More on meetings
February 9, 2013 Leave a comment
I did a blog on meetings last year, called I hate (some) meetings and one of the comments asked for some advice on conducting meetings. I suppose meetings are so common place that few people give any thought to making them run effectively. As a consequence, we find far too many meetings are an inedible waste of time. So, here we is some advice to take us back to the basics.
Firstly, do not hold a meeting at all if there is a better way of achieving the objective. The time taken during the meeting should typically represent only 10% to 20% of the total time needed to prepare for and follow up the meeting; use your time appropriately.
Before the meeting, the person calling the meeting should:
- fix the objective, venue, date, time and attendance well in advance; keep numbers to a minimum
- ensure all required parties are invited and have authority/knowledge to take decisions and/or make a valid contribution
- set accountability and time limits for each agenda item, taking into account the participants’ different interest levels for each item
- send out agenda and written submissions in time to allow participants to prepare.
Those invited should accept the invitation, decline or provide a substitute attendee, as appropriate.
At the meeting:
The Chair should:
- confirm who the note taker is
- confirm the objective of the meeting
- start and finish the meeting on time: censure late arrivals.
- stick to the agenda and timetable.
- ensure there is an agreed approach for undertaking each agenda item.
- keep the meeting focused.
- ensure full, participative discussion takes place.
- guillotine “knotty” issues for resolution outside the meeting.
- summarise each agenda item at the end and ensure agreements and actions are recorded .
- agree and fix date for next meeting, if needed.
- seek meeting participants’ feedback on the effectiveness of the meeting.
The Note taker should:
- act as the Chair’s right hand person.
- ensure all decisions and agreements are noted.
- take brief, relevant, action oriented notes.
Meeting participants should:
- keep to the point and be brief.
- listen to others and should not hold private meetings.
- be constructive, adopting a “can do” approach
- agree realistic plans/actions.
- make a note of their own actions (including recipient and date).
After the meeting:
The Chair should:
- review the effectiveness of the meeting and note improvement points for the next meeting.
The Note taker should:
- publish the notes or minutes to the participants and those who need them within 1 day. What is the point of “old minutes”, they are no good to anyone. It takes the same time to do them straight away as to do them a month later – it’s just a matter of you organizing yourself.
Participants should:
- assess their own effectiveness at the meeting and note areas for improvement; make suggestions to the Chair if appropriate.
- read the minutes and address all actions and note those actions where they are the “recipient”.
HINTS
If you use a collaboration tool such as SharePoint or Livelink, use a task list to record the meeting’s actions. In this way, no actions are lost and those accountable for each action can readily find them.
Place “Review of Previous Minutes” towards the end of the meeting agenda, rather than at the beginning. This will encourage the meeting to go forward rather than starting by dwelling on what happened last time. If important, many of these items will be dealt with in the main agenda items.
If the notes are not for a formal meeting then consider the use of hand-written notes or as a photocopied page in your work book:
- record actions, in hand-writing at the meeting,
- photocopy the sheet(s) just before the end of the meeting,
- distribute to participants before they leave.
- scan and file the handwritten note if you need a record.
. . . and make sure you all behave well at the meeting:
- Start on time
- Switch off or silence mobile devices
- Keep to the agenda – Stick to the point
- No private meetings
- No interruptions or walk-outs
- Be constructive
- Speak out during the meeting – not afterwards
- Be polite
- LISTEN!
- Agree conclusions and actions
- FINISH ON TIME