Follow-ups and Aftermath – Planning Meetings

Source: SparksSolutions

The best way to determine if a business meeting had any lasting impact on attendees is to conduct follow-ups after the meeting. These should be done within a couple days following the meeting itself. Doing a follow-up too soon might not work if the participants haven’t had enough time to process the information, while doing it too late might result in too much information forgotten. The meeting planner could send out e-mails or memos depending on the number of people that were involved.

Regardless of the method used to communicate the follow-up, it should contain documentation on what happened during the meeting. This could include any new tasks, such as training a new employee or ordering additional products. Given or adjusted responsibilities should also be mentioned. For example, if the duties of a manager or supervisor were changed during the meeting, a memo could be sent to the members of their departments. Finally, all deadlines that were set and the work involved can be mentioned as well. Having a follow-up also allowed any participants to review how they thought the meeting went.

Some examples of questions that could be asked might be:

• What did we do well?
• What could we do better?
• What should be included next time?

Clarifying the results of the meeting will make sure that everyone is on the same page. Attendees should walk away with action items or next steps in mind, ensuring that they know what needs to be done next in order to be productive.

 

References:

Bruce, B. (2015, March 03). 7 Habits of Highly Effective Meetings – Project Management Hacks. Retrieved March 05, 2016, from http://projectmanagementhacks.com/meeting-tips/

Hartman, N. (2014, February 5). Seven Steps to Running the Most Effective Meeting Possible. Retrieved March 04, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesleadershipforum/2014/02/05/seven-steps-to-running-the-most-effective-meeting-possible/#89b479510546

Boosting Creativity and Participation – Planning Meetings

Sometimes the purpose of a meeting will be to develop an answer to a complications in the workplace or business. This means that for the business meeting to be successful, there must be sparks of creativity and an overall feeling of participation for everyone involved. If nobody in a meeting is participating or being active in the discussion, the effectiveness of that meeting drops drastically and could end up translating to wasted time.

Dan Sullivan, a strategic coach for business managers and planners, discusses how to improve the creativity and participation of a meeting. He does so by having every single person mention something relevant to the meeting they are excited about. Everyone should contribute in some way. This creates positive energy, has everyone participate at least a little bit, and gives the meeting a warm and more personal feeling. It could be a two person meeting or a ten person meeting and the effect will be the same.

Enforcing a positive mindset with meeting attendees will encourage them to bring up solutions, rather than bring up problems. Meetings are the best time to present any ideas since everyone is paying attention and there is a creative atmosphere. It should be treated as a team based environment with an emphasis on teamwork. This is why brainstorming can be an effective tool for coming up with new ideas and solutions. If everyone involved in the meeting is prepared to challenge each other, and be challenged themselves, it pushes them to come up with more substantial results. Ultimately, planning a constructive and supportive meeting environment will present attendees with a platform to showcase their problem solving skills.

 

References:

Sullivan, D. (2012, July 26). How to improve conversation, creativity, and cooperation in business meetings 10x. Retrieved March 04, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZquBzsk4znk

Vozza, S. (2015, July 28). How 12 Companies Make Meetings Memorable, Effective, and Short. Retrieved March 05, 2016, from http://www.fastcompany.com/3048815/hit-the-ground-running/how-12-companies-make-meetings-memorable-effective-and-short

 

 

Focus and Restraint – Planning Meetings

Source: TheBrunetteDiaries

In my previous posts I discussed the structure of business meetings and how to plan them. Another major part of having a productive meeting is how the members of the meeting conduct themselves during the meeting itself.

The first concept to keep in mind is focus. There are many things that could make a meeting distracting, so it’s best to mitigate distractions as much as possible. One of the biggest distracting forces in the modern business world is technology. Phones, tablets, smart watches, and similar items should be forbidden from the meeting room. It’s hard to focus on what the speaker is talking about if attendees are too busy checking their text messages or social media. Another distracting force might be the speakers themselves. Their speech might be scattered or difficult to follow. Pen and paper should be available for attendees so that they are able to take notes and stay on track with the meeting.

