9/19/2016
Michelle Graven
Are your employees really listening during your meetings or do you hear mumbled complaints about having yet another staff meeting? Planning productive meetings doesn’t have to be hard. Follow these quick and easy tips to ensure your meetings are well-organized.
Here are five ways to make sure you run an effective meeting.
1. Prepare an Agenda
Without a doubt preparing an agenda is the most important step. It keeps things on track and allows attendees to know precisely what to expect. You and your employees will be more focused because you have a reminder as to exactly why you called the meeting in the first place.
2. More is Not Merrier
We’ve all heard the saying, “Too many cooks in the kitchen.” While giving all of your staff the opportunity to be heard is important, sometimes keeping the meeting smaller is more appropriate and helps the meeting stay on topic. Oftentimes the more “cooks” you have, the more difficult it is to accomplish the goal of the meeting. Understanding when it’s fitting to include more or less staff is key to a successful meeting.
3. Take It Outside
Most of us can’t actually go outside, but simply changing the location of the meeting to a new part of the office often leads to more innovation from staff. This can significantly improve the quality of new ideas while creating a culture that feels more relaxed and refreshed.
4. Keep it Short
We all hate those meetings that drag on and on….and on! Shorter meetings keep everyone focused and pushes attendees to work more efficiently. Set a timer to record how much time is spent on each topic. Not only will this keep the meeting punctual, it will also help you plan for your next meeting because you can see what areas need more attention.
5. Make Sure a Meeting is Necessary
Are you positive you need to call a meeting at all? If the information can be communicated by a quick email or phone call, a meeting is not necessary. Pulling your employees away from their work for a meeting decreases their productivity, so make sure your meeting is important enough to take your staff away from their work.
Meetings are a great way to get your employees together to produce great ideas and get everyone on the same page. If you are dragging yourself to go to a meeting, your employees are probably doing the same. Eliminate unproductive meetings altogether by implementing these five easy steps into each of your meetings.
Written By: Michelle Graven