Meetings are inevitable in business. Teams meet to discuss ideas, train or innovate, amongst other reasons, but executing a successful meeting can sometimes prove tricky. We share tips on hosting successful and engaging discussions.

Agenda

Creating an agenda and sending it out to participants before the meeting is essential for success. A schedule allows participants to know what to expect and to prepare accordingly. If you forego an agenda, prepare to respond to emails or colleagues popping into your office to find out what the meeting is regarding. Agendas save time for all involved, and they only need to be a brief outline of the topics.

Timeframe

Managing time effectively will make your meeting a success. Avoid blocking out an hour-long timeframe if the agenda will realistically take 25 minutes to execute. People like to stay organized and have their days planned, so they will appreciate receiving a meeting invite that reflects the proper amount of time it will take to complete. If your session starts to run over the indicated time, be sure to check in with the participants and allow anyone to leave if necessary.

Inclusivity

Meetings should encourage engagement from all attendants, so only invite people who can contribute to the conversation. Make your session inclusive to those who will directly benefit from the conversation as it will lead to an effective forum. Have someone take notes for those employees who might find the information discussed valuable but didn’t need to attend.

Email

If your meeting is purely informative and you would be the only speaker, consider composing an email. Meetings take away from productivity, so it is important to distinguish if your meeting can be a well-written email instead.

Objective

Understanding your meeting objective is probably one of the most important aspects of being a successful host. What are you trying to convey? What do you want the participants to gain from the meeting? Understanding the answer to these questions will assist in making your session impactful.

DIVERSANT

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