For more than a year now, whether the meeting has been initiated by a coworker, someone from outside my organization, or myself, there’s often been a “third party” that occupies a space in veritable Brady Bunch blocks. I’ve gotten used to most meetings being recorded, then receiving an email with a link to the meeting minutes, and, depending on who initiated the calendar invitation, sometimes action items. For the most part, it has been surprisingly helpful. But then, there’s this…
Invariably, there’s one person who is two or three minutes late to the meeting. Just like in-person meetings, and because we’re human, these few minutes can be time to catch up about the weekend, what’s happening in life, or to give a heads up about a co-worker or client that shouldn’t be shared with the larger group.
Cindy’s Agentic AI Cautionary Tale
Imagine my surprise when I saw a summary and an action list for planting and caring for my dahlias. If you’re interested, more on that later. But this got me thinking.
Remember when you got your first “work email,” and you were excited to use it to communicate with friends. Then you moved on from that job and wondered who was reading your emails? Today, there’s a slew of work management tools, such as Slack, which we use at Future. Are you one of many individuals who is under the impression that your one-to-one work conversations on Slack are private? They are not private. I’ll leave you to explore that on your own.
As agentic AI tools such as Microsoft’s Copilot and Google’s Gemini prove to be invaluable for saving time and increasing productivity, more people are in “set-it and forget-it” mode. Although all participants are made aware that a meeting is being recorded, it has become so commonplace that we’re not always cognizant that, as soon as a session is initiated, EVERY word you say is being recorded for posterity. Protect your posterior and the potential harm your “private” conversation can do to you and others. If you have something to say that shouldn’t be heard by others, don’t say it.
Cindy’s Dahlias: A Gemini Summary and Action List
Cindy discusses her first year growing dahlias, expressing her satisfaction with their prolific blooms, which she uses for her table and shares with neighbors. She notes that despite living north of Boston, the dahlias required a lot of water but thrived in the sun. John mentions that his dahlias in Los Angeles didn't grow due to hot, dry conditions. Cindy explains that she bought seven different varieties for color and size. She is happy that she is still cutting flowers in early November, but acknowledges that the first hard freeze will end their season. Cindy also shares that in her gardening zone, dahlias need to be dug up, stored, and replanted annually, a task she is now willing to undertake due to the rewarding results. She also mentions that the dahlias emerged in late June and didn't bloom until mid-August, so she used annuals to fill her garden during the summer.
(The action list automatically created isn't particularly helpful for the planting and care of dahlias, but a tutorial on how to grow and harvest was not the point of the meeting.)
· Cut dahlias every few days to put on the table.
· Share dahlias with neighbors.
· Give dahlias lots of water.
· Dig up dahlias in the fall before the ground freezes.
· Store dahlias in the basement during the winter.
· Replant dahlias in the spring after the ground thaws.
· Fill in the garden with annuals until dahlias bloom.
In this case, only a filler conversation about my dahlias was transcribed; a summary for the meeting minutes was created; and a list of “action items” was compiled.
What tidbits have you discussed before a meeting “begins” that were unwittingly shared with everyone?