The second important concept is restraint. Participants should restrain from interrupting speakers too soon, waiting for an appropriate time to comment or provide input. However, the speaker should also restrain from speaking too much or being vague. Another problem to look out for is the volume of people attending the meeting. Invite as few people as necessary. The less people there are at a meeting the easier it is to stick to the agenda and be productive. A good maximum number of attendees is about ten people. Any more than that and trying to ask for input can become a major headache.

Keep these two concepts in mind the next time you host or attend a meeting. When everyone has focus and restraint, it’s easier to stay on track and be effective.

 

References:

Bruce, B. (2015, March 03). 7 Habits of Highly Effective Meetings – Project Management Hacks. Retrieved March 05, 2016, from http://projectmanagementhacks.com/meeting-tips/

Vozza, S. (2015, July 28). How 12 Companies Make Meetings Memorable, Effective, and Short. Retrieved March 05, 2016, from http://www.fastcompany.com/3048815/hit-the-ground-running/how-12-companies-make-meetings-memorable-effective-and-short

 

Agendas are Power – Planning Meetings

Source: HeardCitizen

For any business meeting planner, the word agenda will be hammered into their mentality and should be at the forefront of their minds. An agenda is a list and schedule specific to a meeting in order to give the meeting a sense of purpose and direction. The most crucial parts to include in any agenda can be found in my checklist below.

Agenda items checklist:

• Starting and ending times for the meeting
• Topics to be brought up for discussion
• Amount of time to be spent on each topic
• The conversation leader or presenter for each topic
• Name of the meeting
• Date and time the meeting will take place

Ideally, the agenda is to show all the participants what the goals of the meeting itself are and how they will be accomplished. Clearly outlining the contents of what the meeting will involve will greatly reduce any confusion and time wasting trying to decide next actions. The agenda should also be given to attendees before the meeting occurs so that they can prepare ahead of time, further increasing the chances of success. Doing this also allows the attendees to give advance input or corrections for the list. Previous meetings can be used as a review for adjustments, such as increasing the amount of time required for a particular topic.

Think back to any recent business meetings you may have been invited to. Was there an agenda? Did you have the ability to read it before the meeting took place? Was the agenda followed closely in the meeting itself? If all your answers to these questions were ‘yes’, those meetings were probably much more efficient.

 

References:

Hartman, N. (2014, February 5). Seven Steps to Running the Most Effective Meeting Possible. Retrieved March 04, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesleadershipforum/2014/02/05/seven-steps-to-running-the-most-effective-meeting-possible/#89b479510546

Schwarz, R. (2015, March 19). How to Design an Agenda for an Effective Meeting. Retrieved March 05, 2016, from https://hbr.org/2015/03/how-to-design-an-agenda-for-an-effective-meeting

Best Foot Forward – Planning Meetings

Source: ExclusiveSedan

Business meetings are a very important aspect of generating success in the corporate world. Meetings are a method to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and cooperation among participating individuals. Lots of time and energy goes into planning and running meetings, so it’s important to make them as productive as possible. There are a few key components to business meetings that will apply to every company and every situation, with the very first one being the initial engagement of parties involved.

Strong first impressions are essential for a successful business meeting. If the meeting involves new individuals, ensure that proper introductions are conducted so that all parties feel involved and welcomed. The fact that someone was invited to the meeting in the first place shows that they are important to the agenda of that meeting. Ask participants what their role at the meeting will be. They could intend to be active contributors, commenters, or simply listeners. Understanding the context of the meeting and the individuals involved will give the meeting a strong beginning.

Meetings could involve only employees and co-workers within the same company, or people from multiple companies looking to become partners or conduct business with each other. Perhaps you have new employees that need to be brought up to speed with the rest of their department. Perhaps a new client wants to see how your management interacts with each other in order to overcome obstacles. Whatever the reason, most business meetings will follow a similar structure and outline that will be discussed here on this blog.

 

References:

Keith, E. (2015, August 5). How to Lead Introductions in Business Meetings. Retrieved March 04, 2016, from http://blog.lucidmeetings.com/blog/how-to-lead-introductions-in-business-meetings

Mind Tools Team, M. (2016, February 3). Making a Great First Impression: Getting off to a Good Start. Retrieved March 04, 2016, from https://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/FirstImpressions.htm