A LEADING magazine editor is said to use a harsh but effective way of keeping meetings short and to the point. Underlings who fail to make their point quickly risk being cut off in mid-sentence as the boss sweeps from the room.
Anyone who has ever sat through an interminable, apparently pointless meeting must envy such brusque actions just a little bit — even if they know such behaviour may not be an option in their own workplace.
But there are less drastic ways to ensure a meeting is productive and doesn’t drag on. Good preparation is the simple way to ensure meetings are relevant, don’t overrun and are not held back by the uninformed, dull or disinterested, according to Jackie Smith, director of Speak First, a training and coaching firm.
Before you even begin planning the agenda, identify the aim of the meeting. This is an obvious point but one that is often ignored, said Smith. “I have lost count of the number of times I have been in meetings with no apparent purpose, where it is far from clear why I was asked to be there.
“Get some clarity as to what the purpose of the meeting is.
If it is about keeping people informed, ask yourself what everyone is supposed to do with this information. And don’t just think about the general outcomes; establish an outcome for each point on the agenda.
“Poor selection of participants is another problem. Does everyone need to attend? And should those who do attend be there for the whole meeting or just part of it?” Finding out about your fellow participants is especially important when you are setting up an external meeting with clients, according to Mary Louise Angoujard of Image Matters, a presentation and public-speaking consultancy.
There are special points to bear in mind for external client meetings, she said. “Take a colleague with you to client meetings and get him or her to take notes. This will give a clear record of what has been said and agreed, leaving you free to concentrate on the meeting.”
Asking pertinent questions of clients is perhaps the most crucial skill to master as it helps to build rapport with them and gives you a context for your own presentation. It might even reveal new areas of opportunity, she said.
“Ask the kind of open questions that will elicit useful background information. For instance, ask what changes your clients have seen in the past few years, what plans they have for the business or what they found the most challenging aspect of a recent expansion.”
Whether a meeting is internal or external, ensure that all those attending have the information they need so they can prepare their contributions.
Beware of supplying too much detail on paper in the meeting if it risks detracting from the impact of what you have to say, said Angoujard.
“You might not want to hand out everything at the beginning of the meeting because people may start leafing through the handouts instead of listening to you.”
