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Book part
Publication date: 17 March 2020

John E. Kello and Joseph A. Allen

Previous research on workplace meetings identified critical design features, leader behaviors, group dynamics, post-meeting actions, and other factors which help determine the…

Abstract

Previous research on workplace meetings identified critical design features, leader behaviors, group dynamics, post-meeting actions, and other factors which help determine the effectiveness of the meeting. But as much as the authors acknowledge that meetings may differ from each other, much of the research appears to assume that it is meaningful to talk about “the meeting” as a single, generic entity (most commonly, the regularly scheduled staff or department meeting). In fact, though, there are several common types of meetings which vary among themselves in terms of a number of measurable parameters such as structure, meeting members, meeting leader, timing and duration, and scope. It is a gratuitous assumption that what the authors know about workplace meetings based on one especially common type applies to all workplace meetings. This chapter offers a historical review of previous attempts to classify meeting types; it then overviews several common types which deviate from the standard staff meeting paradigm, including project team meetings, debrief meetings, committee meetings, site-wide meetings, shift change meetings, and crew formation meetings. In comparing these types to the staff meeting, the authors identify some of the critical differences, thereby providing a first step toward a true taxonomy of meetings.

Article
Publication date: 12 August 2014

Joseph A. Allen, Tammy Beck, Cliff W. Scott and Steven G. Rogelberg

The purpose of this study is to propose a taxonomy of meeting purpose. Meetings are a workplace activity that deserves increased attention from researchers and practitioners…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to propose a taxonomy of meeting purpose. Meetings are a workplace activity that deserves increased attention from researchers and practitioners. Previous researchers attempted to develop typologies of meeting purpose with limited success. Through a comparison of classification methodologies, the authors consider a taxonomy as the appropriate classification scheme for meeting purpose. The authors then utilize the developed taxonomy to investigate the frequency with which a representative sample of working adults engaged in meetings of these varying purposes. Their proposed taxonomy provides relevant classifications for future research on meetings as well and serves as a useful tool for managers seeking to use and evaluate the effectiveness of meetings within their organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

This study employs an inductive methodology using discourse analysis of qualitative meeting descriptions to develop a taxonomy of meeting purpose. The authors discourse analysis utilizes open-ended survey responses from a sample of working adults (n = 491).

Findings

The authors categorical analysis of open-ended questions resulted in a 16-category taxonomy of meeting purpose. The two most prevalent meeting purpose categories in this sample were “to discuss ongoing projects” at 11.6 per cent and “to routinely discuss the state of the business” at 10.8 per cent. The two least common meeting purpose categories in this sample were “to brainstorm for ideas or solutions” at 3.3 per cent and “to discuss productivity and efficiencies” at 3.7 per cent. The taxonomy was analyzed across organizational type and employee job level to identify differences between those important organizational and employee characteristics.

Research limitations/implications

The data suggested that meetings were institutionalized in organizations, making them useful at identifying differences between organizations as well as differences in employees in terms of scope of responsibility. Researchers and managers should consider the purposes for which they call meetings and how that manifests their overarching organizational focus, structure and goals.

Originality/value

This is the first study to overtly attempt to categorize the various purposes for which meetings are held. Further, this study develops a taxonomy of meeting purposes that will prove useful for investigating the different types of meeting purposes in a broad range of organizational types and structures.

Details

Management Research Review, vol. 37 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8269

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 August 2017

Hsiao-Fen Hsiao, Szu-Lang Liao, Chi-Wei Su and Hao-Chang Sung

Recent studies in the accounting literature have investigated the economic consequences of R&D capitalization. Discretionary R&D capitalization for target beating can be…

Abstract

Purpose

Recent studies in the accounting literature have investigated the economic consequences of R&D capitalization. Discretionary R&D capitalization for target beating can be characterized as a firm signaling private information on its future economic benefits or as opportunistic earnings management. R&D capitalization also has an impact on a firm’s marginal costs and product market competition. The purpose of this paper is to address how firms choose R&D levels for the purpose of meeting or beating their earnings targets and how this influences sequential product market competition.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors study this issue in a stylized game-theoretic model where R&D choices of a firm are not only strategically made but also used to convey proprietary information to its rival. The model provides a rationale for a firm distorting its R&D level to earn more profits and meet its earnings target.

Findings

The equilibrium result indicates that before the realization of common cost shock, a firm can influence the output of its accounting system (i.e. meeting an earnings target) through adjusting its R&D choices. This firm will overinvest in R&D, and this will give an opportunity to create some reserves to be used later to earn a higher profit and reach the earnings target.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the research on real earnings management in terms of how R&D capitalization affects a firm’s R&D choices by influencing the output of its accounting system through adjusting its R&D choices and the strategic impact of those choices.

