A project or a plan becomes successful only with a cornucopia of team meetings. Team meetings are the keystone for initiating the plan, finding solutions for ongoing challenges, and executing the best ideas for the elfin outcomes. Meetings are the source of collaboration, synergy, communication, and productivity within the organization. Team meetings are not just the dais for the discussion of plans and projects but also arterial for knowing about diverse perspectives, new ideas, thoughts, and concepts for new projects or upcoming tasks as well.
Team meetings are the avenues where top-notch performers are praised, plans and policies are discussed, challenges are recognized and strong relationships are built among the team members, project handlers, and staff colleagues. When the ideas are collaborated, challenges are addressed and feedback is welcomed, the essence of team meetings comes in true nature. The team meetings are the fountainhead of employee engagement, motivation, and collaborative efforts for better outcomes.
Before indulging in the tips for effective team meetings, let’s delve into the 5 P’s of an effective meeting introduced by reputed professionals. The 5 P’s includes:
Exegesis(Explanation):
1. Purpose: The purpose or the reason behind the team meeting should be clear. Why is the meeting being or going to be held? Either to make some big communique/announcements, to announce some big or mini decisions or to welcome some span-new ideas by the team members, the purpose should be clear.
2. Participants: Team meetings are unsuccessful without the involvement of the participants who intend to attend the meeting. They should be made aware of the meeting by sending them reminders and messages. Team meetings should encompass all the diverse perspectives that should be represented as inclusivity and diversity should be welcomed in the workplace. \
3. Plan: The meeting agenda should be created at the beginning and the team meeting should match the designated agenda. The notes of the meeting as a summary and important talks should be noted down by the participants present in the meeting.
4. Participation: Participation in the team meeting should be quite interactive. The introduction should be exchanged. Ground rules should be set along with decision rules and the participants should be independent to share their ideas, knowledge, and suggestions.
5. Perspective: Evaluation tools should be created to determine the outcomes of the meeting. They should view the meeting according to their perspective and their opinions can be collected regarding inclusivity, diversity, and corollary of the meeting.
Whether it’s a meeting with a physical presence hybrid meeting or remote working, real or online gathering in a meeting is not just enough. It should be more efficient and fruitful. Let's delve into 10 tips for effective team meetings.
A team meeting without a clear purpose and objective is like making a home without a proper foundation. Set a clear agenda before the meeting gets kicked off. Let the participants in the team meeting know about the expectations of the meeting. Let them be prepared and do thorough research to express themselves in the meetings. While doing online meetings, showcase the agenda on screen timely. Define the clear reason behind the meeting and communicate with the team members by setting the correct tone for participative collaboration. Structured agendas are like the blueprint for the participants that help them to contribute their efforts and ideas in a systematic discussion.
Why is the meeting going to be held in the first place? The organizer should know this at the very beginning. Are you searching for the best ideas for the Scope Creep issue? Are you waiting for the decision of senior management for approval of a marketing campaign? You should be clear on the outcome and work accordingly throughout the meeting to get that desired outcome. Assign the job rules for the participants to reach the desired outcomes. For this, everyone's involvement is mandatory.
Today is the age of globalization and digitization. Many team workers may work remotely as well. Hence, it is not necessary for the compulsory physical presence of all the team members. You have to decide which medium is good. For example, for huge decisions regarding strategies, you can prefer in-person meetings and for a discussion on marketing campaigns, you can go for online meetings.
What’s the worth of organizing the meeting without key talking points? These are important for collaborative brainstorming. Sometimes the meeting can go off-topic and these key points work as the cheat sheets so that participants can present the questions as well. Ask them about their opinions on the ongoing agenda and answers/suggestions kept by each other. This collaborative approach leads to a fruitful conclusion.
Let the meeting platform be the open floor for the participants. Let them give their feedback and recommendations on the topics raised. Different team members from different backgrounds/departments may showcase their participation. But if the people from the same department keep on subjugating the meeting, open the stage for everyone by asking questions.
Make sure you limit the duration of the meeting. Participants may have other timetables as well. Try to start the meeting on time and conclude on time. Your time management strategies can be reflected in the meeting. Set a time limit for the meeting and buck up the participants to stay concentrated on the meeting so that the meeting may end on time with effective outcomes.
The participants are assigned certain roles such as taking notes, tracking time, etc. The meeting then should end with a summary of principal takeaways and an announcement of the action plan. Again, the further roles and tasks of the participants are figured out along with deadlines. Talk about the progress report in the next meetings. Keep the impetus of progress moving forward until the desired outcomes are achieved.
When you ask for their opinions on the nature of the meeting held and its summary, they feel the inclusive and positive atmosphere. With their feedback, you can work for more improvements not only on the existing projects but also the future meetings on addressing the diverse perspectives.
Gather the feedback given by the participants and go for adjustments. With regular reviews and adjustments, there are many improvements to be made helping in the continuous progression of similar tasks and meetings.
Meeting with conflicts and discordance is not good. Effective meeting management comprises effective communication and sturdy interpersonal relationships among the team. Empower the team with training and development programs so that they exceed in the meetings.
To make team meetings more effective, there should be acceptance of technology as well such as video conferencing tools for online meetings like Zoom, and Google Meet, usage of project management software, and other platforms. Usage of AI tools is also one of the best options for today's effective team meeting Remember, a successful meeting can lead to business success and the collaboration of team members is a must for this.