Published in Press & Journal – Your Job Section
This week Karran Bonner discusses how to get the best out of your meetings to maximise productivity and actions.
How often have you had a meeting that has felt like a complete waste of time? You leave having talked about the same old issues and don’t feel like anything has been achieved? Successful meetings can transform the level of employee engagement, read on for some top tips in running successful meetings.
Inviting The Best People
Have you ever been invited to a meeting and you aren’t quite sure why you have been asked along? As the meeting organiser it is important that you invite the correct people with the skills and expertise to move your agenda items forward. Having the right people in the room means that the need to follow up, check up on issues after the meeting is minimised as the people who need to take action should be present. Once you the right people round the table creating an agenda is the next step.
Creating A Successful Agenda
Creating a simple and easy to understand agenda ahead for your meeting is a step that many people miss. Key topics that should be covered in any agenda include:
Context
Why is the meeting taking place? Ensuring everyone who is attending is clear on the reason why the meeting is taking place.
Key Objectives
What do you want to achieve? Clarity of objectives for the meeting should be raised by the meeting organiser with the invite extended for others to share their objectives.
Timings of Meeting
Setting a clear finish time to manage the agenda
Open Discussion Space/AOB
Giving all attendees the space to raise topics for discussion that are relevant for the meeting is a good way of enabling everyone to feel like they have the opportunity to discuss the matters that are important to them.
Actions/Follow Up Plan
It is crucial to agree actions and a timeline for next steps to ensure these happen in a timely manner and the flow of communication continues after the meeting to capture the momentum of the meeting.
Nominating A Meeting Chair
To ensure that any meeting runs effectively there needs to be a chairperson in place. The person who initiates the meeting should generally take this role as they will have clarity on the context and objectives and have a vested interest in ensuring that actions are taken. Often someone may start the meeting and then someone else may try to take control – it is important that one person chairs the meeting for clear parameters and flow of the meeting. Taking charge and moving topics forward ensure for a smooth flow.
Take time to plan your meetings for success. If you would like to discuss how you can run yours more effectively please get in touch, I would love to hear from you: info@brightsideinspiration.com