There’s no way around it – meetings are a workweek staple.
Productive meetings have great outcomes, but unfortunately, many things can derail meeting productivity. The result? We end up wasting a lot of people’s time.
So, how do meetings become unproductive?
Lack of engagement: people come to meetings just to listen in, provide status updates, and be available to answer questions if called on. They are not prepared to engage and add value by taking notes or suggesting new ideas or solutions to problems.
Distracted participants: team members come to meetings but use the time to respond to emails or do other work unrelated to the meeting at hand.
Lack of clear goals: when meetings lack a clear agenda and goals, it is difficult to articulate meeting outcomes and any actions to progress following the meeting.
Starting late and running overtime: when meetings run overtime, this not only wastes people’s time in the meeting but also negatively impacts other projects that need to be accomplished.
Wrong people in attendance: who is in attendance and who is not, can make or break a meeting. Not having the right people
“Meetings can be a lot of fun or they can be frustrating.” – Bob Weir
As much as we like to joke about how meetings are a waste of time, in fact, meetings serve a major purpose. When they are properly conducted, meetings promote teamwork, communication, collaboration, and efficiency. The following tips are based on how our experienced Mojo Soup consultants lead efficient and effective meetings.
Ask everyone how they are going: we always want to acknowledge people first and give them space to share how their day is going before diving right into work talk. Our human-centred approach allows us to connect with everyone in the meeting off the bat and set ourselves up for a fun, engaging conversation.
Provide an agenda for the meeting: every meeting needs to have an agenda with a clear purpose and goals. At Mojo Soup, we encourage our team members to set a clear agenda before setting up meetings with anyone. It is important to let people know why they have been asked to join a meeting and what is to be achieved.
Encourage people to stay focused: we often prepare materials to share during the meeting to keep our stakeholders focused, e.g., sharing an easy-to-follow diagram for everyone to align with when discussing a business process.
Transparency in actions: after every meeting, we circulate all documented actions to clearly outline what will be accomplished and who is responsible for making the action a reality.
Follow-up: for us, we do not assume that if we hold a meeting, the work will automatically get done afterwards. We follow up with our clients and team members before the next meeting to discuss any progress and expectations before the next meeting.
No one likes wasting time, but meetings don’t have to be frustrating or unproductive. At Mojo Soup, we love trying to make meetings both efficient and fun. We want our clients and the team to feel excited about every meeting on their calendars; we help them achieve more in less time to maximise productivity and innovation.
