What Every Manager Should Know About How to Conduct Successful Meetings

Do you announce a meeting and find either no one shows up on time, they come with their own agenda, or the meeting goes on and on? If this is true in your case, then worry no more.

Here are six steps to help you develop successful meetings:

1. Establish a realistic and specific objective. Ask yourself, "What do I want to accomplish?" or "Why am I calling people together at this time?"

Do I want:

* to solve problem(s).
* to inform.
* to orient.
* to gain feedback.
* to give feedback.
* to motivate.
* to reward.
* to buy. or
* to sell.

Next, decide the best mode to accomplish your objective. Decide which best suits your needs:

* a conference with panel(s) of speakers?

* a half-day workshop? Or a full-day seminar?

* a staff meeting that includes your immediate staff?

* a staff meeting that includes your department or division?

* a staff meeting that includes everyone from all levels of the entire organization?

2. Create a well-developed agenda. Review your agenda before announcing your meeting. Make sure it avoids:

* spending too much time on details technical subjects. (It puts people to sleep and does not communicate with them.)

* failing to specify the starting and ending times. (Employees need to know when to be there, when it is expected to start, and when it is expected to be finished so that can reschedule their other duties and responsibilities.)

* adding irrelevant topics. (Doing so only lengthens the meeting time and serves to anger people or put them to sleep.)

* having speakers or presenters who are known to ramble. (One of the surest ways to put your audience to sleep is to have a boring meeting with speakers or presenters who talk on and on. This is especially true in cases where the agenda covers technical or scientific material.)

* crowding the agenda with too many subjects. (It is better to have a question and answer period during the meeting than to try to cover everything.

Now review your agenda and make sure you have included:

* a chairperson or Master of Ceremonies to move topics along without rushing the presenters, or allowing them to ramble.

* general logistics before hand, such as restroom locations, break times, and telephone or walk-in interruptions.

* a priority system so that the most important topics or pressing matters are covered first.

3. Assign particular responsibilities. Be sure to select responsible people to carry out the responsibilities of your meeting. Also be sure:

* to match the topics and tasks with competent presenters.

* to give them clear, complete, and specific instructions including assigned time to complete their presentation.

* to gain the concurrence of your key participants.

* to have a clock in clear view of the presenters.

* to start on time, regardless. (This is perhaps the most important aspect of running a successful meeting.)

4. Establish a positive meeting environment. Take the time to plan your meeting. Perhaps the most important aspect to consider is the environment where you will hold your meeting. To insure its success, be sure you:

* create an environment that is conducive to effective communication.

* set start and ending times that are conducive to all.

* develop the environment around a theme.

* consider the objective of the meeting when selecting the room.

* consider decorating the room, if this is warranted.

* arrange and test the audio-visual support before hand.

* arrange the seating of participants and attendees, depending on the estimated number of attendees.

* arrange the seating plan for optimal effect.

5. Plan all the activities. Take the time to plan and plan again all the events, people, places, and things related to the objective and theme of the meeting. Be sure to:

* gather input where relevant.

* take notes where necessary.

* prepare adequate quantities of handouts.

* prepare to post adequately the announcement of the meeting along with its agenda, times, participants, and any other relevant information.

* prepare backup materials.

* prepare post-meeting evaluations, where necessary, and summary handouts.

Remember: When you maximize your potential, every one wins. When you don't, we all lose.

© Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW

PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in ezines, newsletters, and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Email notice of intent to publish is appreciated but not required. Contact him at: executiveandgroup-consulting@yahoo.com when you use this article.

Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW, Management Consultant and Trainer, conducts lectures, seminars, webinars, and writes articles on his theme: "... helping you maximize your potential." He offers management, marketing, and parenting resources at his Maximizing Your Potential blog.

---

Is Your Business Healthy?

Most business owners I work with want to grow their... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Coworker and Caretaker

This article relates to the Coworkers competency, commonly evaluated in... Read More

The Silent Assassin - What to Do When They Visit You?

IntroductionThere are a group of people in the community that... Read More

Character: Is It Necessary In Leadership? (Part One)

We know character when we see it, but what exactly... Read More

Popular Business Misconceptions Cost You Money!

Faulty information costs you money! Which of these popular business... Read More

Know Your Business! - 7 Key Questions You Must Ask

You need to know all that is going on around... Read More

Technology & Communication

A study a couple of years ago found that 63%... Read More

Difficult Staff - It Pays To Get To Know Them Better

It's very easy for a business owner or manager to... Read More

Transparency: A Key To Your Effectiveness

Last month I talked about the Skilled Facilitator principle of... Read More

Delegation Obstructions

OBSTRUCTIONS: 1. Staff deficiencies. Lack of confidence in employees quite... Read More

Cheat Sheet; Understanding The MSDS and Your Obligations In The Workplace To Employees

MSDS SHEETSMSDS stands for Material Safety Data Sheets. MSDS sheets... Read More

HRM: Contributing to Well-being or Ill-being at Work?

If you were to take the people out of an... Read More

Improving Patient Sensitivity in Doctors and Hospital Staff

COMPANY/ORGANIZATIONA South Florida hospital. The CEO of the hospital saw... Read More

Dont Take New Hires for Granted

Hiring good people is only half the battle. The other... Read More

Four Steps to Better Performance Reviews

Direct reports-people who need direction and leadership-rely on their leaders... Read More

The Supervisors 14 Essential Truths For Communicating With Direct Reports

One amazing, but sadly true, fact of today's advances in... Read More

Comparing Ancient Programs from the East to Modern Programs like Stephen Covey.

Comparing Corporate and Personal goal attainment programs that have developed... Read More

Human Resource Employee Risk Profile - Management Risks Explained

Human Resource Employee Risk ProfileIs your business at risk? Do... Read More

A Corporate Facelift With Sound Bytes

If Baby Boomers can get botox and tummy tucks, then... Read More

In Leadership, The Critical Convergence Drives Great Results

The Leader's Fallacy lives! We subscribe to the Fallacy when... Read More

3 Ingredients of Highly Profitable Organizational Change

As waves of organizational change sweep across the business landscape,... Read More

Change and Performance - Training May Not Be The Answer

Introducing new products or services, bringing new people on board,... Read More

Do Customers Like the Feel of Your Organization?

In two recent articles "Some Evidence of How We Are... Read More

What Every Manager Should Know About How to Reduce the High Cost of Employee Absenteeism

Employers pay a high price for absenteeism, often more than... Read More

The Professor Makes A Minus Power Move

If you think the power move has costs, consider the... Read More

Policy & Procedure Manuals - Tools For Greater Productivity and Efficiency

In today's tough retail environment the retailer needs all the... Read More

Can A Business Still Be Profitable When People Skills Are Absent?

In our current world of rapid and amazing technological advances,... Read More

Communicating In Chaotic Environments

How do you, or would you, communicate in a chaotic... Read More

Selecting Top Talent: Improve Your Batting Average

I recently gave a presentation to a group of business... Read More

Setting Direction Within an Organization

FINDING DIRECTION: An organization can't succeed without direction. Direction means... Read More

Organizational Techniques - Tickler and Chron File

One of the biggest problems we encounter in our consulting... Read More

Working with Hearing Impaired Employees - Giving Them a Fair Go

Hearing impaired people often encounter difficulty at work because their... Read More

Safety Policy Sample Outline

Writing a safety manual is a tough job and most... Read More