What are the best ways to ensure that group discussions lead to actionable outcomes?

In my experience, all meetings must have a defined purpose. All too often meetings today have no defined purpose. Most do not even have an agenda. Meetings for the sake of meetings are a waste of time and resources. Also meeting with several members from the same group waste resources. Defining meetings and the practices of holding a meeting are a useful leadership technique. Large group meeting add little value and you would be better served to hold smaller more individualized meeting focused on the specifics of the attendees. How many meeting do you sit in where your participation is a few minutes of the hour you are sitting there. Stop wasting time in group meeting and have focused defined meetings that add value.

In my experience honesty is the key to success. When discussing actions that directly affect the team I will always bring them into the conversation. I'll start by explaining I don't "need" their help to make the decision, however as it directly affects them I would like their involvement as them having ownership in the process will increase the success and adaptation of the policy or procedure. The caveat is also, if they don't contribute then they have no room to complain later. This has a huge success rate vs me just implementing a change without a conversation. The great thing is it increases morale, cooperation, and if you go into it humble they may have better idea that otherwise could have been missed.

Es importante que el propósito y los objetivos deben estar claros antes de la reunión para que la discusión desde el principio sea productiva. Todos los participantes deben comprender el propósito de la reunión y lo que se espera lograr. También es importante entender quienes realmente deben asistir para evitar tener salas llenas y pocos sumando a la obtención de los resultados esperados.

A well-formed and empowered team may be successful in conducting their meetings only when all / concerned team members need to discuss something together to avoid repetition or message distortion. In other cases one-on-one discussions, phone/video calls or team bulletins can save other team members time and still achieve communication purpose.

Have a loose set schedule. If each topic should take 5-10 minutes to cover, stick to that. Brainstorming is great and helpful, but it can easily get out of control. (and cause loss of productivity.)

One would think that in a professional setting that knowing protocol & etiquette are ingrained. In my experience this is no longer the case. Norms vary for workplaces & individuals, and in order to keep things progressing in a manner consistent with workplace culture these ground rules often have to be shared beforehand and in writing before proceeding. Things such as preparation, accountable language, agenda, time limits, and desired results should all be clear to participants. In so doing the focus will be on the topic/challenge rather than veering off course.

Setting ground rules is crucial for fostering effective group discussions. Establish norms for participation, communication, and decision-making to create a respectful and collaborative environment. Examples include active listening, respecting diverse opinions, constructive contribution, staying on topic, and adhering to time limits. Whether proposed by you or collaboratively created, regularly review and consistently enforce these ground rules at the beginning of each discussion to ensure a productive and respectful dialogue.

Additionally,Clear instructions or guidelines should be provided for the group to prevent getting off track. One facilitator should oversee the group, ensuring everyone contributes effectively. Facilitators should encourage participation from all members, managing dominance, and motivating those who are less inclined to speak.

1. Respeto mutuo: Fomenta un ambiente donde cada miembro del grupo sea respetuoso con las opiniones y perspectivas de los demás. 2. Escucha activa: Incentiva la escucha atenta y la consideración de las ideas de los demás antes de responder, promoviendo un diálogo constructivo. 3. Participación equitativa: Asegúrate de que todos tengan la oportunidad de contribuir y evitar que una persona domine la discusión. 4. Enfoque en el propósito: Mantén la discusión centrada en los objetivos establecidos, evitando desviaciones que no contribuyan al logro de resultados prácticos. 5. Construcción sobre ideas: Anima a los participantes a construir sobre las ideas de los demás en lugar de simplemente criticar, fomentando la colaboración.

Group dialogue is great, but ground rules are needed for decisions. Even if it is a tyrannical decision. It is done, made, and final. Rarely does a true consensus emerge from compromise. And often one simply yields to the other. Odd number team membered teams will have a tie breaker vote. Often it isn’t the right decision but a decision that is important. Failure to act in time is often more detrimental than a poor decision.

1. Limit the group to only the most relevant individuals. 2. When sending out meeting invitations, include an agenda that allocates specific time slots to each item to be discussed. 3. Articulate the objectives at the beginning of the meeting. 4. Maintain control over the meeting .Politely but firmly cut off any irrelevant distractions or side arguments and suggest moving such discussions to a separate meeting if necessary. 5. As the facilitator, take the lead in guiding the discussion. 6. Take notes during the meeting and promptly assign action items within 24 hours to facilitate accountability. 7. If the objectives have been successfully achieved during the meeting, announce it to the group, providing closure and clarity.

Have an assigned scribe that is capable of catching even the slightest of ideas into a cohesive note and send it out to all participants for comments.

This approach, the tips and processes spelled out here, truly remind me of the problem solving process and the brainstorming sessions that go hand in hand with that during the Total Quality Management steps. My earliest exposure to this wasn't business school or leadership academy, rather, it was in the DOD cascade training of the early 1990s when the DOD elected to adopt TQM. While the DOD TQM plan went back to 1988, those processes of communication and respect to all ideas, went back many decades before that. You have to give and demand equal respect to each voice at the table. Each participant has to believe their input and ideas will receive fair consideration and merit during the process. Give that respect and allow the process to work

As a supervisor, employ facilitation techniques to guide and enhance group discussions, fostering productivity and inclusivity. Techniques like asking open-ended questions, summarizing key points, paraphrasing feedback, using visual aids, forming smaller groups, and employing voting or ranking options can be effective. Tailor your choice of techniques to align with your purpose, team dynamics, and personal style, ensuring a well-managed and engaging discussion.

