Sam,
I’m not sure that’s not, in a sense, the case over here.
The same level of harchakah which one should attempt to keep when possible, may not be assur in certain circumstances.
For example, even if we assume that separate seating is in the category of “meod meod”, and one should initially arrange a wedding as separate, that doesn’t make it unacceptable to sit in mixed company for a business meeting.