October 22, 2003
UK businesses lose £6 billion a year on unproductive meetings

A startling new report from Regus, the world's largest provider of serviced offices and Britain's leading meeting room provider, reveals that businesses in the UK squander £6 billion a year on poorly organised meetings. This figure - based on 2002 national economic statistics - shows that on average 30% of all meeting time is considered ill-spent or unproductive, largely due to poor meeting management or inappropriate choice of venue.

The Regus research - How Britain Works 2003 - shows that some 58% of employees never attend meetings at all and the 42% that do tend to be of a higher socio-economic status, male and middle-aged. This suggests meetings remain a preserve of senior management, with the average time spent in meetings per week being two hours and fifty minutes.

It is clear that information technology has had an impact on the frequency of meetings and that more is now demanded by participants from the fewer meetings they attend. Work in progress (36%) and general management issues (31%) were the most regular reasons for meeting; training came in third. The research shows that most companies have failed to capitalise on the significant advantages of videoconferencing technology.

When asked about what made a meeting successful, 60% of respondents argued for a pre-agreed meeting agenda or set time limit on the meeting. Others argued for a mobile phone ban. 57% of respondents felt the quality of the meeting room itself, the professional ambience, its furnishings and air conditioning, were critical to the success of a meeting.

Asked whom they would least like to meet, respondents named politicians, journalists and Big Brother contestants. They most wanted meetings with sports celebrities and pop stars.

David Ford, UK CEO of Regus, Britain's leading meeting room provider, commented: "The costs of not managing your meetings effectively are significant, as much as £5000 per year for every employee in the country. At Regus, we understand meetings and offer the perfect professional environment to make meetings a success, from venues for two people up to 200. As a result, more and more UK businesses are outsourcing their meetings to us on a strategic basis. With a wide range of meeting rooms across the UK, Regus must be the No 1 choice for any smart, cost-conscious business".

For further information, contact Stephen Jolly, Regus, on + 44 1932 895135

NOTES FOR EDITORS

Regus is the world's largest provider of serviced offices and the UK's leading provider of meeting rooms and meeting room services. With over 400 business centres in more than 50 countries, Regus serves some 60,000 customers worldwide on a daily basis. Regus is also the world's largest independent supplier of videoconferencing services.

The How Britain Works Survey 2003 was commissioned by Regus UK Ltd and took place in the week commencing 9 September 2003. The research involved questioning some 1044 office workers across the UK and was conducted by consumer research specialist The Eighth Day in line with Market Research Society guidelines and conducted by trained and experienced questioners.