The essence of the two pizza rule is grounded in the idea that smaller groups are more conducive to meaningful and focused discussions.
The co-founder of Amazon and one of the world’s wealthiest men, Jeff Bezos, is known for his dislike of powerpoint presentations and has publicly expressed his dislike of slideshow presentations.
Business Insider reports Bezos has a very specific way he likes his meetings to run, and the billionaire recently spoke with podcaster Lex Fridman about how he likes his meetings to go.
“I like a crisp document and a messy meeting,” Bezos said.
Rather than PowerPoints, Bezos prefers memos, according to him, since they require more work and effort on the part of the author. The method, he says, makes meeting participants more productive by allowing them to ask more productive questions and find the truth rather than “hiding a lot of sloppy thinking in bullet points.”
“We have in our society and inside companies, a bunch of mechanisms we use to resolve these kinds of disputes,” Bezos said in the podcast. “A lot of them are, I think, really bad. An example of a really bad way of coming to an agreement is compromise.”
The essence of the two pizza rule is grounded in the idea that smaller groups are more conducive to meaningful and focused discussions. Bezos believes that a smaller team allows for better communication, increased accountability, and faster decision-making. By limiting the number of participants in a meeting, Bezos aims to prevent the dilution of ideas and the loss of productivity that can occur in larger, less focused gatherings.
The practical application of the two pizza rule is straightforward. Before scheduling a meeting, organizers must consider the number of attendees and whether two pizzas would be sufficient to feed everyone. If the group is too large for two pizzas to satisfy, Bezos suggests canceling or reevaluating the necessity of the meeting.
This approach encourages teams to be mindful of who should be involved in discussions and helps avoid unnecessary, time-consuming gatherings that may hinder productivity.
The two pizza rule aligns with Bezos’ commitment to maintaining a culture of efficiency and innovation at Amazon. By fostering smaller, more dynamic meetings, he aims to create an environment where decisions can be made quickly, and the focus remains on moving the company forward.
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