effective meeting essay

Essay Papers Writing Online

Tips and tricks for crafting engaging and effective essays.

Writing essays can be a challenging task, but with the right approach and strategies, you can create compelling and impactful pieces that captivate your audience. Whether you’re a student working on an academic paper or a professional honing your writing skills, these tips will help you craft essays that stand out.

Effective essays are not just about conveying information; they are about persuading, engaging, and inspiring readers. To achieve this, it’s essential to pay attention to various elements of the essay-writing process, from brainstorming ideas to polishing your final draft. By following these tips, you can elevate your writing and produce essays that leave a lasting impression.

Understanding the Essay Prompt

Before you start writing your essay, it is crucial to thoroughly understand the essay prompt or question provided by your instructor. The essay prompt serves as a roadmap for your essay and outlines the specific requirements or expectations.

Here are a few key things to consider when analyzing the essay prompt:

• Read the prompt carefully and identify the main topic or question being asked.
• Pay attention to any specific instructions or guidelines provided, such as word count, formatting requirements, or sources to be used.
• Identify key terms or phrases in the prompt that can help you determine the focus of your essay.

By understanding the essay prompt thoroughly, you can ensure that your essay addresses the topic effectively and meets the requirements set forth by your instructor.

Researching Your Topic Thoroughly

One of the key elements of writing an effective essay is conducting thorough research on your chosen topic. Research helps you gather the necessary information, facts, and examples to support your arguments and make your essay more convincing.

Here are some tips for researching your topic thoroughly:

By following these tips and conducting thorough research on your topic, you will be able to write a well-informed and persuasive essay that effectively communicates your ideas and arguments.

Creating a Strong Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is a crucial element of any well-crafted essay. It serves as the main point or idea that you will be discussing and supporting throughout your paper. A strong thesis statement should be clear, specific, and arguable.

To create a strong thesis statement, follow these tips:

• Be specific: Your thesis statement should clearly state the main idea of your essay. Avoid vague or general statements.
• Be concise: Keep your thesis statement concise and to the point. Avoid unnecessary details or lengthy explanations.
• Be argumentative: Your thesis statement should present an argument or perspective that can be debated or discussed in your essay.
• Be relevant: Make sure your thesis statement is relevant to the topic of your essay and reflects the main point you want to make.
• Revise as needed: Don’t be afraid to revise your thesis statement as you work on your essay. It may change as you develop your ideas.

Remember, a strong thesis statement sets the tone for your entire essay and provides a roadmap for your readers to follow. Put time and effort into crafting a clear and compelling thesis statement to ensure your essay is effective and persuasive.

Developing a Clear Essay Structure

One of the key elements of writing an effective essay is developing a clear and logical structure. A well-structured essay helps the reader follow your argument and enhances the overall readability of your work. Here are some tips to help you develop a clear essay structure:

1. Start with a strong introduction: Begin your essay with an engaging introduction that introduces the topic and clearly states your thesis or main argument.

2. Organize your ideas: Before you start writing, outline the main points you want to cover in your essay. This will help you organize your thoughts and ensure a logical flow of ideas.

3. Use topic sentences: Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence that introduces the main idea of the paragraph. This helps the reader understand the purpose of each paragraph.

4. Provide evidence and analysis: Support your arguments with evidence and analysis to back up your main points. Make sure your evidence is relevant and directly supports your thesis.

5. Transition between paragraphs: Use transitional words and phrases to create flow between paragraphs and help the reader move smoothly from one idea to the next.

6. Conclude effectively: End your essay with a strong conclusion that summarizes your main points and reinforces your thesis. Avoid introducing new ideas in the conclusion.

By following these tips, you can develop a clear essay structure that will help you effectively communicate your ideas and engage your reader from start to finish.