Assigning tasks and roles to teams signifies low functioning team. Accountable people will step up and take ownership with action items with a due date commitment. Getting to that level of accountability takes a lot of work on the culture so that everyone is bought into the mission and is willing to step up instead of waiting to be assigned. It is proactive vs. reactive.

Having a selection of team meeting arranging and leading techniques is good, it's just worth noting that a work meeting should be to the point, and using different techniques every time or shifting roles may cause increased team members distraction from main duties simply by greater time needed to prepare for an unusual role. This may diminish meeting value and be detrimental for the team overall attitude.

Expanding on the point about assigning roles and tasks, it's important to match the right roles and tasks to the right team members. For example, if you have a team member who is highly organized and detail-oriented, you might assign them the role of recorder, responsible for taking notes and documenting the discussion. If you have a team member who is great at brainstorming and generating new ideas, you might assign them the role of presenter, responsible for leading the discussion and presenting ideas. When matching roles and tasks to team members, consider their skills, interests, and strengths.

In my experience rotating roles from meeting to meeting also lets people shine in unexpected ways. I like for everyone to come to the table prepared to discuss key topics, yet by having moderators, time keepers, scribes, background researchers, & question askers rotate or change from meeting to meeting a team often congeals and yield’s excellent results.

1. Facilitador:Encargado de dirigir la discusión, asegurando que se sigan las reglas establecidas, el tiempo asignado y que todos tengan la oportunidad de participar. 2. Relator:Responsable de tomar notas detalladas sobre los puntos clave discutidos, las decisiones tomadas y las acciones acordadas para que haya un registro claro. 3.Tiempokeeper: Controla el tiempo asignado para cada punto de discusión, ayudando a mantener la eficiencia. 4. Coordinador de tareas: Asigna y sigue el progreso de las tareas derivadas de la discusión, asegurando que se completen en los plazos acordados. 5. Investigador: Encargado de recopilar información relevante antes de la reunión para respaldar la discusión y decisiones informadas.

A post-meeting overview in the form of an email is an effective way to communicate the outcome of a meeting as well as recognize the helpful contributions of team members. Such a communication confirms understanding and helps members comprehend future steps and expectations.

Coincido con otro comentario, el registro de la reunión debe quedar en medios electrónicos, circular y es la evidencia de los acuerdos. La dirección debe proveer los recursos para llevarlos a cabo o consultar por más información. Algunas organizaciones llevan los acuerdos a validación y verificación para incluirlos en cambios a procedimientos o procesos. Otras incluso a nivel de proyectos de mejora con su consecuente análisis costo - beneficio. Los asuntos pendientes o en progreso se monitorean cada vez que hay una reunión para reducir demoras.

Conclude the group discussion process by reviewing and evaluating both outcomes and the discussion process. Summarize key decisions and action items for communication. Assess the effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction using methods like feedback forms, surveys, debriefs, or metrics. This review and evaluation provide an opportunity to celebrate successes, identify areas for improvement, and enhance future discussions.

A discussion may not have been intended as a plan of action to follow. However, for an effective operation, if it is an actionable discussion, we do need to have follow up from the various individuals involved so we can all learn from the experience and put any ideas into place.

Roles and timeliness are important but more important are producing positive results. Failure to plan, is plan to fail. Research in the planning phase is most important as garbage in will always result in garbage out.

Utilize a familiar tools. Based on my experience many discussion are using brainstorming approach with verbal media. As we probably aware of, most of important information usually written on a minutes of meeting with lower clarity of further action/s to complete. Most of the information was "wiped-out" during the verbal discussion. The risk might comes from the scriber or the person to write the discussion notes. Utilizing a familiar tools, such as a checklist or empty form with designated timeline & responsible person on the column. I believe it would be very beneficial to provide the discussion outcome, effectively. Some organization are already using their own-template. Thank you for your attention.

En algunos casos es factible la lluvia de ideas para solucionar temas específicos y no se deben descartar los comentarios de ideas por descabellados que parezcan. Porque en el mismo ámbito de la reunión podemos ir mejorando la idea y podemos obtener soluciones que nunca se hubiese imaginado el líder del proceso.

I think that a clear understanding when assigning actions is the expected outcomes and realistic timeframes in which they are to be achieved. Provide the necessary resources that will enable your team to succeed. Larger projects should be monitored incrementally and acknowledged as each phase is completed.

A mis colaboradores y a mi me ha resultado útil relacionar en un diagrama de neuronal los temas tratados en las reuniones. Eso permite analizar transiciones controlables o incontrolables y ver gráficamente frecuencia inesperada o procesos al borde de una crisis. El tiempo invertido en reuniones de trabajo es un recurso que debe arrojar conocimiento y ahorrar reuniones. Por ello es importante dejar antecedente sobre el retrabajo en los temas y lo eficaz que fueron las acciones tomadas para resolver los objetivos de dichas reuniones.