All of us grumble about conferences that are a waste of our time and the reality of the matter is that so many are exactly those. We have also seen the "corridor" meeting that happens afterwards where it appears the real decisions are taken, or the agreed decisions are overturned.
You will get the chance at some stage in your job to run your own meeting - is yours going to go the same way? Or will you ensure that it's effective and does the job it's supposed to?
Well run meetings promote team development and high morale; poorly managed meetings are at best a total waste of people's time and at worst potentially detrimental to relationships as well as the business as a whole.
Here's a few ways you can get it right:
All effective meetings rely on several interdependent elements and when you approach each of them systematically you'll see that your meetings are the ones that result in action. And also you receive the credit.
Planning
• What is the meeting intended to achieve?
• What will the meeting actually achieve?
• What happens if you don't hold the meeting
• Who needs to attend and why?
• Is there a far more efficient way of communicating?
Preparation
• Prepare and circulate an agenda in advance;
• Invite agenda items before the meeting;
• Arrange agenda logically;
• Consider the important - v - the urgent issue;
• Arrange the timings and set limits;
• Clarify objectives for every item.
Information
• Tell those involved what's expected of them;
• Tell everyone time, date location etc;
• Circulate any required pre-reading or information.
Structure & Control
• Discuss the items in turn;
• Seek contributions but keep people to the point;
• Steer clear of going over old ground;
• Be mindful of the needs of the group;
• Prevent splinter discussion groups;
• Summarise frequently to bring back to the purpose;
• Commend contributions;
• Confirm any conclusions;
• Stress actions and who takes it.
Records & Action
• Record discussions, actions and responsibilities;
• Produce clear simple minutes immediately.
There are a several points to learn about the effective handling of meetings:
• Invite the right people;
• Set an agenda that's achievable;
• Manage timings and people;
• Encourage members to listen to one another;
• Note actions;
• Review and record
So if you want to steer clear of the "let's all turn up and see what happens" approach it just means you need to take time to consider what you really want and have to achieve, after which get on with it. People will thank you for not wasting their, or your, time.
Author Resource:
Searching for UK conference venues ? Try Meetings Directory , a simple to use web site that features event suppliers as well!
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