Using Relevant Examples and Evidence

When writing an essay, it’s crucial to support your arguments and assertions with relevant examples and evidence. This not only adds credibility to your writing but also helps your readers better understand your points. Here are some tips on how to effectively use examples and evidence in your essays:

• Choose examples that are specific and relevant to the topic you’re discussing. Avoid using generic examples that may not directly support your argument.
• Provide concrete evidence to back up your claims. This could include statistics, research findings, or quotes from reliable sources.
• Interpret the examples and evidence you provide, explaining how they support your thesis or main argument. Don’t assume that the connection is obvious to your readers.
• Use a variety of examples to make your points more persuasive. Mixing personal anecdotes with scholarly evidence can make your essay more engaging and convincing.
• Cite your sources properly to give credit to the original authors and avoid plagiarism. Follow the citation style required by your instructor or the publication you’re submitting to.

By integrating relevant examples and evidence into your essays, you can craft a more convincing and well-rounded piece of writing that resonates with your audience.

Editing and Proofreading Your Essay Carefully

Once you have finished writing your essay, the next crucial step is to edit and proofread it carefully. Editing and proofreading are essential parts of the writing process that help ensure your essay is polished and error-free. Here are some tips to help you effectively edit and proofread your essay:

1. Take a Break: Before you start editing, take a short break from your essay. This will help you approach the editing process with a fresh perspective.

2. Read Aloud: Reading your essay aloud can help you catch any awkward phrasing or grammatical errors that you may have missed while writing. It also helps you check the flow of your essay.

3. Check for Consistency: Make sure that your essay has a consistent style, tone, and voice throughout. Check for inconsistencies in formatting, punctuation, and language usage.

4. Remove Unnecessary Words: Look for any unnecessary words or phrases in your essay and remove them to make your writing more concise and clear.

5. Proofread for Errors: Carefully proofread your essay for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. Pay attention to commonly misused words and homophones.

6. Get Feedback: It’s always a good idea to get feedback from someone else. Ask a friend, classmate, or teacher to review your essay and provide constructive feedback.

By following these tips and taking the time to edit and proofread your essay carefully, you can improve the overall quality of your writing and make sure your ideas are effectively communicated to your readers.

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6 Tips to Run a Highly Effective Meeting, Backed by Science

Meetings can be terrifying, especially when you don’t have a plan! Learn how to run your meeting effortlessly and effectively!

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Have you ever left a meeting that felt like it was a complete waste of your time?

Research shows that only 50% of the time spent in meetings is effective and engaging. Over $37 billion is wasted on unproductive meetings each year to make things worse.

For most of us, this isn’t a surprise. Without apparent purpose, leadership, or organization, a lousy meeting can drag on forever.

However, genuinely effective meetings leave everyone feeling organized, motivated, and clear on what they need to get done in the following days or weeks.

If you want to plan and host a successful meeting, you’ll need a proper framework and time management strategy to lead the discussion in the right direction.

Here’s how to run a meeting that will get things done. Use these 6 simple strategies to empower and organize your team to take proactive action toward your business goals.

What Makes a Successful Meeting?

Homo sapiens is a social species. For thousands of years, humans have come together in small groups or larger “tribal” gatherings to discuss matters of importance, from business to family to communal and beyond.

No matter how much technology is added to our daily lives, meetings remain vital to accomplishing a shared vision within business units. Meetings define both the cultural and strategic frameworks for our workplaces.

Whether remote or in-person, effective meetings are crucial for teamwork and productivity .

Sure, efficient meetings can speed through an agenda in a short amount of time. Still, truly effective meetings deliver a tangible result or outcome.

Everyone should leave with a feeling of clarity and confidence in exactly what they need to do, how they need to do it, and when it needs to be done.

Successful meetings should:

• Define a collective identity of a group and help each individual understand their role within the team
• Inspire creativity and cooperation amongst a team
• Take individual ideas and refine them to actionable solutions
• Clarify collective goals and deadlines so that each person sees their role in achieving them

To run an effective meeting that provides the highest ROI for your time and your staff’s wages, follow these 6 time-tested steps to get organized ahead of time.

6 Simple Steps to Run a Successful Meeting

• Define the Meeting Objectives
• Create an Agenda + Send Calendar Invites
• Create a Safe Space for Collaboration
• Strategically Choose Attendees + Appoint Important Roles
• Best Practices to Stay on Track
• End With Clear Actions, Owners, and Timelines

Have you ever showed up to a meeting and wondered, “why the heck am I here?”

Successful meetings have a clear purpose. Without an objective, there is no reason for holding a meeting.