Details

International Journal of Accounting & Information Management, vol. 25 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1834-7649

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 1994

Leslie Rae

Discusses whether meetings are necessary. Types of meeting are analysedand alternatives are presented.

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Abstract

Discusses whether meetings are necessary. Types of meeting are analysed and alternatives are presented.

Details

Executive Development, vol. 7 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-3230

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 November 2023

Isaac A. Lindquist, Joseph A. Allen and William S. Kramer

Stand-up meetings have received attention for their functional effectiveness in the workplace, but they can also cause affective reactions among attendees. These reactions can…

Abstract

Purpose

Stand-up meetings have received attention for their functional effectiveness in the workplace, but they can also cause affective reactions among attendees. These reactions can affect workplace attitudes and alter the way that employees view and perform their work to the benefit or detriment of the organization.

Design/methodology/approach

Following the tenets of the job characteristics model (JCM), a study was conducted on relevant stand-up meetings' effects on beliefs about the meaningfulness of one's work and subsequent motivation. Further analysis explored the effects that meeting load (i.e. the number of meetings) has on the outcomes of meetings.

Findings

Consistent with hypotheses, stand-up meeting relevance has an indirect effect on work motivation through work meaningfulness. Meeting load moderates both the indirect effect, such that the effect is stronger at higher numbers of meetings, and the direct effect on work meaningfulness in the opposite direction, as the effect is strongest with fewer meetings.

Practical implications

Organizations should ensure that stand-up meetings are relevant to all attendees and hold the meetings at an appropriate regularity for the best outcomes.

Originality/value

This work examined the stand-up meeting. Most prior meetings research has focused on meetings as a whole or other subtypes and examine meeting relevance and contribution to employee motivation through the lens of JCM.

Details

Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2051-6614

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 7 April 2023

Pavel Král, Věra Králová and Petr Šimáček

Most studies on workplace meetings have examined them as physical gatherings but have not linked them to interactions before and after meetings. Drawing upon coordination theory…

Abstract

Purpose

Most studies on workplace meetings have examined them as physical gatherings but have not linked them to interactions before and after meetings. Drawing upon coordination theory, this study aims to examine the impact of interactions before, during and after meetings on meeting effectiveness.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey design was used, and regular workplace meeting attendees were recruited. A mediation model was developed to test the effect of interactions on perceived meeting effectiveness.

Findings

Interactions before meetings positively influenced attendee involvement during the meeting, and attendee involvement mediated the positive relationship between attendee interactions during the meeting and perceived meeting effectiveness. A novel finding of this study is that incorporating meeting outcomes in subsequent work positively influenced perceived meeting effectiveness because it fostered common understanding of the meeting agenda.

Originality/value

The present results link prior empirical findings on interactions before and during meetings to new predictions regarding the effect of interactions after meetings. Coordination theory expands current conceptualizations of workplace meetings by broadening the notion of meetings to cover a more extended period of interdependent interactions.

Details

Measuring Business Excellence, vol. 27 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1368-3047

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 5 June 2011

Linda R. Most

Research into the library as place investigates the role of public library buildings as destinations, physical places where people go for various reasons ranging from making use…

Abstract

Research into the library as place investigates the role of public library buildings as destinations, physical places where people go for various reasons ranging from making use of the library's resources and services or seeking to fulfill an information or reading need to less easily identified reasons that may include using the library's building as a place to make social or business contacts, to build or reinforce community or political ties, or to create or reinforce a personal identity. This study asks: How are one rural US public library system's newly constructed buildings functioning as places? The answer is derived from answers to sub-questions about adult library users, user, and staff perceptions of library use, and observed use of library facilities. The findings are contextualized using a framework built of theories from human geography, sociology, and information studies.

This case study replicates a mixed-methods case study conducted at the main public libraries in Toronto and Vancouver in the late1990s and first reproduced in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 2006. It tests methods used in large urban settings in a rural, small-town environment. This study also expands on its antecedents by using thematic analysis to determine which conceptualizations of the role of the public library as place are most relevant to the community under investigation.

The study relies on quantitative and qualitative data collected via surveys and interviews of adult library users, interviews of library public service staff members, structured observations of people using the libraries, and analysis of selected administrative documents. The five sets of data are triangulated to answer the research sub-questions.

Thematic analysis grounded in the conceptual framework finds that public realm theory best contextualizes the relationships that develop between library staff members and adult library users over time. The study finds that the libraries serve their communities as informational places and as familiarized locales rather than as third places, and that the libraries facilitate the generation of social capital for their users.

