According to top business professionals, the humble biscuit plays an integral role in influencing company directors, entrepreneurs and budget holders at the boardroom meetings. Research by Holiday Inn Hotels & Resort, part of IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), revealed that the quality and type of biscuit presented in a meeting can make or break a deal.
In what is considered the first ever ?Business Biscuit Study?, Holiday Inn surveyed more than 1,000 business professionals across the UK. 58% of those surveyed said that the biscuits served in a meeting can ?positively influence a company’s first impressions? and a massive 80% said that biscuits improve the quality and outcome of a meeting.
Those in the legal profession are most likely to be influenced by a good quality biscuit (67%), followed by sales, media or marketing professionals (65%). Some 59% of public sector workers agreed that biscuits can have a ‘favourable influence’ during a meeting.
Overall, nearly half (47%) of those quizzed thought that it was very important to serve biscuits during a meeting. Almost two-thirds (64%) confessed that the quality of biscuits offered was a matter of note or discussion. Surprisingly, biscuits were also deemed the second most important aspect of the boardroom, behind only tables and chairs and were prioritised over lighting, technology and artwork.
According to the data, biscuits or the absence of them can help highlight the meeting agenda particularly while breaking bad news. A strong 42% of those surveyed indicated that they would not serve biscuits if they were about to fire an employee. However, the chocolate digestive was singled out by 18% of professionals as the top biscuit used to soften the blow when delivering bad news.
Chocolate digestives proved the leading contender throughout the research and topped the list of the boardroom’s ?most wanted? ahead of shortbread, oat biscuits, jam rings, and Bourbons (dark chocolate sandwich creams).
Business biscuit etiquette shows that 50% of business professionals would take a maximum of two biscuits during a meeting, with three being the magic number for 18%. One single biscuit was the limit for 10%. However, the research also showed in certain circumstances biscuits are totally off limits. Almost half (49%) of businessmen and women would decline a biscuit when presenting, with 28.2% revealing they that will refuse the biscuits if they looked too crumbly.
According to the survey, nearly a quarter (24%) will wait until someone more senior than them had one before joining in. Just 9% of women and 17% of men will take a biscuit whatever the circumstance.