Make Meetings Matter!

Few items raise more concerns (complaints?) than the subject of meetings. Small or large, routine, or ad hoc, brief, or multi-day, meetings in organizations are known to be an unavoidable evil. We can do better.

While there are helpful books on the subject (including Patrick Lencioni’s “Death by Meeting!”) and films (check out “Meetings, Bloody Meetings” starring John Cleese), and articles (“Stop the Meeting Madness,” Harvard Business Review),  an especially useful book is Steven G. Rogelberg’s, “The Surprising Science of Meetings.”

The author begins as most improvement processes should, with an honest assessment of the current state. To that end, he offers a template for evaluating the meetings in your organization (caution: this exercise is not for the faint of heart!). This is structured in five categories; meeting design, time dynamics, interpersonal dynamics, discussion dynamics and post-meeting/follow up and assignments.

A good place to get more from your meetings is to utilize a time-honored method, WWWWHW (who, what, where, when, how and why).

Let’s start with who should be at the meeting (and for how long?). One client recently told me that this is a real issue in his organization. He described their meetings as “Tupperware parties” — most people don’t really want to go, but they’ll feel left out if they’re not invited. As legendary football coach Vince Lombardi once asked, “What the hell’s going on out here?!”

Next, focus on what the meeting is about. What is to be discussed, accomplished, decided upon?

Where will the meeting take place (note this can be far more important to the success of the meeting than one might first think)?

When will the meeting be held, day, date, and time? Oh, and when will the meeting end?

How will the meeting be organized, in advance, during and after the meeting? Will the meeting include handouts, takeaways, presentation materials? Will it be held in person or virtual (or both depending on who will be involved)?

Why is the meeting being held in the first place? Standing, regularly scheduled meetings should not be immune from this scrutiny, ensuring they are needed at the established pace and cadence.

Setting objectives for the meeting, asking attendees their expectations for the meeting, and taking a check at the conclusion of the meeting to determine whether and to what extent these have been met can also help.

Like it or not, meetings are an essential part of organizational life. Getting the most out of them is critical for sustained success.

For more information on ways to maximize meeting effectiveness in your organization, contact me at joe@ajstrategy.com.

The preceding content was provided by a contributor unaffiliated with Printing Impressions. The views expressed within may not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of the staff of Printing Impressions. Artificial Intelligence may have been used in part to create or edit this content.