12 FEBRUARY 1994, Page 22

Sorry, I'm in conference

I MUST protect the identity of the banker who sent me this leaflet on the fuller office life, but I can say that the bank he has in mind is notoriously committee-ridden. If you can't beat the committees, so the leaflet suggests, join them: 'Are you lonely? Work on your own? Hate having to take decisions? Rather talk about it than do it? Hold a meeting! You can get to see other people, sleep in peace, offload decisions, learn to write volumes of meaningless rhetoric, feel important and impress and bore your colleagues — and all in work time! Meetings — the practical alter- native to work!' I can only add that this pro- posal will require further study by an appro- priately constituted meeting party.