What time is it? Time for your next meeting? Maybe you just came out of one. Or maybe you’re in one right now and you have no idea what’s being discussed. If so, now would be a good time to look up and nod. OK—continue reading.
Chances are you spend a good deal of your day in meetings. Yes, they cost time. But have you ever stopped to figure out how much money they cost? Think of one of your recent meetings. Jot down the
- Number of participants
- Hours spent preparing for, attending, and then reporting on the meeting
- Average hourly salary for participants plus 50% for labor burden.
Multiply the three numbers above to find out the approximate cost of the meeting. It’s not cheap.
Good meetings identify challenges, speed communication, and spawn solutions. Bad meetings waste time and discourage—even alienate— participants. That’s why it’s a good idea to follow these simple guidelines for conducting a good, productive meeting.
- Decide if the potential results are worth the cost. Do this before you schedule the meeting.
- Identify the fewest participants needed to accomplish the goal.
- Draft an agenda. Include the goal of the meeting, items (with start/stop times for each), and presenters. Distribute the agenda (use e-mail) before a scheduled meeting to allow participants to prepare for it. Even if it's an impromptu meeting for only a few people, take a few moments to establish an agenda, then stick to it.
- State the nature of the meeting. Clearly communicate whether the meeting is scheduled to (a) convey information, (b) generate ideas, or (c) make decisions. Few work events are more discouraging than meetings where you expect to make a decision, only to find out you are on the receiving end of a data dump.
- Encourage participation. Call out participants individually if they haven’t contributed and ask for opinions. Be prepared for disagreement. If the meeting’s goal were easy to achieve, you probably wouldn't need the meeting. Listen.
- Summarize. Clearly define decisions and action items. Be sure that all attendees understand their action items.
- Draft minutes. If a meeting is worth holding, it is worth recording. Minutes prevent misunderstandings. Include action items, due dates, and the individuals responsible for them. Spell out a reason for attendees to review the minutes.
Escoe Bliss Professional Resources has an expert team of consultants that can help your company improve processes and operational efficiency. Please contact us if we can partner with you on your organizational needs.
Blogging with Bliss blogger, Dr. Adrienne Escoe, is the president and owner of Escoe Bliss Professional Resources.
Looking for a quick way to help defog your writing? Want it clear and crisp?
Then delete it is unless it refers to something mentioned earlier. It is constructions tangle sentences, delay meaning, encourage passive verbs, and hide responsibility.
Other foggies to avoid are there is and there are.
See the difference from a simple deletion or slight rewording:
Foggy: It is my understanding that the study includes large companies.
Better: I understand that the study includes large companies.
Foggy: There are some provisions that cannot be negotiated.
Better: Some provisions cannot be negotiated.
Really Foggy: It is recognized that as the program matures, there are likely to be changes in task definitions and priorities.
Better: We recognize that as the program matures, task definitions and priorities are likely to change.
Blogging with Bliss blogger, Dr. Adrienne Escoe, is the president and owner of Escoe Bliss Professional Resources.
Looking to make 2012 a productive year for your department or company? Start with five powerful steps to help slim down written procedures, saving your company time and money.
1. Include only what’s needed.
Start from zero. Assume no information is needed. Then add only what is required by law, contract, or prudent business practice. Ask yourself, “Would any harm come to the company if we leave out the information?” If the answer is “No,” don’t include it. Ask, “Would any harm come if we leave it in?” If the answer is “Yes,” leave it out or send it somewhere else.
2. Write active sentences.
Don’t wear out readers with long, passive sentences. Be direct: Tell who is responsible for what.
Passive: It is a good idea to have extended code included in the manual that has been revised.
Active: Include extended code in the revised manual.
3. Leave out forms.
Companies revise forms often. If a procedure includes a form, and the form changes, the procedure must be revised too. Simply refer to a form by name or number. Speaking of forms, place instructions on the form itself, close to the user, not in the procedure. Better yet, make forms so clear, users won’t need instructions.
4. Review procedures regularly.
Obsolete procedures are not only useless, they’re expensive. Rework caused by out-of-date procedures can cost plenty. So can liability when companies no longer do what their procedures say they do. Consider adopting an automatic cancellation policy: If a procedure is important to keep, it’s important to keep current.
5. Place procedures online.
If your company has a network, place procedures online. Print information only as needed. Online information retrieval systems, such as web-based, save much of the cost of printing, maintenance, filing, and storage. Electronic searching saves time.
Blogging with Bliss blogger, Dr. Adrienne Escoe, is the president and owner of Escoe Bliss Professional Resources and a policy and procedure expert.
