Let's Talk ... Facilitating Meetings!
October,
2005
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Helping you to build effective working
environments. |
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In this issue:
 | Opening Thought |
| Food for Thought:
Setting the Stage |
| Think About This and Take Action |
| Final Thought -
Follow-Up |
2005 CAPS Convention
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"Flip
charts are a highly under-rated and under-used tool. With just paper
and markers, you can easily record brainstorming sessions, resulting
in improved meeting effectiveness."
Janet Stewart-Lussier, NRL
Group Inc.
FOOD
FOR
THOUGHT: Setting
the Stage
A
meeting is an
effective communication tool
in today’s workplace, however sometimes they can feel like a waste of
time. Lack of sufficient planning and preparation can result in a wide
variety of problems – key people are missing or may not have even been
invited to attend; participants arrive unprepared or without important
documents and data to refer to during discussions; the meeting room is
too small for the number of people; there is no agenda to give the
meeting structure… these are all common problems that can be avoided
through
careful advance planning by the
facilitator.
Take
the time to:
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clarify the purpose and objectives of the meeting |
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invite the "right"
people |
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develop an agenda |
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select the best methods to accomplish the purpose and
objectives |
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reserve the room and equipment |
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distribute the agenda |
Your facilitation
skills are never more important than they are during the actual
meeting. The following are your key responsibilities:
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begin with a
relevant warm-up activity
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review the
agenda
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set or review the
ground rules
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clarify the meeting
roles
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establish a
parking
lot
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keep the group
focused and on track by covering one agenda item at a time, opening and
closing each topic and checking decisions
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manage the
behaviours of the meeting attendees
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check for
agreement
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draft the agenda and
assign the roles for the next meeting
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evaluate the meeting with the group
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thank everyone for
attending and close the meeting
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FINAL THOUGHT - Follow-Up
Did you think you were done?
Well you're not! The meeting facilitator's role continues after the
meeting.
Many meeting tasks are
never completed because people lose track of their assignments and
the tasks that they agreed to do. Follow-up, therefore, is an
important role of the facilitator in order to ensure that decision
and actions agreed to at the meeting are completed as planned.
Here are some key steps for you to follow:
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assess
your own facilitation skills and plan for improvement
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assess
the effectiveness of the meeting
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ensure
that the minutes are distributed promptly
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file
the agenda and other meeting documents
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follow-up
with others regarding their tasks
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plan
for the next meeting
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Remember to
PLAN for SuccessTM
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Prepare
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Lead
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Assess
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Next
Steps
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Janet
Stewart-Lussier
Member of the Canadian
Association of Professional Speakers
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Talk..."
******
Tell me more about
"The ABC's of Team
Development"
For those of you who are interested in
polishing your presentation skills, consider attending the
Canadian Association of Professional Speakers (CAPS) Convention - Ottawa,
ON - December, 2005
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