by Richard Avdoian
Yes, meetings can be awful for both the boss and those required to attend. They can drag on and on pointlessly with no clear agenda and often adjourn with little if any progress made.
Routine meetings are essential in business for numerous reasons: disseminate information, address problems and concerns, best practices, and monitor productivity.
The general disrespect for meetings starts from the top. Far too often they are cancelled, postponed or start late which sets the precedence of others not arriving promptly or not attending at all. Scheduled, well-run meetings are necessary to enhance communication between all facets of a company. The lack of communication is often mentioned as a problem on employee/management surveys.
Implementing these simply tips will help improve attendance and productivity of your meetings.
1. Commit – establish a set day, start and ending time and location for the meetings and stick to it. When there is a need to cancel or reschedule, give everyone ample notice so they can make the best use of their time.
2. Agenda – establish a deadline for submission of agenda items and then send out a formal agenda prior to the meeting. This allows staff to be prepared and bring any necessary information and reports.
3. Follow the agenda – as you transition from topic to topic, inform the group of the time allotted. When it is about time to move on announce that it is necessary to wrap up the discussion. If the topic was not fully addressed, make a decision to either carry over the topic to the next meeting or assign a plan of action.
4. Maintain control – be assertive when acknowledging the discussion has drifted off topic. Voice appreciation for the input but stress the importance of staying focused and respectful of time allotted for each agenda item.
5. Late arrivals – don’t acknowledge their entrance, don’t stop the meeting to bring them up to speed and don’t ask for or allow them the time to explain why they are tardy. If you do it will waste time and likely frustrate those present.
6. Closure – end each meeting with a positive statement and re-state the expected tasks, deadlines and what needs to be completed before the next meeting. Be clear and assign individuals specific tasks.
7. Minutes – to minimize a breakdown in communication, misunderstandings and avoid members failing to recall information on new policies, procedures etc., assign an attendee to take minutes. Once typed, everyone should get a copy and a master kept in the main office. The minutes should also list who attended and those absent. It should be required that those absent review the minutes and accompanied documents/policies/memos in the main office and initial they were reviewed.
To maintain a consistence within your company share these tips with the management team so there is a universal format in all departments to insure meetings are productive and beneficial.
Richard Avdoian is founder/CEO of the Midwest Business Institute Inc., a business coaching, consulting and training firm. For more information about coaching and training, contact Richard at 618-972-8588 or Richard@RichardAvdoian.com.
Submitted 8 years 120 days ago