Meetings are the heartbeat of team collaboration. But too often, they feel more like a necessary evil than a source of energy and connection.
In this blog series, we’re diving into tools for team effectiveness – the models and approaches we use to help executive teams thrive.
It’s about more than just productivity hacks; it’s about transforming how teams make decisions, align on goals, and sustain focus on their shared vision. When meetings are designed with care, they become a powerful tool for driving success, not just another box to tick.
Let’s start with a question: are your meetings nourishing your team, or are they just fattening?
Many meetings we observe resemble a staid British picnic – polite, predictable, and utterly uninspiring. Think cucumber sandwiches and awkward small talk. What they should be is more like a hearty Italian family meal – vibrant, engaging, and packed with life, energy, and flavour.
The packeted sandwich problem
Imagine this all-too-familiar scenario:
A leader logs into the weekly team meeting two minutes late. It’s a 90-minute virtual session, with 80% of the team present and 20% unable to attend due to prior commitments. The agenda lists seven items, five of which have already been decided and only require updates, while two need genuine debate. All seven topics are allocated equal time.
The team rushes through the items, managing to cover just four before time runs out. The remaining three are punted to next week. Everyone leaves feeling vaguely deflated, a bit less energised than when they arrived. It’s like eating one of those packeted sandwiches from a motorway service station: it provides calories but no real nutrition.
Over time, these meetings become a drain rather than a driver of productivity. Teams “put on weight” – accumulating busywork and fatigue – but remain “mineral deficient,” lacking the energy, clarity, and focus needed to thrive.
The art of nourishing meetings
The design of effective meetings is an art form. Thoughtful planning about how and why your team gathers is critical. What are you discussing? For how long? What type of engagement do you want from your team?
Strategic conversations deserve a tactical approach. A great meeting is like a home-cooked family dinner – prepared with care, full of nutrition, and energising everyone at the table. But family meals are rarely tidy; they’re messy, dynamic, and alive. People truly engage, have heated discussions, fall out, and talk about what really matters. That’s where the magic happens. Meetings, like meals, should leave teams feeling nourished, not just fed, and ready to take on what’s next.
When you’re in the thick of it – attending back-to-back meetings day after day – it’s hard to objectively evaluate their effectiveness. Are they truly nourishing, or are they just adding to the noise?
That’s where the X-Model comes in. This data-backed tool empowers teams to unlock their full potential. By providing insights into trust, collective goals, and high performance, the X-Model helps teams redesign their meetings and interactions for real impact.
It’s time to rethink your meetings. Be more Italian family dinner – full of flavour and life – and less packaged sandwich.
Want to know how the X-Model can transform your team? Find out more here.