Meetings are those corporate gatherings when taken seriously, has the potential to shape the future of a company. The hour or two spent at a meeting when effectively utilised help strengthen a company’s overall structure to the core. However, there are many times when meetings are taken for granted.
Many people in the corporate, view meetings as something that gnaws at their productive hours; while some others attend to find respite from the daily work. Meetings have long lost much of its essence over the few years.
This is because it no longer grasps a person’s interest.
As an owner or as a member of the senior management, one might be interested in it but how do one hold another’s interests?
A corporate success is the sum total of the efforts of all the employees and therefore it is important that a company has the employees interest’s ignited for all occasions. Meetings today, are one place where the corporate sees a dwindling of common interests. But all is not lost.
There are effective ways that can make a meeting interesting to those attending it and as a result, make the gathering successful.
1. Send an Agenda with a Clear Objective
The first step to garnering interest is to involve the attendees from the start. It is wise to send an agenda in advance. List how each participant is responsible for the successful implementation of the topics discussed in the meeting.
2. Include Important People
A corporate team consists of a lot of people. There are designers, writers, the marketing people and the finance team. It is important that when holding a meeting one does not include the whole team if it is not required.
For Example:
Maybe the meeting is about the new marketing strategies. It is not important here that in the first session itself one calls the whole team and decide on strategies. A designer or a writer or a finance person sitting in such a meeting away from their man-hours would definitely feel that they are losing out on valuable work time.
Yes, marketing strategies need to be communicated to the whole team. This can be done after the core discussion is over and a decision has been made. One can then hold team meetings where it’s highlighted where each team stands; and how to implement the strategies discussed through their respective work.
3. Have Strict Timings
Everyone likes people who respect the other’s time.
In a corporate, people work within a limited time. Each individual has deadlines that they need to meet. If a sudden meeting invitation pops up in between, their set schedule is disrupted. Very often than not people need to work through lunch hours or stay back after work hours to finish a task.
It is important that people who organise meetings understand the situation of the employees and stick to a particular time and start and end the meeting on time. This helps people attending the meeting plan their work around the conference well. Moreover, a meeting that starts late and drags on till later, naturally has attendees who get into the discussion feeling off and uninterested.
4. Have a Leader
‘Too many cooks spoil the broth.’
This profound proverb is applicable in all aspects of life; meetings included.
It so happens that because of an existing hierarchy in the corporate, many people are given the responsibility to lead a meeting.
To make meetings effective it is important that one does not play hierarchy when it comes to taking the lead. Have one leader. Make space in the meeting for other important attendees to speak in the discussion if it is necessary. This will help remove ‘unnecessary hassles and confusion’ off the meeting.
5. Take Notes
Taking Notes after a meeting is of utmost importance.
Many a time, it happens that people forget what the meeting was all about. Maybe they remember a part but forget one essential point. The result? In the next follow up meeting one has to include that last meeting’s summary again. This wastes a lot of time.
It is important that one take notes in a meeting. The medium might differ. Some might prefer paper and pen while others might use Google docs. But whatever be the medium make it compulsory for all to keep notes.
6. Follow up
Follow up with the attendees’ right after the meeting.
It is important that one follows up immediately to make sure that the topics discussed in the meeting have been etched in the minds of the people attending it. This will help one save time by eliminating unnecessary follow up meetings later. Secondly, it will also keep the attendees’ attention in the discussion.
Meetings are a very under-rated corporate tool. Used effectively it can illuminate a company’s future with success.
