Why We Default to Meetings

Why do meetings feel like the place where work goes to die—and what would it take to finally fix them?

In this episode of The Future of Less Work, host Nirit Cohen sits down with Dr. Rebecca Hinds, organizational researcher, founder of Asana’s Work Innovation Lab, founder of the Work AI Institute at Glean, and author of Your Best Meeting Ever, to unpack why meetings became one of the most broken systems in modern organizations.

Together, Nirit and Rebecca explore why organizations default to meetings even when asynchronous tools exist, how unclear communication norms fuel meeting overload, and what it means to design meetings for the people in the room rather than the organizer. Rebecca introduces practical frameworks from the book, including the “4D test” for deciding when a meeting should exist, how to shorten meetings without losing impact, and why status update meetings are one of the biggest drains on organizational time. They also examine the role of AI in meetings—where it genuinely helps and where it quietly makes bad meetings worse by masking deeper design problems. The episode closes with a broader reflection on the future of work, calm technology, and the responsibility leaders have to use AI in ways that amplify human potential rather than replace it.

If you’ve ever questioned why your calendar feels full but progress feels slow—or wondered how meetings could become a lever for better work instead of a blocker—this conversation offers both a diagnosis and a way forward.

https://youtu.be/sR1c9d982gI

Guest Information:

Rebecca Hinds is a leading expert on organizational behavior and the future of work. She holds a BS, MS, and PhD from Stanford University. Rebecca founded the Work Innovation Lab at Asana and the Work AI Institute at Glean, first-of-their-kind corporate think tanks dedicated to conducting cutting-edge research on the future of work. Her research is consistently featured in publications like Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fast Company, Wired, TIME, CNBC, Bloomberg, Axios, and the Washington Post. Rebecca has been invited to speak on major stages including Dreamforce, SXSW, INBOUND, Ai4, Cloudfest, and the Gartner Digital Workplace Summit. She regularly appears on podcasts and programs, including Adam Grant’s Worklife podcast, Deloitte’s Capital H podcast, and as an instructor for CNBC’s Make It Masterclass, “How to Use AI to be More Productive and Successful at Work.” She is a trusted advisor to companies navigating challenges of modern work—from meeting overload and hybrid dysfunction to the realities of AI adoption.

YOUR BEST MEETING EVER: 7 Principles for Designing Meetings That Get Things Done By Rebecca Hinds, PhD| On-Sale: February 3, 2026

https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Your-Best-Meeting-Ever/Rebecca-Hinds/9781668067482

Chapters:

00:00 — Why Do Meetings Feel Like They Get Nothing Done?01:11 — What Is a “Good Meeting” and Why Are Most Meetings Bad?02:54 — Why Do We Default to Meetings Instead of Asynchronous Work?04:55 — How Broken Communication Systems Create More Meetings06:54 — What Is the 4D Test for Deciding If a Meeting Should Exist?08:44 — Which Decisions Actually Require a Meeting?09:52 — Why Do Meetings Always Last an Hour?10:40 — How Shorter Meetings Can Be More Effective12:25 — Can Running Better Meetings Help Advance Your Career?14:22 — How to Design a Meeting Agenda That Actually Works16:07 — Which Agenda Items Should Never Be in a Meeting?17:37 — How to Measure If a Meeting Is Worth the Time19:09 — Why Some People Find Meetings Valuable and Others Don’t20:56 — Does AI Make Meetings Better or Worse?23:01 — Should You Attend a Meeting If You’re Sending a Bot?24:36 — Which Meetings Should We Stop Having First?26:11 — Why Cancelling One-on-One Meetings Is Dangerous27:58 — How Should Leaders Think About AI and Human Potentia