As a leader, you must differentiate between the need for essential communications (which can be done through email, Slack, or phone call) versus the need to call a strategic meeting to accomplish an important goal (like project planning, solving a problem, setting a goal , making a decision, or mapping out a customer journey).

There are two primary types of meetings:

• Routine meetings (ex: Monday morning recap and projections, Friday team meetings, etc.)
• Strategic meetings (ex: task force meetings, problem-solving, creating a plan, etc.)

Although each type of meeting may be run differently, they require an objective. 

To clarify your objectives, jot them down! Better yet, send the meeting objectives out with the agenda, so everyone is on the same page.

Be as clear and concise as possible with your meeting objective, for example:

• Brainstorming session for how to reduce customer cart abandonment
• Explore third-party solutions to increase efficiency in online search traffic
• Present first quarter project progress and determine next steps
• Hindsight meeting with key stakeholders to celebrate wins and identify opportunities to improve

If you can’t describe why you’re holding a meeting in a sentence or two, you probably don’t need to have the meeting.

The meeting objective should have results-oriented terms and actionable goals. There may be several goals within the more significant objective. Still, these should all be defined for the team to understand ahead of time.

This is your north star and the guiding purpose of the meeting.

Watch our video below to learn ways to make your meetings better and more efficient:

Next comes your agenda, which is like your compass pointing you toward that north star objective. Without a compass to guide you, the entire team will feel like a ship lost at sea.

We all know that time is a precious resource. An agenda should directly support progress towards meeting your objectives. At the same time, sticking to a meeting agenda demonstrates that you are an effective and organized leader, which means more trust and dedication from your team.

We’ve all been in one of those meetings that were far too short to cover everything that needed to be discussed.

On the flip side, there is nothing worse than a meeting that gets derailed into off-topic conversations and goes on for far longer than anticipated.

Find a happy medium between the two by scheduling the meeting length and time around achieving the specific objective at hand.

Bonus Tip for Introverts : If you have introverts on your team who need to speak up, use the agenda to give them some time to prep. Introverts appreciate being able to prepare for speaking or brainstorming sessions. Learn more about how to make introversion into a superpower . 

Meeting Length

The length of an effective meeting should reflect how many people are involved and how in-depth the project is.

Each agenda item should have a clear amount of time allotted to it, for example:

• Introduction/call to the meeting (2 minutes)
• Review previous meeting notes (2 min.)
• Present objective or problem at hand (3 min.)
• Open brainstorming/group discussion (10 min.)
• Report from team 1 (10 min.)
• Questions for team 1 (3 min.)
• News from team 2 (10 min.)
• Questions for team 2 (3 min.)
• Updates from the chief executive (5 min.)
• Closing statements / clarify Actions, Owners, and Timelines (5 min.)

This agenda reflects a complex team project with 10 or more people. A smaller team should not require as much time.

In general, meetings should never last more than 60 minutes because people might lose focus and interest.

Keep it short and to the point!

You can always have a further discussion later on.

Meeting Scheduling Time

The timing of the meeting should be chosen based on what needs to get done. Research shows that brainstorming, creativity, and strategic thinking are best in the mornings when the prefrontal cortex is most active and we have the most mental energy.

On the other hand, we are typically better at creative problem solving later in the day because we are less distracted and more relaxed.

Don’t forget to consider time zone differences (if you’re a remote team ) and respect other calendar items within your organization.

Keep the agenda as simple as possible to keep your team engaged. Each agenda item should be allotted a specific amount of time so that everyone can know their time constraints for discussions or presentations.

Send Agenda With Calendar Invite

It is best practice to send the agenda out ahead of time if possible! Include the text or document linked in the Calendar Invite. You can also display the agenda on a projector screen or whiteboard during the meeting to keep everyone on the same page.

Be sure that only necessary team members are on the invite list for maximum productivity.

Collaboration can only happen when people feel safe and comfortable. These are the best tips for creating a safe space that yields truly effective meetings every time.

Lay Out the Guidelines

Establish guidelines when the meeting starts to ensure that participants feel comfortable speaking and sharing their ideas while remaining respectful of others and not getting too off-topic.

