Six Keys to Running Effective Meetings

For the record, I used to dislike meetings. My experiences had not been good. For years I ran meetings regularly and was terrible at it. I let the participants talk endlessly for fear I was cutting them off. Because attendees were my elders and I worked for them I didn’t want to offend. But my timidity was doing everyone a disservice. I'd often allow the deviation from the agenda to be so severe getting back seemed impossible. In my defense, even though I’d been part of several organizations with dynamic people in charge, I had never seen a meeting run effectively. So how do you run an effective meeting? This is what I learned through trial and error and observation.

Six Keys to Running an Effective Meeting

1. The Purpose of the Meeting
Specifically identify the purpose and objective of every meeting before it begins. What is the purpose of any meeting? To make decisions, carry out an action, resolve and to inform. Stay on topic!

2. Agenda
Create an agenda for each meeting. Don’t over pack the agenda. If you have regular meetings, put some of the new business on the next agenda.

3. Facilitation
The meeting leader must be the facilitator of the meeting. We have to be careful and specific here. A meeting is not a facilitation event. It is not the time to ask probing questions and get the attendees to dig deeper into the issue. It is their responsibility to bring their findings to the meeting for discussion purposes. You will need to use your facilitations skills when and if debate or intense discussion occurs and to reign in participants who dominate or divert the meeting from the aforementioned purpose. It takes tactful skill to handle these situations and perhaps a little pre-planning if you’re not an in the moment thinker.

4. Should Everyone Speak?
While it is natural to want to hear from everyone, in order to keep the meeting moving, you need to stay within the time frames you designated for each agenda item. That means not everyone will have a chance to speak. Again, it is the responsibility of the participants or attendees to speak up within the allotted time.

5. Special Guests
Keep special speakers to their allotted time frame. They can eat into the meeting agenda pretty quickly if allowed. Have a few segues prepared to clue in the speaker their time is ending so they can wrap it up.

6. Leading by Consensus or Majority
While it can be done in smaller settings, it is far more difficult to lead by consensus with a larger group. When a leader attempts this mode with a group larger than 6, discussion can go on interminably with little or no resolution. Remember, consensus is an idyllic state. It is rare you will ever achieve consensus true to its definition. If it is your style to lead by consensus, draw up some broad goals or actions that you would like the committee to agree on. Recognize from the outset that there will be some disagreement on the specifics. If you can deal with that and get the committee or group to agree to the broader objectives you will be effective.

Majority
If you prefer not to lead by consensus, set the expectation in advance by informing your group or team that you will listen to all arguments and move forward with the majority opinion as long as it aligns with the organization’s mission. It is important those working with you know this from the outset. Failing to notify them of your preferences in this regard will make you appear like a tyrant or dictator when you settle on a course of action that not everyone agrees with.

Remembering these six keys will make for more effective, efficient meetings. Keep in mind that everyone’s time is valuable and remind others in the meeting of your desire to respect that. It will go a long way in getting your team to respect you and your leadership style.