Organising Meetings

Organising Meetings

Importance of attendance of Meetings:

The primary importance of a well-organized meeting is cost efficiency. Therefore, when meetings are thoroughly planned and organized, employees don’t have to waste time. A well-organized meeting also effectively allows management to address any pressing issues succinctly, informatively, and objectively. 

1. We can collaborate better and share ideas.

2. To build and strengthen the team.

3. Meetings are a great way to resolve issues.

4. Helps to improve the creativity of the employees

Ways to Improve Meeting Effectiveness:

Stay on Topic

For a meeting to be effective and efficient, it is critical to ensure all participants stay on topic. This can be accomplished in at least three ways.

First, the presenter can ensure the discussion does not stray from the agenda items and adheres to the allotted time frame. 

Second, the presenter can frequently remind the attendees of the meeting objectives, progress, and items yet to be addressed. 

Third, the meeting organizer can reiterate critical discussion points and relate them back to agenda items when necessary.

Maintain Attention

In order for attendees to benefit from the meeting, all participants must be actively involved and attentive throughout the entire meeting. Regardless of team size, this can primarily be accomplished by allowing the participants to lead the meeting through the agenda items and discussion, while the meeting organizer simply guides them through the process. Second, the presenter can acknowledge and reinforce positive behaviours to encourage additional repetition and involvement. 

Breaks:  

A 10-minute break should be provided each hour to allow attendees to get situated, handle other business, and regroup their thoughts.

How to Run successful meetings?:

1. Be on time

2. Keep it short

3. Follow up

Common Complaints of Business Meetings:

Complaint #1: One or two people do all the talking

The solution: During an hour-long meeting, it's unrealistic that all participants will have equal floor time. But there are simple things you can do before, during, and after a meeting to ensure the conversation isn’t dominated by one or two people.

At the beginning of the meeting, clarify that you want broad participation and tell participants that you won't move on from a topic until everyone has had a chance to make a comment or ask a question. 

During the meeting, ensure no one is taking the conversation hostage. If someone speaks too often or interrupts others, ask the person to hold that thought, then suggest someone else share their ideas. And if someone still manages to dominate the conversation, let them know after the meeting that you'd like participation to be more balanced in the future.

Complaint #2: The meeting should have been an email

The solution: If the majority of your meeting is spent on updates that could have been communicated via email, you have a problem. Respectfully voice this concern to the meeting organizer and offer to craft an agenda that prioritizes "topics that require the thinking and alignment of the group,".

To plan a productive meeting, ask your team which topics need to be discussed or what the team needs to learn. Articulate the desired outcome of the meeting and predict the amount of time each discussion topic will take.

Complaint #3: The meetings are redundant

The solution: When nothing gets done between meetings, you end up having the same conversations and setting the same goals over and over. Send out a summary after each meeting within the hour or by the end of the day clearly articulating next steps. Make sure someone is following up to track each person's progress on the assignment they were given and aim for an 85% completion rate. If you aren’t meeting your goal, come together to decide how to get back on track