1540: Run Better Zoom Meetings: POPRA Planning, Handling HIPPOs, and High-Stakes Virtual Facilitation with Evan Unger

Sunday, February 1, 2026

Evan Unger is a recognized expert in organizational change, leadership development, and collaborative facilitation. With decades of experience consulting for major enterprises, including large pharmaceutical companies and insurance organizations, Evan specializes in transforming workplace culture by empowering change agents at every level. His approach moves beyond traditional training, focusing on deep, practice-based skill transfer to foster genuine collaboration, reduce bureaucracy, and maximize meeting effectiveness.

In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Evan Unger joins Robert Plank to discuss the art (and science) of running effective, high-stakes meetings. Evan reveals why most meetings are a microcosm of organizational dysfunction and how targeting meeting culture can boost company-wide productivity. Discover the “five fundamentals” for collaborative leadership, learn how to handle challenging personalities (including the “HiPPO” dynamic), and hear why real transformation starts with top-down engagement and extensive practice, not just passive training videos. Tune in for actionable strategies to reclaim time, drive better decisions, and create a culture of buy-in from the very first meeting.

Quotes:

“The fastest way to transform your company’s culture is to change the way you lead meetings because every meeting is a window into your organization’s soul.”

“Real leadership isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about creating space for every voice and guiding your team to believe, ‘We did this ourselves.’”

“You can’t shift a culture with information alone. Transformation happens when leaders show up, practice together, and model the behaviors they want to see.”