08/ 01/ 2005
by Jeffrey Moses
You can make a meeting much more dynamic and effective by asking each person invited to participate on a particular topic. When you simply ask employees to show up, they may arrive without enthusiasm and are likely to view the whole event as an exercise in boredom. When you ask employees in advance to contribute to the meeting in a specific way, it motivates them to actively prepare and participate.
Meetings take preparation
When time allows, prepare a meeting agenda that includes topics you want to cover and pass it out several days before the meeting via e-mail or hard copy. When employees see their topic on the program (and perhaps even their name), it will motivate them to prepare. When each participant becomes involved in this way, meetings can be highly successful.
The invitation for a meeting should include a specific subject for which the participant should prepare. These may include, among others:
- Research/planning/projections on present or future projects
- A presentation as a team leader or team member
- Defense of project failures
- Presentation describing project successes
- Individual and personal experiences on a project or a work situation
- General or specific ideas on a topic that will be discussed at the meeting
Just as important as asking participants to prepare in advance is the technique of the meeting’s leader. When asking an employee to participate, make sure he or she has the opportunity to make a presentation or at least to become actively involved in the discussion of the specified topic. When you ask employees to prepare for a presentation, then deny them the opportunity to participate, they may be hesitant to spend much time preparing when asked the next time.
Sticking to the meeting’s agenda is the best way to assure that all those invited have the chance to participate. Don’t let one person or topic run away with the time. Keep a tight rein on the schedule.
When preparing the meeting agenda, avoid widely diverse topics. Usually, the more you focus a meeting on a small number of topics, the more successful it will be.
What makes a successful meeting? One that produces solutions to stated problems, motivates participants and all employees and refines plans of action, including schedules, goals, gathering of resources, etc., for stated projects.
