The CEO Frustration Is Real
The Wall Street Journal recently highlighted CEOs, including Jamie Dimon, who are fed up with employees texting and emailing during meetings. They’re not wrong – it’s distracting, it breaks flow, and it signals that someone’s only half-present. But let’s be honest: this isn’t just a phone problem. It’s a focus problem.
The Meeting Problem Behind the Phone Problem
In most organizations, the real issue isn’t devices – it’s meeting design. Too many meetings lack a clear purpose, run too long, or include too many people who don’t need to be there. When that happens, people disengage. And when people disengage, the phone becomes an easy escape hatch. So yes, leaders should be frustrated. But before banning phones, we might want to look at the root cause – the way we structure and run our meetings.
Shared Responsibility: Leaders and Attendees
As someone who lives in both technology and operations, I see both sides.
If you’re leading the meeting, your job is to make it worth people’s attention.
If you’re attending, your job is to give that attention.
Presence is a two-way street – one side sets the focus, the other honors it.
Three Practical Fixes
1️⃣ Leaders: Design for focus.
Keep meetings shorter, sharper, and intentional. If it can be an email, make it an email.
2️⃣ Attendees: Own your attention.
Respect the time – yours and everyone else’s. Put the phone down unless it’s directly part of the discussion.
3️⃣ Teams: Set digital norms, not bans.
Tech isn’t the enemy – misuse is. Establish shared etiquette for devices that supports the work, not distracts from it.
Final Thought
Phones don’t ruin meetings – people do.
Meetings don’t have to be phone-free zones. But they do have to be focus zones.
That part’s on all of us.
