Meeting Management

Meeting Management.

Prepare in six steps

To prepare for a meeting, follow these six steps:

Determine your purpose

The purpose for a meeting drives all other key steps in preparing for a meeting—including what you put on the agenda, whom you invite, and when and where you hold the meeting. Meetings have several basic purposes:

·        Solve a problem. A challenge is defined, such as unexpectedly rapid expansion of the business or declining product quality. Participants suggest ways to address the challenge. To get the most value from such a meeting, participants must be able to understand the problem. And they need enough energy and the right expertise to solve it.

·        Make a decision. The group selects a solution to implement. With this kind of meeting, participants need to agree on how decisions will be made.

·        Provide updates. Participants might report and give feedback on something, such as the status of an important project.

·        Brainstorm ideas. Participants try to generate as many ideas as possible, such as ideas for a new product, service, business process, or business model.

·        Rally the troops. The leader makes a presentation and tries to inspire participants to take a particular action.

Do you need a meeting?

If you’re like most managers, you spend a bigger chunk of your workday in meetings than you’d like. Meetings interrupt your workflow and eat up hours you could be spending more productively.  

While there’s often no way around gathering people in a room or on the phone to discuss an issue, it’s rare that managers stop to consider whether a meeting really needs to happen.

To determine if you need a meeting, consider your purpose. Also consider other criteria—such as whether you need input from a group and whether the subject of the possible meeting is truly worth everyone’s time.

Standing meetings

When to meet

In general, call a meeting when you:

·        Need a group to take part in making a decision, solving a problem, providing updates, or brainstorming ideas

·        Want to provide updates to a group—project status, a success, a concern

·        Face a problem that needs input from members of different groups

·        Discover that your team members feel a strong need to meet

When not to meet

It's better not to hold a meeting if:

·        The subject is a personnel issue that’s better handled one-on-one, such as an employee’s poor performance

·        You don't have time to prepare

·        Your group members are upset over a conflict or other problem and need time apart before being ready and able to address the situation

·        Another method of communicating—email, phone, text message—would work as well or better

Create an agenda

If you’ve decided you need to hold a meeting, create an agenda: determine agenda items, the length of the meeting, sequence the discussion appropriately, and specify logistics.

Agenda items

To determine your agenda items, consider the meeting’s purpose, then the items that need to be discussed in order to achieve the meetings’ goals. Decide how much time you will grant to each item.

Include only as many agenda items as the group can realistically handle in the time allotted for the meeting.

Meeting length

Allotted time for the entire meeting depends on its purpose and its agenda items. Most business meetings are 30 minutes to two hours long.

Usually, shorter meetings are more useful than longer ones because people have limited attention spans. Studies show that people have attention spans of no longer than about 30-40 minutes. * If a meeting goes longer than that, participants may start squirming with impatience. When you’re deciding how much time to allot for a meeting, keep this in mind.

Sequence agenda items

Sequence your agenda items to create an optimal flow to the meeting.

·        Look for issues that build on each other.

·        Start with a few easy issues. Then work up to the most complex or controversial ones. But take care not to run out of time for the most important discussion items.

·        Separate information-sharing issues from problem-solving, decision-making, or brainstorming ones.

·        During long meetings, such as off-sites, address the most difficult issues at a time when participants are at their most focused. Attendees probably won’t be at their best just before or just after lunch, for example.

·        Break complex issues down into manageable parts.

Logistics

In your meeting agenda, indicate logistics such as:

·        Date, time, place, and length of the meeting

·        Name of the person calling the meeting, names and roles of participants, or name of the group that’s meeting

·        Anything unusual about the meeting format, such as the fact that the meeting will be held online or at an offsite location

·        Any background materials participants will need to review or prepare before taking part in the meeting

In selecting a setting for your meeting, book as small a room as everyone can comfortably fit in. This fosters a more cohesive group experience and encourages everyone to participate. *

Also choose a room size and seating arrangement that will best help you reach your objectives. For example, if you want to encourage the free exchange of information and opinions, use an informal setting and seating arrangement, arrange tables so people can see each other, and use round tables to deemphasize hierarchy.

Some careful thought can help you schedule your meeting so that people arrive on time and have the energy to focus on your agenda.  *

·        Schedule it when most participants aren’t in back-to-back meetings.

