solutions company with over 40 years' industry experience. Parity delivers a range of recruitment and business and IT solutions to clients across the public and private sector.
Parity works with its customers to bring out the best in their businesses, drawing on vast personal experience to help organisations meet the challenges they face. Strong relationships with customers make Parity a trusted partner for hundreds of clients across the UK and Ireland, including; BT, Ofgem, The Cabinet Office, Ministry of Defence, BAT, Northamptonshire County Council and The Charity Commission.
Through specialised IT recruitment for contract, interim and permanent resources, especially in the public sector, Parity provides decision makers with the best candidates to drive strategies forward and focus on results.
Through Collaborative Information Management, coupled with Web 2.0, Parity helps their customers harness the power of information. Helping their clients to increase efficiencies, reduce costs and maximise customer service.
Listed on the London Stock Exchange, Parity recorded a turnover of over £150m in 2007. For more information, please visit: http://www.parity.net/
[1] The research was conducted in April 2009 by Vanson Bourne among 523 UK professionals