The unfortunate truth of life is that most of us will have to attend some sort of meeting, sooner or later. Almost all of us dread them and frown internally when a calendar invitation arrives. We perceive them as an utter waste of our time. Internet is full of advice from famous CEOs, such as ‘keep them small enough that two pizzas could feed everybody’ or ‘I walk out if it’s a waste of my time’. They may not be nice things to say, but they do contain certain wisdom regarding effective meetings. Hopefully, you are in charge of a meeting and won’t say ‘I scheduled it because my boss said so’. Here is some advice as to how to make your meetings beneficial to all involved:
Clearly define the purpose and agenda for the meeting in advance
Come with an agenda. Better yet, send it with your calendar invite. This way, everybody will be clear as to what should be accomplished and how you plan to do it. Added benefit is that if anybody needs to do research or bring copies of something, they will have a nice heads-up. Preparation can save everybody time and aggrevation.
Invite only the necessary attendees to reduce distractions and ensure everyone's time is well-spent
How many times you sat in a meeting, trying to figure out why you’re there? Probably plenty. It feels like being cc-ed on a long exchange of emails where the only thing that concerns you is final decision. Why waste anybody’s time? Don’t invite anybody who isn’t crucial to the meeting. Everybody will be grateful – people who you didn’t invite because they have one less meeting to attend, and people who are going because their time won’t be wasted by anybody who is just taking up space. If you are concerned that you may be leaving somebody out who would contribute, ask in an email attendees and the potential attendee. Over time, people will be grateful for this tactic, knowing you aren’t leaving anybody on purpose and will only suggest helpful colleagues.
Set a strict time limit for the meeting to keep it focused and on track
I think we all know how much I love time limits and timers!
All jokes aside: everybody deserves to speak and be heard. It’s not ok to allow one person to hijack the meeting and take up all the time allotted to the detriment to others making their points. If you are in charge of a meeting, it’s also your job to make sure that meeting is productive and stays on task. We all sometimes get off-topic or just keep going down the rabbit hole. There is usually at least one person in the room who wants to remind others to get to the point and move forward. It is ok to sometimes ‘put a pin in it and circle back later’. If the conversation isn’t being productive, it’s pointless to continue. Figure out how to get back on track. If it’s impossible, it’s ok to adjourn and hold a meeting at another time, when people either cooled off or had a chance to iron out the issues without taking up everybody’s time.
Encourage active participation and keep the meeting moving by keeping discussions on topic and avoiding side conversations
You already made sure that only people who can bring value to your meeting are there. Make sure you hear from everybody! I know it’s easy to allow one loud, extroverted person take over. But that’s not the point. Make sure that the quiet people get to talk as well. They may have great insights that are not taken into consideration, because they never speak up. You know they are there for a reason. Then listen to their point of view!
Use technology, such as virtual meeting tools or project management software, to increase efficiency and organization
Visuals are great! A picture is worth a thousand words after all. Technology can also allow you to invite to the meeting people who cannot appear in person, for any number of reasons.
One note on tech: make sure it works ahead of time. Nobody wants to show up to a meeting and watch you trying to figure out which button to push or calling IT because the screen is not turning on.
Take minutes and distribute them to all attendees after the meeting to ensure clear follow-up and accountability
Notes are a great tool to establish both mutual understanding and accountability. Once you send them out, ask attendees to review and reply with their comments. Having documentation of what was said and decided in the meeting allows you to show others what they committed to and what you said you would do. It’s amazing how frequently people leave a meeting with a very different understanding of what took place. Meetings will ensure that you have a shared one.
Follow up
Speaking of accountability: follow up on action items from your meeting. If people are not doing what they were supposed to based on the meeting, why did you even have the meeting?
Alternative meeting formats?
Something you would mostly expect from tech bros is to have their meetings in alternative formats. Who wants to sit around a conference room for hours and hours after all?
The truth is, alternative formats of meetings have been around for ages. Talking and walking is great for keeping your blood flowing and conversation more animated (although it hampers your ability to provide visuals). Some meetings may be better suited for a relaxed setting of a bar, where people will be more likely to speak their mind honestly. Next time you are scheduling a meeting, pause for a second and consider other settings. Would they serve the purpose of your meeting than a conference room?