Communicating in a meeting is an essential part of effective employee engagement.
Some meetings are not conducted in an efficient manner which in turns effects the outcome of the meeting and any agendas hoped to be gained from it.
It may be because:
They do not involve participation of all
They may be too long
They may lack a clear agenda
They may not begin on the planned time
They may end without any conclusion.
As a result, such meetings lead to a large wastage of time. In order to ensure an effective outcome to any meeting, they must be planned, systematic and sensible.
The means to running an productive meeting includes the following:
Plan the meeting:
The first step to a effective meeting is to be overly prepared for it.
For that to happen you need to know the objectives and your desired outcome for the meeting, with this down as your overall agenda. This agenda lets the meeting attendees know precisely what to expect. Include the topics that will be covered during the meeting in as much detail as necessary.
If you have a high intensity meeting with lots of equipment required,ensure all the equipment needed for the meeting be readily available on the day. This could include bits like audio/visual equipment, laptops, a Wi-Fi connection, Some meeting organizers like to provide refreshments such as coffee, tea, water, or cookies to the attendees.
Announce the meeting:
After planning the meeting, the participants should get a message/memorandum to make them aware and ready for the topics to be discussed in the meeting. An effective tip is to give each participant responsibility for the agenda item, that way they feel more involved and responsible for the meeting itself.
Bring extra copies of the agenda to the meeting in case any unexpected attendees show up or someone leaves their agenda behind. Making sure you have enough copies of any other handouts will ensure there is no impact on attendees for any material that will be required or distributed throughout the meeting.
Conduct the meeting:
Once you have got to the meeting date, here are a few things to consider for the meeting:
Be punctual and arrive early for the meeting. The meeting should begin on time to avoid any disruptions or distractions to attendees.
State the agenda for the meeting at the very beginning so that all are clear with the purpose of the meeting, in order to get to the points at hand.
If required, introduce the members/participants so that all are familiar with each other, enabling good group discussions.
Make sure to circulate any handouts and documentation required.
Involve all attendees during the discussion.
Encourage new ideas from the participants, even provide some of your own in order to model out of the box thinking. Ensure to mention respect is maintained no matter how out there a suggestion.
Ask for a feedback.
Make sure that there are no distractions during the meeting (such as ringing cell phones, or participants fiddling with pen, or gossiping, etc.). Give a quick review of the issues discussed in the meeting.
Effective Moderator
Each meeting should have a effective moderator, whose job it is to help the meeting attendees keep on track and keep the meeting moving along if any conversation gets stalled on one particular topic. This includes ensuring the moderator has selected someone to take effective / clear notes throughout the meeting. This helps the attendees of the meeting review and feedback what was covered later on. This duty can be permanently assigned to someone or swapped between a regular meeting attendee.
When the meeting starts, the moderator should review the agenda and let attendees know exactly what is to be covered and the desired outcome of the meeting. He or she should let all attendees know the time frame of the meeting. By setting this mandate, the moderate can ensure no one gets distracted by any overspent time or lost hours and instead focus on the agenda at large.
Group Contribution
While conducting the meeting, the moderator and all other attendees should take the time to listen to each person's opinion on a matter or subject. Meetings work best if everyone is allowed to contribute to a problem or matter, as this offers better brainstorming and collaboration. If no one offers any ideas or solutions, it is the moderator's job to try to engage some brainstorming techniques to help navigate a topic and get to a end point. Staying focused on the agenda and not allowing the attendees to stray to other subjects is key. If a pinned topic arises, but will involve some detailed discussion, ask the note taker to add that specific topic to the agenda for the next meeting. This will allow attendees to still feel they can contribute, even if it snot at that particular meeting and no subject is left without discussion.
Gratitude and Appreciation
As the meeting ends, be sure to thank all meeting attendees for coming. Meetings can be viewed as chores to attend by a number of employees, but if the participants are thanked and feel that their attendance was appreciated, they will think more highly of them. Once the meeting is over, have the note taker or appropriate person type up the minutes of the meeting and distribute to each attendee either through mail or email. This will help participants feel there input was valued and time was taken to listen to there viewpoint.
Evaluate the meeting: Assess the meeting after it is conducted. Distribute a feedback form to all participants which provides you a census on the effectiveness of the meeting. To ensure you get credible and honest feedback, do not ask for names on the forms. here are some questions that are most effective for feedback:
Whether the objectives of the meetings were well met
Did the meeting involve everyone
Did everyone feel they could contribute.
Which part of the meeting did the attendee found most constructive
Which part of meeting was not significant enough to revisit.
Summary
There can be many reasons why meetings may be ineffective, across a variety of different meetings.
But for meetings to be effective, participation is required from all those present. Listening to attendees is key to success and promoting a hearing culture among regular meetings breathe good, effective cultures that produce effective results.
To ensure the success of a meeting, good preparation is essential and the role of the moderator is clear.
If these conditions are met, then all attendees should leave the meeting feeling a sense of accomplishment, impact and participation in a set agenda or goal.
