You don’t plan business meetings for the fun of it or to gather all your employees together just to see all their faces at once. When it’s time to plan your next business meeting, there’s a reason behind it. Each company meeting you plan has a purpose behind it, but that doesn’t mean it’s always successful.
Running a meeting like a professional and getting the most out of it is a skill. How will you ensure you’re not wasting your employees’ time or your own time? How do you know if the meeting is necessary or if it’s something that can be sent out via email?
To make sure you’re getting the most out of your business meetings each and every time, continue reading below. Here are a few tips you need to know in order to elevate your business meetings to the next level.
1. Know the Objective and Make It Clear
You should never schedule a business meeting just for the purpose of doing so. Each business meeting you schedule should have an objective behind it that’s clear to everyone. Otherwise, you’re wasting everyone’s time, including your own.
Are you scheduling the meeting to come up with new ideas for a specific branch within the company? Are there some decisions that need to be made? What do you expect to come out of this business meeting?
Write down the objectives and then hand out a copy to each person attending the meeting to keep on them so they don’t forget why they’re there.
2. Reduce Meeting Fatigue
After a long day of work, not many people will be excited to clock into your after-hours meeting. To reduce meeting fatigue, you should consider scheduling the meetings outside of the office. Choose a location that’s nearby, but fun and different.
It’ll make your participants feel as though they’re being treated to something nice rather than being forced to stay late at work to attend a boring meeting. Make sure to provide food and beverages as well. This is especially true if your meeting is taking place during lunch or dinner time.
If your participants are hungry, then they might not be as focused on what’s being discussed during the meeting.
3. Create an Agenda and Disperse It
To make sure everyone stays on task, including yourself, during the meeting, you can create an agenda and disperse it to everyone. This allows everyone to know what to expect out of the meeting. You’ll need to follow it step by step so you don’t throw anyone off.
You can even consider making a timed agenda. Each section can include a number of minutes you’ll spend on that subject. This way, everyone will know how much time they have to discuss certain topics and what time the meeting will end at.
4. Keep Your Attendees Engaged
If you simply stand up in front of your employees and talk non-stop, then you risk the chance of losing their attention. If employees aren’t engaged, they can become bored and distracted. Keep all attendees engaged to keep the environment lively.
Remember, your employees are there for a reason. Their opinions and ideas are essential. Give them the chance to speak up.
Think of ways to boost creativity during the meeting, such as allowing all participants to color while brainstorming or listening to someone else speak.
5. Stay Concise and On Topic
Long and drawn out meetings with no clear endpoint in sight can be a daunting thing. When running your business meeting, stay concise and on topic. If someone veers off-topic, it’s not always something you want to shut down immediately, but do your best to direct it back to the main focus of the meeting.
When you’re in the planning phases of your meeting, do what you can to eliminate anything that’s unnecessary. Only having people attend who need to attend is another way to ensure the meeting moves quickly.
If some employees only need an email sent to them about what took place in the meeting, then do this instead of having them attend.
6. Assign Roles for Each Attendee
Another way to ensure the meeting moves quickly and smoothly and everyone is engaged is to assign roles for each attendee. For example, one attendee can be in charge of recording the meeting using an app like https://setapp.com/apps/backtrack.
Another attendee can be in charge of keeping the time to ensure the meeting is on track. Think of as many roles as possible that you can assign and make sure they’ll bring value to the meetings. Then, allow everyone to choose their own role so they’re doing something they like.
7. Don’t Forget Your Surveys
Don’t forget to include a Q&A or a survey of some type as well. This gives your attendees a chance to speak their minds or ask questions that they didn’t have time for during the meeting. The Q&A form might even answer a few questions for them.
Depending on what’s on the Q&A form, you can hand this out before or after the meeting. Surveys should be handed out after the meeting to keep attendees from completing during the meeting itself. Make sure to give plenty of time for them to do this.
If you want honest feedback, then consider making the surveys anonymous.
How Will You Plan for Your Next Business Meeting?
How will you plan your next business meeting? Make sure to use the tips given in this guide above to ensure your meeting runs smoothly and efficiently.
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