You can also note that you prefer cell phones to be silent to minimize distractions.

It’s essential to make sure each team member feels heard while encouraging balanced participation. Consider a “round table” approach where everyone gets a moment to speak.

Pro Tip: Want to level up your meeting game? Whether working remotely or in person, choosing the right communication tool is vital for optimum collaboration.

Psychological Safety

Ineffective meetings allow one person or a handful of people to dominate the conversation while others sit on the sidelines.

A great meeting invites a feeling of safety amongst team members by welcoming new ideas and removing the fear of public criticism.

A Harvard Business Review study found that the highest performing teams with the most successful meetings have trust, confidence, and curiosity. Their work environments do not promote punishment for mistakes.

Pro Tip: The most productive teams receive appreciation regularly. Learn more about the 10 Must-Know Productivity Secrets of High Performing Teams .

In other words, to run effective meetings, you need to be a positive leader that is collaborative and kind. You can do this by keeping to a few steadfast rules both in and out of meetings:

• Use positive reinforcement to recognize achievements rather than magnifying shortcomings.
• Never publicly reprimand an employee in front of the team.
• Avoid blaming any specific team or individual for a problem. Research shows that this destroys trust and confidence in a leader. Instead, opt for curiosity and stay solution-oriented.
• Ask for feedback. Asking for feedback increases people’s trust in their leaders .

Comfortable Ambiance

Research has shown that over a third of workers are unhappy with the ambiance of their offices.

Nobody wants to meet in one of those horrible, dimly lit, cold, dreary board rooms!

Create a pleasant ambiance (such as open windows or a decorated room) or consider providing beverages to help people relax a bit more.

Details like temperature, light, comfortable chairs, and even a few indoor plants can help create calmer, more effective meetings.

Consider an Icebreaker

Would your team like a non-awkward icebreaker ? For meetings where you want to encourage bonding and creativity, try a specifically chosen icebreaker, like one of the 8 in the video below:

Meetings are expensive and time-consuming. Avoid inviting anyone who is not needed to achieve the meeting objective.

At the same time, be sure that you have enough participants for a productive open discussion with diverse perspectives. A good meeting strikes a balance between minimizing attendees and maximizing the creative potential of a group.

Harvard Business Review has an excellent Meeting Cost Calculator that can help you figure out who is best included on your attendee list.

Choosing Roles

Running effective meetings always requires appointing roles ahead of time.

Who are the key decision-makers in your meeting?

As the host, will you be the facilitator? Will team leaders also be reporting about their department or projects?

Who is the notetaker? They will be responsible for keeping track of the discussion and recording every good idea or action plan agreed on.

They are also responsible for sending out a meeting recap with actions, owners, and timelines that were agreed on during the meeting.

Who is the timekeeper? They can help keep everyone on track with the agenda plan.

If you are running a project management meeting, be sure that key stakeholders from each department or project unit are ready to report on their area of responsibility. Allot a specific amount of time for each presentation in the agenda items.

So, after all this planning, how are you going to keep everyone on topic and focused for the whole duration of your meeting?

Surveys show that executives consider 67% of all meetings to be failures .

Failed meetings can be caused by a lack of objectivity, a poorly planned agenda, bad discussions, an unengaged team, or all of the above.

Regardless of the problem, it’s generally your job as the leader to fix them. Keep meeting participants on track by laying ground rules and keeping things interesting.

Pro Tip: Some meetings can crash and burn due to a phenomenon known as Zoom Fatigue. Here’s how to combat it: 20 Scientific Tips to Beat Zoom Fatigue, According to Your Personality

Avoid Side Discussions

Establish ground rules in your introduction to minimize side discussions, and everyone knows the core topic at hand.

If side discussions begin to happen, kindly re-route the team back to the objectives and promise to revisit those ideas in the future.

Use a whiteboard or chat recorded by the notetaker to jot down unrelated topics that can be reviewed in future meetings. 

Keep ’em Engaged

To run an effective meeting, you need your team to be engaged.

Good meetings are exciting and provide plenty of mental stimulation. 

Here are a few tips for leading engaging meetings:

• Don’t drone on and on in a monotone.
• Use visuals or slides on a screen.
• Keep the meeting short and to the point.
• Ask questions periodically so participants can contribute and remain interested.

