Meeting : the Good and the Bad

We all go to meetings, some more reluctantly than others; and no doubt some are necessary. Still, many are not; and far too many are ineffective. Use these simple suggestions to make your meetings worthwhile.

Large meetings are time-wasters. Invite only the people who can really contribute or those who can take action. Don’t include personnel who merely report back to another section: A post-meeting email summary will keep them in the loop. Remember, each person at the meeting is not doing something else, and that costs your company money.

Begin and end promptly. If someone is unavoidably late, meet around them until they arrive. Don’t waste the time and don’t repeat information when they arrive. It’s their job to find out what they missed.

Have an agenda. It can be informal, but it should be written down, perhaps on a whiteboard. Train employees to suggest items ahead of time and don’t allow sidetracking. Put vital issues at the top of the agenda, so that if time runs out you can reschedule the less important ones.

Keep minutes. We hear things differently, and a record should always exist to prevent any misunderstandings.

Meetings settle issues, not people. Don’t use meetings to berate the employees. You want them to come with ideas, not dread. End discussions with an agreement on who has responsibility for what and include the assignments in the minutes.

Email a copy of the minutes, especially to people who did not attend the meeting.­

Powered by ScribeFire.