Revolutionizing Meetings: From Sabotage to Strategy (with Rebecca Hinds)

While the podcast team is taking a Radical Sabbatical, Kim is interviewing authors of the books that have had a big impact on her in the past two years.

In this episode, Kim speaks with Rebecca Hinds, the author of Your Best Meeting Ever: 7 Principles for Designing Meetings That Get Things Done. They explore the evolution of meetings from wartime sabotage tools to the challenges and strategies for improving meetings in today's technology-driven workplace. They discuss the increasing time spent in meetings, especially post-pandemic, and present seven solutions to eliminate unnecessary meetings and to redesign the necessary ones. They discuss the impact of distractions, the importance of effective meeting structures, and the need for a culture that encourages open disagreement. The conversation also highlights the significance of asynchronous communication, preparation, and technology's role in enhancing collaboration. Ultimately, they emphasize the need for meetings to be engaging and aligned with natural rhythms to foster productivity and creativity.

Guest Background: Rebecca Hinds, PhD, is the author of Your Best Meeting Ever: 7 Principles for Designing Meetings That Get Things Done. She is a leading expert on organizational behavior and the future of work. For more than 15 years, she has helped organizations rethink how work gets done, challenging outdated management playbooks and offering leaders a more ambitious and more human vision for the future.

Rebecca has founded and led two first-of-their-kind research institutes dedicated to reinventing work. In 2022, she launched the Work Innovation Lab at Asana, building it into an influential source of practical workplace research. In 2025, she founded the Work AI Institute at Glean to help organizations navigate the next transformation of work.

CHAPTERS

(00:00) The Origins of Meetings as Sabotage Tools

(02:45) The Evolution of Meeting Culture

(05:14) Radical Meeting Solutions

(08:20) Measuring Meeting Effectiveness

(11:05) The Minimalism Approach to Meetings

(14:06) Optimizing Meeting Flow and Communication

(16:56) The Role of Tools in Meeting Efficiency

(23:40) Managing Distractions in a Tech-Heavy World

(25:58) The Importance of Effective Meetings

(28:58) Creating a Culture of Open Disagreement

(29:49) Building Strong Asynchronous Communication

(32:01) The Role of Preparation in Meetings

(36:51) Designing Engaging Meetings

(38:47) Timing and Rhythm in Meetings

(41:31) Leveraging Technology for Better Meetings

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Keywords

meetings, productivity, communication, meeting culture, meeting effectiveness, meeting solutions, meeting minimalism, meeting flow, tools for meetings, workplace efficiency distractions, technology, meetings, asynchronous communication, open disagreement, engagement, timing, productivity, collaboration, AI

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