Details

Advances in Library Administration and Organization
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-014-8

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 August 2019

Rebecca Lengnick-Hall, Karissa Fenwick, Michael S. Hurlburt, Amy Green, Rachel A. Askew and Gregory A. Aarons

Researchers suggest that adaptation should be a planned process, with practitioners actively consulting with program developers or academic partners, but few studies have examined…

Abstract

Purpose

Researchers suggest that adaptation should be a planned process, with practitioners actively consulting with program developers or academic partners, but few studies have examined how adaptation unfolds during evidence-based practice (EBP) implementation. The purpose of this paper is to describe real-world adaptation discussions and the conditions under which they occurred during the implementation of a new practice across multiple county child welfare systems.

Design/methodology/approach

This study qualitatively examines 127 meeting notes to understand how implementers and researchers talk about adaptation during the implementation of SafeCare, an EBP aimed at reducing child maltreatment and neglect.

Findings

Several types of adaptation discussions emerged. First, because it appeared difficult to get staff to talk about adaptation in group settings, meeting participants discussed factors that hindered adaptation conversations. Next, they discussed types of adaptations that they made or would like to make. Finally, they discussed adaptation as a normal part of SafeCare implementation.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations include data collection by a single research team member and focus on a particular EBP. However, this study provides new insight into how stakeholders naturally discuss adaptation needs, ideas and concerns.

Practical implications

Understanding adaptation discussions can help managers engage frontline staff who are using newly implemented EBPs, identify adaptation needs and solutions, and proactively support individuals who are balancing adaptation and fidelity during implementation.

Originality/value

This study’s unique data captured in vivo interactions that occurred at various time points during the implementation of an EBP rather than drawing upon data collected from more scripted and cross-sectional formats. Multiple child welfare and implementation stakeholders and types of interactions were examined.

Details

Journal of Children's Services, vol. 14 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-6660

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 17 March 2020

Nale Lehmann-Willenbrock, Joseph A. Allen and Mark van Vugt

Teams in organizations have weekly – or even daily – meetings to exchange information, generate ideas, solve problems, and make decisions. Yet, many team meetings are described as…

Abstract

Teams in organizations have weekly – or even daily – meetings to exchange information, generate ideas, solve problems, and make decisions. Yet, many team meetings are described as ineffective by the participants, due to either their design or dysfunctional communication practices within the meeting. To gain new insights into addressing these issues, this chapter goes back deep in history and discusses the origins and functions of group meetings. Building upon evolutionary theories of human behavior, the authors examine the evolutionary significance of meetings and the ways in which they were adaptive for our human ancestors. Drawing from this evolutionary perspective, we then compare meetings in ancestral times with their modern-day counterparts. Using evidence from (a) ethnographic studies of small-scale societies that model ancestral group life and (b) organizational and team science, we contrast the typical workplace meeting with its ancient counterpart. In this review of ancient and modern meetings, we identify meeting characteristics that have been maintained through time as well as those that are unique/new in the modern time. In doing so, we inspect to what extent meeting practices in ancestral environments are aligned or at odds with meeting practices in contemporary organizations (the notion of mismatch). From these similarities and differences, we derive novel theoretical insights for the study of workplace meetings as well as suggestions for improving contemporary meeting practice. We also include a series of testable propositions that can inform future research on team meetings in organizations.

Details

Managing Meetings in Organizations
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83867-227-0

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 28 November 2019

Thim Prætorius and Peter Hasle

The purpose of this paper is to investigate frontline meetings in hospitals and how they are used for coordination of daily operations across organizational and occupational…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate frontline meetings in hospitals and how they are used for coordination of daily operations across organizational and occupational boundaries.

Design/methodology/approach

An in-depth multiple-case study of four purposefully selected departments from four different hospitals is conducted. The selected cases had actively developed and embedded scheduled meetings as structural means to achieve coordination of daily operations.

Findings

Health care professionals and managers, next to their traditional mono-professional meetings (e.g. doctors or nurses), develop additional operational, daily meetings such as work-shift meetings, huddles and hand-off meetings to solve concrete care tasks. These new types of meetings are typically short, task focussed, led by a chair and often inter-disciplinary. The meetings secure a personal proximity which the increased dependency on hospital-wide IT solutions cannot. During meetings, objects and representations (e.g. monitors, whiteboards or paper cards) create a needed gathering point to span across boundaries. As regards embedding meetings, local engagement helps contextualizing meetings and solving concrete care tasks, thereby making health care professionals more likely to value these daily meeting spaces.

Practical implications

Health care professionals and managers can use formal meeting spaces aided by objects and representations to support solving daily and interdependent health care tasks in ways that IT solutions in hospitals do not offer today. Implementation requires local engagement and contextualization.

Originality/value

This research paper shows the importance of daily, operational hospital meetings for frontline coordination. Organizational meetings are a prevalent collaborative activity, yet scarcely researched organizational phenomenon.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 33 no. 7/8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

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