·        Avoid meeting first thing in the morning, when people are rushing to get to work; and the end of the day, when people are tired.

·        Avoid scheduling a meeting right before vacations, when people are rushing to finish their to-do lists, not yours.

·        Provide snacks to keep everyone’s energy levels up if you need to schedule a just- before-lunch or end-of-day meeting.

·        Try to limit the meeting time to no more than one hour. If there’s really that much to cover, break the information into several smaller meetings.

Decide who to invite

The purpose of your meeting helps you determine whom you invite. Identify individuals who need to take part in the meeting. Select the right number of invitees. And clarify what roles each person will play during the meeting.

Who

Invite people to your meeting who:

·        Are the key decision makers for the issues involved

·        Can give relevant input

·        Have a commitment to, a stake in, or a role in the issue

·        Need to know the information that will be reported in the meeting in order to do their jobs

·        Will have to implement any decisions made during the meeting

To make sure key players attend, invite them personally and make sure the meeting fits into their schedules. Remind them of how they and others will benefit if they attend the meeting. Also, notify them if they will play a specific role.

How many

To determine how many people you should invite to a meeting, consider using the “8-18-1800” rule:

·        If you have to solve a problem or make a decision, invite no more than eight people. If you have more than eight people, you may receive so much conflicting input that it’s difficult to deal with the problem or make the decision at hand.

·        If you want to brainstorm, then you can go as high as 18 people.

·        If the purpose of the meeting is to rally the troops, go for 1,800—or more.

·        If the purpose of the meeting is for you to provide updates, invite however many people need to receive the updates. If everyone attending the meeting will be providing updates, limit the number of participants to no more than 18.

Roles

In selecting people to invite to the meeting, think about the roles and responsibilities that will need to be covered. One individual may fill several roles in a meeting.

Roles

In selecting people to invite to the meeting, think about the roles and responsibilities that will need to be covered. One individual may fill several roles in a meeting.

Meeting roles

·        Role

Responsibilities

·        Leader

·        Clarifies meeting’s purpose, objectives, constraints, and scope of authority

·        May or may not facilitate the meeting

·        Takes responsibility for follow-up

·        Facilitator

·        Guides the group through the phases of the meeting

·        May be responsible for pre- and post-meeting logistics

·        Scribe

·        Captures the key points, ideas, and decisions resulting from the meeting, ideally on a flip chart or whiteboard

·        May draft the minutes or post-meeting notes

·        Contributor

·        Participates actively by offering ideas and helping to keep the discussion on track

·        Expert

·        Contributes expert knowledge on particular issues as requested

·        If not a regular member of the team, may not participate in other aspects of the meeting

·        Timekeeper

·        Tracks time spent on each agenda item

·        Moves discussion to next agenda item if needed to keep meeting on track

Your roles

As a meeting leader, you might fill numerous roles during a meeting to address challenges that can arise.

·        Role

What you do

·        Gatekeeper

Ensure that the agenda is followed, that everyone who wants to speak gets the opportunity to do so, and that no one dominates.

·        Devil’s advocate

Challenge a consensus that may be emerging prematurely, without sufficient thought.

·        Consensus builder

Spot and highlight areas of agreement among members.

·        Cheerleader

Give genuine praise to participants where it is due.

·        Joker

Relieve tension and remind members of common bonds

Identify communication tools and technologies

Identify the kinds of tools you’ll need in the meeting—such as phones, whiteboards, computers, flip charts, and markers.

Also consider the need for communication technologies, such as videoconferencing, teleconferencing with Internet support, and Web conferencing. The best meetings are face-to-face, especially when highly contentious matters are at stake or when a topic is emotional or sensitive. But with so many people working remotely, face-to-face isn’t always possible. In fact, more and more meetings today are conducted not around a conference table but through communication technologies:

·        Videoconferencing. Videoconferencing enables colleagues who work in diverse locations to meet without leaving their offices. However, it can be complicated and typically requires the help of people with technical skills. For basic video, each conference participant needs the appropriate computer, camera, audio equipment, software, and internet connection.  

·        Teleconferencing with Internet support. When you need to tie remote participants together and exchange visuals or data in real time, a teleconference with internet support can be an alternative to videoconferencing. If you have lots of data to exchange, ensure that all parties have high-speed internet connections. Otherwise, delays will keep some participants behind. Test the connections beforehand. Offer a quick tutorial to everyone at the beginning of the call if the software or website is unfamiliar to some.

