Here in New Jersey it is a virtual certainty that you have to be in a number of business meetings a week. These meetings can include new business generation, sales, even department updates. But are these productive and do they create opportunity? Most probably, the answer is no.
The meeting leader is always late. There is no set agenda and no group interaction. This meeting is basically a blend of homily and opinion and all boringly one-sided. There is very little preparation, so you begrudgingly go and you bring an extra battery for your smartphone.
Successful meetings just do not happen. They take planning and purpose. They take organization and effort. But most of all they need a willing group of people who are present for the most important reason: to get better as employees and as managers.
Here are seven aspects of successful meetings that will help every business and organization:
- Purpose: Never meet without reason; have clear goals and objectives
- Set time: The shorter the meeting the more productive it often is at achieving purpose.
- Set location: Make the meeting place easy to access and user friendly.
- Attendees: Only ask the people to attend who really need to be present
- Note taker: Every meeting must have a memory. Often two members will be assigned to take notes to increase the accuracy of the information.
- Timekeeper: Start the session on time and end it on time.
- Facilitator: This incredibly important aspect of a meeting is often understated or doesn’t exist. Although many facilitators are leaders, not every leader is a facilitator. The best person often is not even a member of management. The sole purpose is not to manage the meeting but get the most from the attendees. Good facilitation means excellence in meetings.
Success in meetings is hard work that is often behind the scenes. But meetings can make the difference and they support both excellence and mission if they are done right.
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This post is shared with you by the good folks at Dale Carnegie Training of Central & Southern New Jersey. We would love to connect with you on Facebook.
Photo: adamr, freedigitalphotos.net