Engagement is especially challenging in remote meetings where participants are often distracted or multitask. Research has shown that using video is one of the easiest ways to keep people engaged.

Drawing in virtual attendees through regular question asking (“Leah, could you share your thoughts on this?”) is especially important in remote meetings.

Ultimately, the most effective meeting strategies come to a crux at the very end when everyone is about to leave, and they wonder, “why the heck did I go to that meeting?”

Before the meeting adjourns, align on actions, owners, and timelines:

• Actions : What is going to get done? What are the key metrics? How does the assignment fit into the broader objective?
• Owners : Who is going to accomplish which action?
• Timelines : When is it due? What are the deadlines? Where should people report to with their final product?

If you forget this part, your entire meeting was in vain. People need crystal clear direction for what to do next.

Be sure also to discuss the general time frame of your next meeting.

Most importantly, thank everyone for coming and reminding them of their excellent work. 

Always end on a positive note!

Deal With Difficult People

Sometimes, you might encounter a difficult person (or people) in your meeting. These types of people are toxic and can alter the dynamics of any meeting—usually for the worse. Luckily, there’s an efficient way to deal with these types of people.

How to Deal With Difficult People At Work

Do you have a difficult boss? Colleague? Client? Learn how to transform your difficult relationship. I’ll show you my science-based approach to building a strong, productive relationship with even the most difficult people.

Meeting Mini-FAQ

The best meetings are highly organized ahead of time. Define a clear objective, create an agenda, and send both out with your calendar invites. Be sure only to invite relevant team members and keep the meeting time as brief as possible to retain engagement. Don’t forget to end every meeting with actions, owners, and timelines to get your team crystal clear on what needs to get done before the next meeting.

Conducting a meeting should always be done from a servant leadership mindset. Approach your team with kindness and create a culture of trust wherein everyone feels safe to speak and participate. Remain positive and inspirational while speaking with authority and focusing on the objectives. Stay true to your agenda to respect everyone’s time.

How to Run a Meeting Key Takeaways

If you’ve been nervous about running a meeting, remember that most of the work happens beforehand through organization and schedule planning. 

Don’t forget to: 

Most meetings are scattered and feel like a waste of time. Set yourself apart and establish yourself as a strong leader by putting in the work upfront.

Take the time and effort to prepare for a productive meeting. You will have a high-functioning team that meets your business goals and works in a culture of trust and collaboration.

Next thing you know, people will be looking forward to meetings rather than dreading them!

For further reading, check out this article: 17 Easy Ways to Make Your Meetings Better

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How to run effective meetings in the era of hybrid work

Meetings shouldn’t keep you from your “real work.” If structured right, meetings *are* where work gets done.

5-second summary

• If you’re calling a meeting to make a decision or have a discussion that’ll be faster in real time, that’s cool. If you just need to broadcast information, share it in writing.
• Choosing participants with diverse perspectives helps you see the topic from multiple angles, and therefore, get the most out of your meeting.
• When leading meetings with both in-person and virtual attendees, make sure each group is participating equally so nobody checks out.

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If I told you that only 50% of meeting time is used effectively , would you believe me? (Don’t answer. I can hear you nodding from here.) There’s evidence that virtual meetings score even lower.

And get this: an ineffective meeting can derail productivity even after it’s over. A recent article in the MIT Sloan Management Review details something called “meeting recovery syndrome” where attendees lose work time while they mentally recover from a bad meeting.

Most of us don’t have formal training in meeting management skills, but anyone can learn to do it well – whether your team is in the office, fully distributed, or hybrid .

What makes an effective meeting?

It’s important to distinguish between effective and efficient.

An efficient meeting starts promptly, stays on track due to good time management, includes as few people as possible, and achieves the stated objective.

Job done, right? Wrong.

Efficiency is a superficial quality. It says nothing about whether the right people were included for the right reasons, or whether the meeting generated any value.

An  effective  meeting brings a thoughtfully selected group of people together for a specific purpose, provides a forum for open discussion, and delivers a tangible result: a decision, a plan, a list of great ideas to pursue, a shared understanding of the work ahead. Not only that but the result is then shared with others whose work may be affected.

