Do you attend unnecessary, unproductive, or uninspiring meetings?
As well as being demotivating for attendees, such meetings are a huge and avoidable cost for organizations. Think of the hourly cost of each person in the meeting and how that money or time could be used more effectively.
When I ask facilitation skills training participants to list typical problems they face, some teams easily come up with over 40 items!
Frequently Listed Problems
- Meeting objectives are unclear
- Discussion goes off track
- It’s difficult to get some to speak up and others to shut up
- Differences of opinion cause tension
- People arrive late or leave early
- Smart phones and laptops cause distractions
- People who should be in the meeting aren’t there and people who shouldn’t be in the meeting are there
I devote a chapter to facilitation skills and how to overcome problems in meetings in the book Eigo no Shigoto-jutsu.
One way to overcome many problems is to be clear about roles and expectations for everyone in the meeting.
Typical Roles
- Facilitator – Supports participants to achieve the meeting goals
- Note taker – Takes notes or minutes to help everyone remember what was agreed in the meeting (also known as the “scribe,” “recorder,” or “secretary”)
- Timekeeper – Helps everyone to use the meeting time efficiently and finish punctually
- Decision maker – One or more people who make decisions in the meeting
- Contributor – Brings information, ideas, or opinions to help achieve the meeting goals
- Challenger – Offers questions or suggestions to help participants consider different perspectives and achieve the meeting goals (also known as the “devil’s advocate”)
When people have a clear role, not only do they know what to do, but they also feel better because they can contribute to the meeting. This boosts motivation and engagement and leads to better meeting results.
3 Steps to Help You Contribute Your Best in Meetings
Follow these three simple steps and see what a difference it makes to your motivation and meeting results.
1. Understand the meeting goals – Find out from the meeting notification (if one was sent) or ask the person in charge for the goals
2. Know your role – Clarify which role you’re expected to play from the person in charge if it’s not already clear
3. Prepare – Think through or note down what you can contribute to the meeting
To help you with steps 2 and 3, we’ll look at specific roles and how to prepare for them in this blog series, so that you can contribute your best to meetings.
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Thanks, TopTia, for the blog photo.