'Performative work' | As workplace austerity grows, meetings are next on the chopping block

Meetings were once considered a normal part of everyday working life. Meetings are an important part of the functioning of a business, and allow team members to come up with ideas, understand their overarching goal, and see how their work, and everyone else's, contributes to the same outcome.

But as founders and executives scramble in the face of external strain, particularly from a cost-of-living crisis, reports of low productivity are forcing management to demonise this age-old process that’s pretty much existed in the professional world since capitalism was established.

For example, a recent global survey from Salesforce found that the UK is one of the worst offending countries when it comes to ‘performative work’, this type of work defined as “spending a lot of time in meetings where ‘teams present achievements’ rather than making decisions or addressing issues.”

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Yes, meetings come in all different shapes and sizes, and if done badly, this can certainly have a negative impact on the direction of business travel. But for the most part, meetings provide an opportunity for discussion, and also an opportunity to bond and build connections with colleagues.