Fix your meetings before you automate them
From Zero to World-Class AI Manager - part 3
There’s a problem we all know exists, but can’t seem to fix.
Atlassian surveyed 5,000 knowledge workers: 72% say meetings are ineffective, 78% say they can’t get work done because of those ineffective meetings, and half end up working overtime because of meeting overload.
If you’re spending half your week in meetings that achieve nothing, AI-powered meeting notes won’t help. You’ll just have better documentation of wasted time.
So this week isn’t just about reducing meetings (though that helps). It’s about improving the ones you actually need - before, during, and after.
Last week, you learned to brief AI properly. This week, you’ll use that skill to run fewer, better meetings.
Before the meeting
Show up underprepared and the quality of the meeting inevitably suffers. Failing to plan is planning to fail, and all that…
Your first step to a better meeting is generating a tight agenda - this only needs to take a couple of minutes.
Use the same five-part brief from last week:
I’m a [role] leading a meeting about [topic] with [attendees].
Goal: [what needs to be decided/achieved]
Context: [current situation, why we’re meeting]
Constraints: 25 minutes, needs to end with clear next steps
Create a tight agenda with:
- 3-4 topics (time-boxed)
- One clear decision point per topic
- Pre-work for attendees
- Success criteria
Then list what assumptions I should verify before the meeting.
Brief yourself on people and documents
Meeting someone new?
I’m meeting with [name/role] tomorrow to discuss [topic].
Research their recent work, priorities, and likely concerns.
Return:
- 3 key facts about their current focus
- Likely objections or questions they’ll raise
- 2 ways to frame this topic for their priorities
List sources to verify.
Or if you realise at the last minute that you’ve not read the 40-page doc you were supposed to (I’m not advocating skipping essential research by the way - but, hey, it happens…):
Summarise this document for a 30-minute strategy discussion.
Focus on:
- Key recommendations
- Data that supports/contradicts our current approach
- Questions or concerns to raise
- What’s missing
Format as discussion prompts, not bullets.
During the meeting
You’re trying to facilitate, take notes, watch the clock, and think - all at once.
That’s why recording and transcribing meetings is fundamentally a good thing.
Of course, before you start recording you need to get everyone’s permission. But don’t be afraid - frame it positively:
“I’m recording this so everyone gets clear notes and can focus on making this meeting as valuable as possible. I’ll make sure the follow ensures you know exactly what’s expected, what the priorities are, and who’s doing what. Any concerns about that?”
Most people will appreciate the clarity. The few who don’t will tell you.
If you can - and some tools like Fireflies.ai let you set custom templates - start the meeting by telling AI what to capture:
This is a strategy meeting to decide [X].
Capture:
- Decisions made (with rationale)
- Action items (owner + deadline)
- Open questions for follow-up
- Disagreements or concerns raised
Ignore: introductions, small talk, off-topic tangents.
When you’re not frantically taking notes, you notice more. Who’s disengaged. What’s not being said. When to cut off circular discussions. When you’ve actually reached a decision.
Better meetings aren’t just about efficiency - they’re about everyone engaging and contributing in order to create progress.
After the meeting
Meeting ends. Everyone leaves. Nothing happens. Two weeks later you’re meeting again about the same thing.
That’s why you need to turn the transcript into structured notes:
Turn this meeting transcript into structured notes:
DECISIONS MADE:
- What was decided
- Rationale
- Who made the call
ACTION ITEMS:
- Specific task
- Owner
- Deadline
- Dependencies
OPEN QUESTIONS:
- What needs follow-up
- Who’s responsible
NEXT STEPS:
- When we meet again
- What needs to happen before then
Flag any commitments that seem vague or unclear.
Then draft the follow-up:
Draft a follow-up email based on these meeting notes.
Include:
- Quick recap of decisions
- Action items with owners
- Open questions
- Next meeting date
Keep it under 150 words.
While you’re on, identify who didn’t need to be there.
Look at your meeting notes. Who spoke? Who contributed to decisions? Who was just there?
Next time, send them the 2-minute summary instead.
I’ve set this process up with one of my clients and after a month, we realised 3 people in a weekly team meeting contributed once in 4 weeks. They stopped inviting them and sent them the summary instead.
All three preferred it - because guess what, they’ve got a million others filling their day - and the meeting went from 60 minutes to 40.
One last thing - should this meeting even exist?
Before scheduling your next recurring meeting:
I’m considering a [weekly/monthly] meeting about [topic] with [number] people.
Alternative approaches:
- Async updates via Slack, docs, or paired check-ins
- Shared doc with comments
- Other options I haven’t considered
Which would achieve the goal with less coordination overhead?
List trade-offs for each option.
You could do the same audit of your current meeting too, of course.
Sometimes AI suggests something you hadn’t considered. Sometimes it confirms the meeting is necessary. Either way, you’ve made a conscious choice.
Remember - half of all people work overtime because of too many ineffective meetings. If you cut just 3 hours of meetings weekly across a 10-person team, that’s 30 hours of real work time you get back every week.
Action plan for this week
Pick one meeting you’re leading this week - ideally a recurring one.
Before: Use AI to create a tight agenda
During: Explain why you’re recording the meeting, then tell your meeting tool what to capture
After: Use AI to structure notes and draft the follow-up
Then measure:
Did the meeting stay focused?
Did we end with clear next steps?
Who didn’t contribute - should they be there next time?
Meeting length - did you finish early?
Time saved on prep and follow-up
Let me know how you get on.
See you next week,
Ollie