·        Web conferencing. Web conferencing can cover a wide range of possibilities, from simple slide sharing on a website to full streaming video. In general, the more bandwidth required and the more complicated the transmission that's being attempted, the more likely things may not work perfectly. Test the technology beforehand, and opt for the simplest possible connection. 

 Make final preparations

Before the meeting, make final preparations:

·        Collect relevant documents and data.

·        Distribute relevant information beforehand, especially if doing so will help shorten the meeting.

·        Circulate the agenda you've created.

·        Talk with stakeholders about their opinions of and objectives for the meeting.

·        Encourage stakeholders to complete any pre-work needed for the meeting, such as reading documents or developing suggestions.

·        For people who have an interest in the meeting’s outcome but who won’t be there, send them the agenda and let them know that you’ll be holding the meeting.

As a final check to ensure that you’ve prepared adequately, ask yourself: *

·        Am I clear about the meeting’s purpose?

·        Do we really need this meeting?

·        Have I covered all required information in the agenda?

·        Do I know how decisions will be made during the meeting?

Before the meeting

To run a focused and productive meeting, schedule 10-15 minutes of preparation time for yourself before it starts. This will enable you to:

·        Test technology. Make sure the communication technologies you plan to use are in working order and troubleshoot any problems.

·        Be poised. Take this time to organize your thoughts and reference materials.

·        Be present. Greet participants either physically or virtually as they join the meeting.

If some participants will be gathering together physically in a room, you should:

·        Clear away any materials left from prior meetings.

·        Distribute the meeting agenda, along with any handouts you distributed previously.

·        Set up any visuals. A physical display will have a strong impact when people first enter the room.

·        Put refreshments in the center of the table. It’s almost always useful to have some type of light food or drink—even when it’s not lunchtime.

·        Set up a whiteboard with markers or hang large sheets of paper for note taking.

Start with authority

By taking charge immediately, you start off on an authoritative note. And you boost the chances that your meeting will move along smoothly.

To open your meeting with authority:

·        Start on time. Even if a few participants are missing, start the meeting as if they were there. When they arrive and discover they’ve missed some important points, they’ll know not to be late next time. Avoid backing up and starting again when the latecomers arrive. Doing so will only reward them for being late. 

·        Introduce the matters to be discussed. Briefly introduce the agenda, objectives, and desired outcomes of the meeting.  

·        Establish or review ground rules. Ground rules are the behaviors and principles group members agree on to ensure a constructive meeting—such as how decisions will be made and how much time will be spent on each agenda item.

Run it skillfully

To run a meeting skillfully, you need to follow the agenda, make sure everyone’s viewpoints are heard, and keep the meeting focused—while handling the additional challenges that come with virtual meetings.

Follow the agenda

You’ve put a lot of work into creating the agenda for your meeting—so make sure you follow it. Once the meeting begins, avoid being pulled into topics that aren’t on the agenda. If you stray, the meeting will quickly lose focus, and the participants will probably feel that you’re wasting their time.

As attendees discuss agenda items, keep an eye on the time, or assign a timekeeper. Try using a smartphone to time each agenda item and keep the meeting on track.

Ensure participation

For a successful meeting, you want to hear everyone’s thoughts. Otherwise, participants can feel left out. Ask for input regularly—at each natural break in the meeting, or at least after each agenda item.

To ensure full participation:

·        Ask a general question, like “Have we forgotten anything?” or “Any other ideas?”

·        Give quiet participants a chance to speak up—pause at critical discussion junctures or call on them directly.

·        Watch for body language that signals a participant wants to make a contribution, such as the person leaning forward. Ask, “Rahul, do you have a point to make?”

·        Don’t forget your virtual participants. Ask them directly if they have thoughts. It may be harder for them to know the best time to speak up.

·        Ask someone to play devil’s advocate—to represent opposing or challenging views—to stir up debate.

Keep it focused

As you solicit everyone’s opinion, you still need to keep the meeting focused on the tasks at hand. To do this:

·        Summarize and review the progress of the meeting frequently.

·        Record the ideas expressed for certain topics on a physical or virtual whiteboard.

·        Highlight the transitions from one agenda item to the next.

