Meetings are an inherent part of the modern business. Unfortunately, most of these meetings are unproductive and inefficient.

You would be hard-pressed to find anyone who hasn't attended a meeting they believed was a waste of time. According to a MCI Conference White Paper “Meetings in America,” professionals who meet on a regular basis admit to daydreaming (91 percent), missing meetings (96 percent), bringing other work to meetings (73 percent), and dozing during meetings (39 percent). You can lead more efficient meetings if attention is paid to the meeting process.

Most leaders of meetings focus their attention on content, that is, what is discussed, the purpose of the meeting, agenda topics, opinions, and information. Perhaps more important, however, is the meeting process. Process refers to the meeting's procedure, how members work together, and building and maintaining cohesiveness. A meeting should take advantage of its intrinsic nature - a “meeting of the minds”. An effective meeting should promote discussion and participation among members. The leader's role is to facilitate participant involvement, guide the group process, be supportive, and manage differences. You can facilitate efficient meetings by:

o Planning Ahead. With the goal of the meeting in mind, prepare an agenda with careful attention to the sequence and time allotted to each item. Three priority topics are sufficient to keep the meeting short and productive. Decide where and when to hold the meeting, who will attend and what equipment is needed. Communicate the agenda to participants before the meeting so they will be prepared to discuss the topics. Do not plan a meeting if you want to delegate tasks and share information, as that can be accomplished through email and office memos.

o Determining Ground Rules. Decide on interaction norms and standards by using ground rules. Share these rules at the beginning of the meeting to establish clear expectations and control counterproductive behavior. Invite participants to add their own rules. Some examples of effective ground rules are: one person speaks at a time, hold questions until a person is finished talking, no side conversations, respect for one another, and encourage creativity.

o Identifying Decision Making Procedures. The first step in decision making is to articulate an issue and make sure everyone agrees with how you've defined it. You don't want to waste time coming up with solutions to an ambiguous problem. Next, the group should generate alternative ideas, solutions, or options by using techniques like Brainstorming, Fishbone Diagramming, Mixed Scanning, or Nominal Group Technique. The third step is to conduct an evaluation of the potential alternatives using evidence, arguments, and rationales. The last step in decision-making is to make a choice. You should commit ahead of time to a “decision-rule” or a quota of agreement in your group. Options of decision-rules are implicit decisions (one person chooses a solution), majority-rules, 3/4ths rule, unanimous agreement, etc.

o Encouraging Discussion and Participation. Don't hold meetings to hear yourself talk. Meetings are an opportunity for others to contribute. Get input from lower level people first to foster a climate of acknowledgement. Be an active listener - paraphrase and clarify. Ask for relevant examples. Draw out people with pertinent expertise. Reinforce positive participation verbally and nonverbally. Create a “bin list” for input that is not related to the immediate discussion. Have participants call on the next speaker, so that they speak to each other and not to you. For larger groups, consider creating subgroups for discussions.

o Concluding. Do not abruptly end the meeting but allow time to summarize the results. Make sure action plans with timelines are established and determine who is accountable for each action. Ask for feedback about the meeting's content and process. Send follow-up minutes to participants within two days of the meeting.

By adjusting your behavior, you can add value to your meetings. Participants will feel a sense of accomplishment if they participate in discussions and decision making procedures. Remember that the time your employees spend in ineffective meetings is time spent away from productive work. If you fail to concentrate on your meeting's process, your meeting's process will fail. Facilitate meetings wisely and you will be amazed at the return on your investment!

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