Effective Meeting Training

Tips for holding a meeting

When you have a staff meeting, you are usually taking staff away from their work for a period of time to brainstorm, collaborate or work as a group.

You want to make the most out of your meeting time and ensure it is a valuable experience for all. So, how do you achieve this?

Here are some basic tips for holding an effective meeting:

• PLAN: For a meeting to be effective, it must be planned in advance! Impromptu meetings are rarely effective because they are too disorganised and don't have direction or solid purpose. If you are holding a meeting at least a basic plan will help you implement a meeting that runs smoothly and gets the best out of attending staff.
• Choose an effective TIME AND PLACE: Where and when you hold your meeting will make a big difference to staff attendance and participation. If you hold a meeting Friday afternoon before knock-off staff are probably thinking about going home on time and also be feeling weary after the work week. Pick a time and day when all or majority of staff are in the office and not near lunch or home time! The location of the meeting will also have a bearing on participation. A board room with a round table to fit everyone works well - an auditorium where staff are spread out and in rows is very segregated and difficult to encourage exchanges between staff.
• Incorporate ELECTRONIC OPTIONS: We have a wide range of ICT at our fingertips that can be used to educate or engage staff in meetings. For example, if you are looking at your overall image or a new marketing campaign, why not show some examples of effective YouTube videos or television ads other companies have created. This will help spark ideas and discussion.

Our Effective Meetings Workshop educates people about all of the above and much more.

If you think you could benefit from effective meeting training, please contact us for information about our Effective Meetings Workshop.

Cate Schreck