Manage virtual challenges

For an effective virtual meeting, actively manage the unique challenges it presents: *

·        Establish camaraderie. Camaraderie boosts collaboration, knowledge sharing, and productivity among participants in a virtual meeting. To establish it, greet remote attendees as they join the meeting. Take a moment to chat about how things are going where they’re calling from.

·        Use technology to enhance collaboration. Take advantage of tools like whiteboard functionality for note taking, voting tools for anonymous feedback, informal chat rooms for side discussions, cameras so participants can see each other, and tech features that let participants raise their hand virtually to ask a question or contribute a viewpoint.

·        Foster two-way communication. If you ask for input and get silence from participants you can try: asking for a vote, calling on each person to solicit opinions, or taking an anonymous poll.

·        Make the meeting equitable. If you’re leading a semi-virtual meeting, participants co-located in a conference room can have side conversations and see each other’s facial expressions and body language. That can make those attending remotely feel excluded. If this becomes an issue, consider instituting a rule: If anyone attending the meeting is remote, all participants should join virtually from their desks—even if they are co-located.

Set a no-email, instant messaging, and texting policy. Discourage people from engaging in other communications during your virtual meeting, so they stay focused on the agenda

Tune into your meeting

At critical junctures during a meeting, participants may get confused, fall silent, or fail to address a problem directly. Sometimes open conflict breaks out. But these events don’t have to derail your meeting—if you’re prepared with the right intervention techniques.

Intervening starts with recognizing problems as they arise. That means paying attention and responding to what participants are saying and doing, as well as how the group overall is behaving.

As you observe individuals in your meeting, ask yourself questions like:

·        What is the person describing? What kinds of words, metaphors, or images is she using?

·        How is he acting? What does his body language communicate?

What does she seem most emphatic about? What grabs and holds his attention

Address common problems

You may not be able to predict all the bad things that could happen in a meeting. But there are some general patterns of meeting flow and participant behavior you can prepare for.

To manage common meeting problems, try these techniques:

Arriving late, leaving early

If some people habitually arrive late or leave before the meeting is over:

·        Give them jobs to do during future meetings, which will secure their time.

·        As the meeting begins, ask if everyone can stay until the designated end time. If not, consider adjusting the length of the meeting.

·        After the meeting, privately ask latecomers or early leavers why they missed part of the meeting. Develop solutions, such as giving them earlier notice of a meeting if they tend to be double-booked.

Dominating the conversation

If one person keeps dominating the discussion:

·        Move closer to the dominator. That draws the group’s attention away from that person and toward you.

·        Thank the person for the input. Then call on someone else.

·        If the person finishes other people’s sentences, encourage the individual to let others speak for themselves.

·        Ask the person to jot down any thoughts and wait for a pause to contribute them, instead of shouting them out.

Repetition

If people keep repeating points already made:

·        Keep track of agreed-upon points on a flip chart or whiteboard.

·        Point to the chart or board and say, “It looks like we’ve already covered that. Is there something new people want to add?”

·        If people continue repeating a point, say, “This is obviously important to the group. So let’s deal with it now.”

Disruption

If some participants disrupt the meeting:

·        Explain the ground rules for behavior, such as “No interrupting” or “No taking phone calls during the meeting.”

·        Remind everyone of the meeting’s focus: “We need to shape our innovation strategy for the year. Let’s concentrate on that?”

·        If the problem continues, call for a break. During the break, ask people individually what’s going on.

Tips for handling chronic disruptors

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Stuck or confused group

If your group gets stuck on a discussion item or seems confused:

·        Ask the group what’s going on. If they’re stuck because they lack information or clarity about the item, provide what’s needed.

·        Suggest a short break. Then return to the topic at hand. Or move the item to a later position on the agenda or to another meeting.

Silence

If the group falls silent:

·        Allow silence for a while. The group may need time to reflect on an idea or their feelings about an issue.

·        Say, “I notice you’ve fallen silent. Can someone explain what’s happening?”

·        Ask people if they’d like you to clarify something.

·        If the group seems tired, consider ending the meeting and rescheduling.

Conflict

If an angry conflict breaks out during your meeting:

·        Call an immediate halt to any bickering. If necessary, take a break and speak to the contenders individually.

·        Let all team members know it’s fine to be passionate, but encourage them to keep comments constructive and to try to see all sides of a contentious issue.

