Keys to Effective Meetings

Meetings, meetings... and then a teleconference... and then yet another meeting.

For many of us these meetings or teleconferences come as unwanted interruptions in our work day. Sometimes the day is so full of them so it is completely impossible to get any "real" work done. Think about it. If you feel that way something is definitely wrong. Conferencing and meeting should bring your work and projects forward, not interrupt them, wouldn't you agree?

There is no doubt that lot of time and money are spent on ineffective or even completely unnecessary business meetings or teleconferences. Huge savings could be made in the corporate world just by better meeting planning and implementation of conference calling and business meetings.

Three key issues every effective teleconference or business meeting should include

It is not really that difficult. It is all common sense. Most meetings or teleconference should do three things:

1. get everyone updated on the status of the topic in question (information sharing)
2. address issues encountered recently when working together and make sure that all action points have been taken care of (follow-up) and
3. looking ahead to the next necessary steps or action items (planning).

That's it. Sharing Information. Following Up. Planning Ahead.

Of course, there are variations of the themes above depending of the nature of the conference call or meeting, but most meetings I have been involved with should have been addressing just this (although many haven't).

Then it is the meeting itself. Huge costs are spent on traveling to business meetings. This means that it is even more important to be very effective. Conference calling is an alternative to physical meetings that more companies should consider. There are great offers out there so it is definitely worth shopping around for good audio teleconferencing deals. New technology brings new opportunities in conferencing, which is described in other parts of this website.

Now let's have a look at the 10 Tips for planning and conducting an effective teleconference or business meeting...

Meeting planning is not rocket science. Common sense goes far. Be prepared, stay on track and keep it brief is a good guideline...

Tip 1. Meeting Agenda - Have one. Make sure that there is a written agenda for the teleconference or meeting.

Tip 2. Meeting Agenda - Keep it short. Usually 3-4 points is more than enough to cover relevant things.

Tip 3. Meeting Agenda - Describe each of the 3-4 items in detail. This vital piece of meeting planning makes it more difficult to veer off into irrelevant discussions.

Tip 4. Meeting Agenda - Time and duration. Indicate an allocated time on each point as well as a total maximum duration of the meeting. Also make this even clearer by specifying the exact time each point will start and end.

Tip 5. Meeting Agenda - Distribution. Make sure that everyone has received the meeting agenda as well as relevant presentation material or other backup material well in advance. This is especially important for conference calling meetings. When conducting a teleconference it is vital that everyone has relevant material in front of them.

So far we have only spoken about the conferencing or meeting agenda. We are half way through the tips. That tells you how important meeting planning is. Now let's have a look at how to conduct the actual teleconference or meeting.

After planning - How to conduct a teleconference or meeting

Tip 6. Execution - Have a chairperson or leader who is in clear control of the meeting and drives it forward. Many meetings drift off into irrelevant discussions simply because there is no clear leader of the meeting who keeps the direction.

Tip 7. Execution - Stick to the agenda. Not only is it important to have a quality agenda - it is obviously vital to stick to it. Don't stray into other items that seem important at the time. Keep the focus.

Tip 8. Execution - Stick to the times allocated. Start on time. Don't let any points drag on longer than necessary. Minor adjustments can be made by the leader of the meeting, but always, always keep the total time of the meeting. This is out of respect for the participants who may have other things planned. This is especially important when teleconferencing.

Tip 9. Execution - Use relevant visual aids and modern technology in order to present and follow up action points properly. Project management software, advanced conference calling service or video conferencing equipment are examples of technologies that may help and/or save costs.

Tip 10. Follow Up - Take detailed meeting minutes with clearly marked action points and distribute them. Make sure to follow up the minutes and any action points properly on the next meeting.

As you can see, many of the points focus on the agenda and the meeting planning. This is no coincidence. Conference calling and meetings are always much more effective if they are adequately planned and prepared. Conducting the meeting itself is a breeze if the planning is good.

And then I have a special bonus tip to encourage timekeeping on recurring meetings: Let everyone who is late for the meeting pay a fine of let's say 50 cent for every minute he or she is late to the meeting. This is collected in a little jar and may be used to buy a prize every month for the person in the group who has contributed most to keep the meetings professional and on track. This worked really well in a group where I was working. The meetings became much more efficient, not so much because of the money or prize, but because everyone understood the focus on really getting the meetings effective.

This last tip may be a little bit difficult to implement on teleconferences though...