Strategies for a Successful Productive Meeting

Running a Results Oriented Business Meeting

Apr 7, 2009 Michele Dane

A successful meeting hinges on having a clear purpose, defined agenda and adherence to time. Here are strategies to ensure an efficient and productive meeting.

Meetings can either be a tremendous waste of time or a successful means of achieving the aims of the organizationA successful meeting is based on a clearly defined purpose, the right participants, an organized agenda and attention to time management. Here are strategies for a productive meeting.

Strategies to Use Before the Meeting

Before convening a group of busy people, it is important to know exactly what outcomes must be achieved. For example, is the meeting being held to make a decision about a course of action or is the purpose of the meeting to brainstorm and generate ideas for a new product? The purpose will dictate who will attend , the agenda and the meeting format. The purpose must be conveyed to the other participants to ensure that it is achieved.

The meeting must have the right people around the table. If the purpose is to make a decision, then those empowered with the ability to make decision s need to be present. If the meeting is to brainstorm then it will be important to have knowledgeable participants who can generate creative ideas.

Determine what subjects need to be covered in the time alloted. Limit the number of agenda items to three or four (excluding the traditional welcome and introductions and the conclusion of the meeting) in order to focus the discussion. Assign a presenter to each subject and allocate a specific amount of time to each topic. For example, an agenda for a new business venture could include: presentation of market research, description of the new business and presentation of pro forma financial statements.

Productivity During the Meeting

It is important to start the meeting on time . Doing so shows respect for the participants and acknowledges the value of their time. Those that are chronically late, will start showing up on time once it is clear that the meeting will start on time.

Begin each meeting by welcoming the participants and introducing those around the table. This ensures that everyone knows who is present. This will also allow the other participants to consider who should be attending the meeting but is not present. The start of the meeting is also the time to state the purpose, the amount of time allocated and the desired outcome.

Stick to the agenda and limit digressions and side bar conversations that eat up time. If the discussion of one agenda item runs over its alloted time then either 1) continue the discussion realizing that discussion of a later agenda item will have to be curtailed or eliminated; or 2) assign further exploration of that subject to a subcommittee for reporting at a later time.

Ensure proper time management by assigning someone to be the time keeper. This individual can keep help make sure that presentations do not run past the time allocated. This allows the meeting organizer to focus on the topic at hand.

Conclude the meeting by summarizing the key points, assigning follow up tasks and identify the next steps (e.g. a follow up meeting, report, etc).

Actions After the Meeting

After the meeting, be sure to send a summary of the discussion or the minutes to each participant as well as others in the organization that need to be aware of what has transpired. Make sure that the minutes clearly identifies any recommendations made by the group and that the assignments made are noted along with their completion dates.

Successful meetings are dependent on a defined purpose, clear agenda and time management. Using these strategies will result in sessions that are productive for the organization and participants

The copyright of the article Strategies for a Successful Productive Meeting in Business Management is owned by Michele Dane. Permission to republish Strategies for a Successful Productive Meeting in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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