mmhmm survey: Yes, most people are multitasking during your meetings

Pssst—are you reading this while you’re in a meeting? You’re not alone. We conducted a survey of 1,500 full-time workers in the US in October 2022 and found that people are wasting a lot of time in meetings they don’t get much out of. We believe bad meetings are a way for people to look busy while not actually getting their work done. Here’s how your team really feels about the daily presentations and update meetings they sit through.

Improve productivity by deleting bad meetings

42% of people we surveyed say ¼ or more of their meetings are a waste of time, and nearly two in three people have to work after hours to catch up on their actual jobs. 57% of people often or very often feel their meetings could have been an e-mail. Find out which meetings are a waste of time and potentially save your company hundreds of work hours a week so everyone can actually get work done.

They work like someone's watching

1 in 5 people surveyed don't feel trusted by their employers. And 60% of respondents either know their productivity is being tracked by their employers or think their employers are tracking them (but aren't sure).

The multitasking isn’t the problem—it’s the meetings

79% of people surveyed admit to multitasking during meetings. The truth is that we are a society of multitaskers—we listen to podcasts while washing dishes, and join meetings while preparing dinner. The only thing worse than having to sit through a work lecture is being the ignored presenter. We can let everyone off the hook by sending recordings instead of making people sit through meetings no one is paying attention to.

Sync up for discussion, not lectures

41% of people say team updates are the primary type of meeting they attend, while only 23% say their meetings are mostly brainstorms and discussions. If only one or two people talked while everyone else had to listen, it shouldn’t have been a meeting. With mmhmm, you can record a short video with visuals and give everyone their time back—really.

Ban the pre-read

50% of people surveyed spend under five minutes preparing for a meeting. Your carefully prepared pre-read is being ignored. Instead of writing memos, you could be recording short videos that everyone can watch at their own pace and on their own schedule —no writing required.

Free your schedule with recorded video

Start by asking your team which meetings feel like they ought to be replaced by one-way communication. mmhmm makes it easy to record a quick show and tell in minutes with images, text slides and screen shares. Then, let everyone watch whenever they want and wherever it’s convenient for them. Try mmhmm today. Your first five recordings per month are free.