For most of my professional life, I’ve worked with software product development teams, as a business analyst and product manager. That means I get to collaborate with several different people to accomplish anything.

As a result, I’ve built a love-hate relationship with meetings:

I love meetings when they help my team build products and customers solve problems.

I’m not a fan of meetings that don’t make progress toward those outcomes, which seem to be most of them.

I suspect a lot of you can relate, so here are some thoughts on meetings, why they’re important, what challenges they present, and how you can make your meetings work with the help of Herrmann’s Stop & Think app in Microsoft Teams.

When was the last time you multitasked in a meeting? Drifted off? Got annoyed? Wished you were anywhere else but there? Or come down with a case of Zoom fatigue you just couldn't shake?

If any of that rings true for you, you’re not alone. In a Verizon Conferencing study, 91% of respondents admitted to daydreaming during meetings, and 39% said they’ve napped in them. Overall, research shows that employees waste a staggering 31 hours of unproductive time in meetings every month.

It's no secret that a motivated workforce is a competitive advantage. But what motivates people? And how can you make sure that your team is motivated and productive?