Facebook's HR chief has a simple technique for making meetings more effective
Most of us regularly attend slow, boring meetings that feel like a waste of time. We pretend to listen, thank the speaker before running out of the room, and don't say anything for fear of offending the boss.
Nobody benefits from that behavior, but it can easily be changed by adopting the practice of a quick debrief on how the meeting went, Lori Goler, Facebook's VP of people, told Business Insider.
A pillar of Facebook's culture, she said, is the importance of honest and frequent feedback that keeps teams moving quickly. So when a meeting is finished, its moderator will reach out to some of those who attended and ask: "How do you think that meeting went? What could I have done differently to make it more effective?"
Goler said that for her meetings, she wants to hear both what worked and what didn't so that her role as a meeting moderator is constantly improving.
It's important to keep it natural. You shouldn't be sending out a list of questions, and there's no need to send it to every member of the team. Keep it quick and simple. "You ask the people who you think might have the greatest insight," Goler said.
At Facebook, moderators reach out after every meeting, regardless of whether it was a clear success or failure.
"It's really quite a remarkably open environment when it comes to giving and receiving feedback," Goler said. "It's just part of our culture."