Meetings are an important task any business must perform to make sure everything is going in the right direction. However it is an aspect of many organisations that is not done as efficient and effectively as it could be. People Management has laid out their top 10 tips for bosses when they call a meeting, take a look at these tips to imporve how your company functions.
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Top 10 tips by Jane Sparrow for People Management:
1. A clear objective – Have a clear meeting objective that is shared ahead of time and then reiterated at the start of the meeting. If tangents come up, record them to be picked up after the meeting to help you stay on track.
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2. Time it right – Break the electronic calendar mould and try 50-minute meetings instead of the usual hour. It drives pace, gives people time to breathe and refresh before their next activity and helps to keep the focus in the room. Avoid running important meetings at 3pm, too, as that’s often when we start to tire.
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3. Meet on the move – How about walking meetings? The more oxygen gets to the brain, the more ideas come out of it. Try small group meetings outdoors and on the move for a more creative, inspired output – as well as a feel-good boost from those natural endorphins.
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4. Exit policy – Trial a ‘meetings exit policy’, where anyone who feels they are neither adding nor gaining value from the meeting has the liberty to leave. It can have quite an impact on active participation.
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5. Rule of listening – Run respectful meetings where everyone is listened to, with zero tolerance for attendees who talk over people.
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6. Device ban – Unless there’s a specific purpose for them connected with the meeting, ban the use of electronic devices. They’re nothing but a distraction.
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7. Lead by example – So there’s an electronic devices ban policy for company meetings, but the CEO gets out his mobile within five minutes? Business leaders have to be on board with meeting etiquette, or it will fail at the first hurdle.
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8. Unexpected guests – Think really carefully about who you invite to each meeting. Avoid the usual suspects for certain subject areas and get some fresh blood in the room. It helps move the thinking on and get it ‘out of the box’.
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9. Great meetings culture – We’ve all heard about companies that have a ‘meetings culture’. Change the mindset to being one of a ‘great meetings culture’, where every meeting is made to count – or it doesn’t happen.
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10. It’s a wrap – Clearly summarise the key messages and actions at the end of a meeting to ensure everyone is on the same page when they leave the room. When time is money, no one can afford ineffective meetings. It’s so easy to slip into bad habits, so try some of these tips next time you hold a meeting, and see what happens.
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If your company need advice & guidance from a UK leading specialist in Employment law, HR and Health and Safety Services, then please contact HPC. We can be contacted on the form below or by calling us on 0843 509 4543.
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For the full People Management Top 10 tips, please follow this link.