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Make your meetings productive
Our office has gone meeting-crazy! As if it's not bad enough that we have so many meetings that no one can get any work done, there are people who think they have to be at every single meeting, whether they're invited or not. They'll just show up to things because they think they should be there, which leads to some awkward situations. Once, someone was told to his face that it was a closed meeting, and he wasn't supposed to be there - he refused to leave! How do you kick out people who don't need to be in a meeting?
Dear Sara:
It sounds as if your meetings are a bit too casual. Try preparing a meeting agenda. That may seem like a chore, however, it's a useful tool that could help solve your problem. The agenda is set by the meeting chair, who should circulate it a couple of days in advance. That gives participants time to prepare. The circulated agenda should include only those individuals who are involved in decision-making and implementation of the projects to be discussed.
Should an uninvited individual show up, it's up to the chair to speak with him or her and bring the meeting back to its intended size. If a private conversation is possible, then great. It could go something like this, ‘Thanks for your interest in the meeting. But in order for us to get through quickly, it's best that only those people crucial to the agenda items participate. For now, I'm sure you’ll be happy to get back to your pressing workload’.
Just as a review and reminder, here are the other tasks for the meeting chair:
1) Make sure the meeting room is conducive to effective work. That means it should be clean and well lit.
2) Make sure everyone involved in the meeting has sufficient background material in advance so they'll have time to read and digest it before you meet.
3) Make sure all participants have been introduced to one another.
4) Keep your eye on the time and the agenda.
5) At the end of the meeting summarise the key points and re-state the consensus.
6) Make sure each participant leaves the meeting with a clear picture of the next steps.
7) Set the date for the next meeting and make sure the participants agree.
8) Thank everyone for their participation and attendance.
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