A bonfire is a large highly planned meeting with juice and bagels. Usually held in a special room with lots of a/v toys and stadium seating. Attendees are high ranking and they come and go during the course of the meeting which usually is scheduled for a minimum of three hours and is presided over by a high-paid consultant who tells you what you already know but neglects to tell you how execute. There are so many people from diverse departments that by the time everyone has had the chance to air their agenda the meeting is over and everyone is exhausted. The end result is that a lot of fuel was spent and no work was done and everyone walks away dazed and smelling of smoke.

Nice metaphor
It almost makes me feel good about having participated.