MEETINGS BLOODY MEETINGS Hints for how to get

MEETINGS BLOODY MEETINGS Hints for how to get more out of these daily distractions Beverly Brown with John Cleese April 26, 2010

AGENDA Current Experience Video General Rules

WHAT DO YOU HATE ABOUT MEETINGS? Poorly organized, not sure why we are here? Do you cover the same ground over again? Exhausting and not productive… There is always someone who is a trouble maker We never start on time or end on time! Why are they needed?

WHY TEAMS (& MEETINGS) MATTER Improve your promotion prospects! The leader as leader Team cohesion More meetings + More temporary teams = Need for better meeting skills

TYPES OF MEETINGS Informational Making decisions Working on a problem Any meeting can have one or more of these elements in it.

FIVE PRINCIPLES OF GOOD MEETINGS Plan Inform Prepare Structure and control Summarise and record

PLAN & INFORM Is the meeting necessary? Who should be invited? Development Knowledge experts Authority/decision • makers Do they understand: what will be discussed? why? what the meeting should achieve?

AGENDAS Sufficient detail Logical order Appropriate time slots urgent items vs important items

STRUCTURE & CONTROL Evidence before interpretation Interpretation before decisions Keep stages separate Stop: jumping ahead unnecessary back-tracking

SUMMARIZE & RECORD Summarising – the chair’s job Summarise each topic Summarising helps keep control makes minute-taking easy Recording – not the chair’s job

GENERAL RULES Respect everyone’s time Start & stop on time Stick to agenda Three phases of meeting Opening Work Closing Meeting order Share information first Make decisions (bring food for best results) Solve problems last No Agenda: NO Attenda Summarize work outside meetings in Action Items and cover progress until closed

MEETING ROLES Leader Facilitator Scribe Contributor Expert Gate Keeper Devil’s Advocate Joker Cheerleader Etc. community professional association employer school family you

OPTIMUM MEETING SIZE DEPENDS ON PURPOSE Decision making 6 -8 from relevant stakeholders Empowered representatives Brainstorming 18 Maximize diversity Information sharing 1800 Shortest meetings are in rooms without chairs

BRAINSTORMING State the problem Find all perceptions of problem Seek to agree on the problem Discuss time & scope of problem Open floor for all (fixed time) Fixed time (10 -15 minutes) Scribe all responses No judging or editing any idea Clarify & consolidate similar ideas Open floor to discussion Seek to rank the ideas Select winner(s) (multi-voting) Assign working group to explore top options

MEETINGS COME IN ALL SIZES BUT THE SAME RULES APPLY

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION