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November Coordinator's Club: Effective Meetings Aren't a Myth: Tips for How to Nail Your Next Meeting

Posted by [email protected] on Nov. 8, 2019 / Subscribe 0

Warmly welcomed by canine greeters, SMPS Triangle members gathered at HH Architecture’s striking new office building to learn about effective meeting practices. Presenter Jennifer Lauria Clark, CPIP, Executive Director of Strategic Development at CAI, started her journey with SMPS at a national conference and shared that it was a “life-changing experience” for her. Jennifer's highly engaging presentation offered not only meeting strategies, but also some fun ways to build team camaraderie.

During ice breakers, participants were challenged to focus on each other, remembering details about others and having a conversation without using the word “I.” Have you ever tried that? It’s harder than it sounds! An exercise with Legos not only focused on team-building, but also honed visual memory skills and up-front strategy decisions (The architects in the room may have had a leg up in the Lego building exercise!). Finally, the group surely got the attention of the entire firm with a rousing rock|paper|scissors tournament. The ice breakers demonstrated strategies to connect with others and breathe some life into meetings, ultimately providing a cohesiveness that will result in better meeting outcomes.

There are several important factors to consider before you put a meeting on others’ calendars. Cost is a big one. We all know that time is money, but how much do we think about that when we schedule a meeting? It is estimated that meetings waste $37 billion a year in the US. Your meeting with several managers can cost $1,000 an hour, in salary alone. Do you need to have the meeting? If so, does it need to be an hour long? Are attendees answering email during the meeting?

Here are some great pointers Jennifer shared with the group:

Send out an agenda ahead of time with your objectives - draft agendas are great to gather input and buy-in from participants. Asking your attendees to prepare for the meeting or just to think about specific topics will make the time more productive.
Set up ground rules for your meetings, such as no phones or laptops, sticking to the agenda, and starting on time.
A designated scribe is vital to making sure that meetings provide effective outcomes.
Only schedule the time you need; many meetings do not require a full hour.
Prepare well for each meeting. When your colleagues understand how much you value their time, they will respond in kind.
If you’re not prepared, cancel the meeting.

This sold-out program on effective meetings attests to the fact that meetings are an incredibly important part of our work but can drain resources unless we ensure that they are productive. I will certainly think twice and prep more diligently before hitting that calendar invite send button. But as we do our prep work and strive for efficiency, Jennifer reminds us that we must remember to have a little fun and to genuinely engage with each other, because we are most effective when we perform as a team.