Everybody hates meetings

and we should stop having them

In case you missed it, Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorganChase sent a letter to shareholders this week that, among other things (including concerns around tariffs), contained his views on corporate bureaucracy and other inefficiencies.

And while I agree with the few portions I read, I need to address right at the top that I absolutely love how aggressive the formatting in this letter is.

For example, the following headline is copied and pasted directly from the letter.

YOU MUST KILL BUREAUCRACY ALL

THE TIME AND RELENTLESSLY.

Ok Jamie.

Is this a letter to your shareholders or an angry anonymous manifesto composed of letters cut out of a magazine and glued to a piece of paper?

Absolutely hilarious.

Yet, despite the aggressive formatting (or perhaps because of it) I completely agree. He goes on to say:

One of the biggest things that can kill a company

– or make it slow to adjust or admit problems – is

bureaucracy. It comes in a lot of forms, and you

have to continuously weed that garden. It’s a

mindset.

Meetings are the worst form of bureaucracy.

I’ll let you read his words yourself then we will reconvene in a moment

Here’s another example of what slows us down: meetings. Kill meetings. But when they do happen, they have to start on time and end on time – and someone’s got to lead them. There should also be a purpose to every meeting and always a follow-up list. Sometimes we think we’re just being nice by inviting people to a meeting who don’t have to be there. Sometimes we overcollaborate. One annoying example of bureaucracy is the meeting after the meeting, where an executive tells me what they didn’t want to say in front of their partners. That’s not acceptable. Don’t bother. I’m not their messenger. Lay it on the table in real time. Shine light on a problem or disagreement. Be transparent with your colleagues. Obviously, it’s different if it involves a private matter, but, usually, this strategy is just a go-around, an end run. We cannot allow these kinds of behaviors.