·        Reaffirm agreed-upon rules for behavior, such as “No insults.”

·        Use probing questions to uncover concerns underlying entrenched positions.

·        As a last resort, ask the contenders to leave the meeting.

Avoidance

If people are avoiding mentioning a big, obvious problem during the meeting:

·        Raise the issue to get the group moving.

·        Ask participants to describe the problem precisely.

·        Find out how long the problem has existed, who’s involved, and what’s at stake.

·        Thank participants who bring up a controversial viewpoint.

Let the group know it’s critical to bring up difficult issues

When to end

End your meeting at the promised time. By doing so, you keep the trust and gain the appreciation of all participants.

If you have trouble ending meetings on time, try these tactics:

·        Ask a group member to be a timekeeper.

·        Periodically remind the group of the time remaining and the agenda items they have left to cover.

·        Prioritize or postpone some agenda items if time is running out.

·        If more time is needed, gain the group’s agreement to run overtime, or schedule another meeting to deal with the still pending matters.

If at all possible, end your meeting early. No one ever protests when meetings end early. In fact, there are a few situations where it’s best to end early:

·        You’ve got everything done. Don’t stay in the room just to fill the allotted time. That’s frustrating to time-starved individuals. Instead, send people on their way.

·        The group is having trouble with the last discussion item on the agenda. This may be a sign of waning attention or energy. If it’s possible, agree to finish that item at another time.

·        People are getting restless. That’s another sign that energy and attention are running down. Cut things short. You won’t likely get much more done if you keep going—certainly nothing much of quality.

·        The discussion gets contentious. Ending quickly to allow participants to regain their composure may be your best option.

How to end

Use these steps to end the meeting in a way that provides a sense of closure:

1.     Briefly summarize what’s been accomplished.

2.     Clarify what comes next—including action items and who’s responsible for each.

3.     Schedule another meeting, if necessary, to follow up on something that the group didn’t get to in this meeting.

4.     If there’s time, ask the group for an evaluation of the meeting. If there isn’t, tell them you’ll canvass them later for their opinions.

5.     Thank everyone for participating.

Get unhappy participants’ opinions

Follow up

Following up effectively after a meeting can ensure that the decisions made and ideas generated during the meeting get put into action. To follow up, identify next steps, communicate them to meeting participants and stakeholders, and evaluate the meeting’s effectiveness.

Identify next steps

Identifying next steps provides closure and a sense of accomplishment. It also alerts all stakeholders about key decisions, ensures that everyone has heard the same information, and helps you prepare the follow-up you’ll send out after the meeting.

To identify next steps, consider the following:

·        What. What decisions and outcomes came from the meeting? What tasks need to be done as a result of the meeting? To answer these questions, refer to the points recorded on the flip chart or whiteboard, and the notes you or the scribe took during the meeting.

·        Who. Who has responsibility for these tasks that must be done after the meeting? Meeting participants who volunteered to undertake specific actions during the meeting, in front of other participants, will be more likely to complete those tasks.

·        When. When must the tasks be completed? Be realistic about the dates. That will help ensure that tasks actually get carried out.

For some types of meetings, you’ll need to identify additional items to go in your follow-up communication. For example, for a problem-solving meeting, you may also want to identify:

·        How the problem was defined

·        How it was analyzed

·        Which alternatives were discussed

·        What the criteria were for deciding on a solution

·        What the final decision was

·        Who will follow up and by when

·        What the expected outcome is once the solution is implemented

Communicate

If at all possible, make your follow-up communication—what happened at the meeting, who’s doing what and by when—as concise as possible. Craft it in clear, accessible terms, so someone who wasn't there can understand what happened.

Make sure your follow-up covers:

·        Who attended

·        What the meeting objectives were

·        Key topics discussed and decisions made

·        Next steps

·        Date of any needed subsequent meeting or follow-up

·        A thank-you to those who participated

Send the follow-up to all meeting participants and any stakeholders who couldn’t be at the meeting but need to be informed.

Sample follow-up

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Evaluate

Determine whether your meeting was effective—by judging its results. Ask yourself:

·        Were the appropriate people there?

·        Did most people participate?

·        Did the group work well together?

·        Did the meeting accomplish its objective(s)?

Were participants’ evaluations of the meeting positive?