Successful meetings have a clear purpose

Most of us want fewer meetings on our calendars. It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that meetings are the one and only way to collaborate. That knee-jerk tendency gets us into trouble and gives meetings a bad name.

First, determine whether you really need a meeting

You don’t need a meeting to broadcast information – that’s what email, chat, and company intranets like  Confluence are for.  Department and company all-hands meetings  are a notable exception. They provide a unique chance to hear directly from executives and other decision-makers – and, if they include time for Q&A (which, they should), they get to hear from you.

If your meeting features a productive discussion that will be more effective in real time than asynchronously via emails or comment threads, then it’ll be worthwhile. Examples include  team or project retrospectives , brainstorming, and  one-on-one meetings  between managers and their direct reports.

In the best-case scenario, a meeting’s purpose is to decide or create something collaboratively. Project planning, mapping out customer journeys, setting goals, solving a problem, choosing X vs. Y … all these are situations where holding a meeting is probably the most effective way to collaborate. And thanks to Trello boards, Miro boards, and Zoom’s virtual whiteboarding feature, you don’t even need to be in the same room to get it done.

Next, choose meeting participants who can make a unique contribution

Meetings are expensive, so be thoughtful about who you invite. To be sure, you want to invite the minimum number of people needed to achieve your goal. But you also want the group to bring diverse perspectives and knowledge, especially if the purpose of the meeting is decision-making or brainstorming. Sadly, there’s no magic formula for balancing cost against the potential for creativity, so you’ll need to use your best judgment.

Try this  meeting cost calculator  from Harvard Business Review next time you’re running a meeting. It’ll make you think twice about your attendee list!

The psychological ingredients of high-performing teams

Last, craft and share an agenda.

Few things are more irksome than the person who sends a meeting invite with no indication of what will happen, and therefore no clue as to why you’re being invited. Don’t be that person. Include your agenda in the invitation so people can determine whether they need to be there and, if not, decline the meeting or suggest someone else.

Your meeting agenda might have just one item. That’s fine! The point is to have an agenda that speaks to the result you want – e.g., “Brainstorm 10 or more ways we could reduce customer churn 10% by the end of the year.” If you can’t describe what you’ll be doing in actionable, results-oriented terms, that’s a sign holding the meeting would be a waste of time.

Include a 5-minute agenda item at the end to capture any open questions or follow-up tasks and assign owners for them. Don’t skip this! Better to cut a discussion short than to leave loose ends dangling.

Effective meetings keep attendees engaged

It’s okay to start the meeting by setting the expectation that everyone is 100% present and focused. Let the group know that if someone has work that is so pressing they’d be tempted to multi-task, they have permission to go do that work and catch up on what happened in the meeting later. They’ll produce better work, and you’ll have more engaged participants. Win-win.

Schedule for maximum engagement

In our age of globally distributed companies and remote work, a bit of thought around timing is key to effective meeting management. As much as possible, avoid scheduling your meeting during someone else’s lunch hour, or at a time when they’d otherwise be reading their kids a bedtime story. When that can’t be avoided, at least check in with the people who’ll be inconvenienced to get their buy-in in advance. (Depending on your company culture, that might not be strictly necessary, but it’s  always  polite.)

Even for co-located participants, meeting time can make a difference. Our capacity for creative thinking is the highest right after sleep, so schedule that brainstorming session first thing in the morning. By contrast,  we solve problems best later in the day when our minds are a bit tired . Our focus relaxes, and we can see more opportunities and connect more dots. Plus, we’re less likely to be distracted by a looming list of tasks.

Encourage participation – and make it hard to zone out

If you’re meeting in person, laptops should be closed and phones should be off the table (unless you’re taking notes). “Oh, but I can focus on the topic at hand  and  check my email simultaneously,” some might say. Please allow me to call bullshit on that. Besides, for every person with a laptop open, there’s a person sitting next to them distracted by their typing or peeking to see if they’re just cruising social media.

If you’re meeting virtually, ask people to enable video so they’re more likely to stay actively engaged. Of course, exceptions always apply, so be understanding if some participants have to opt out of video occasionally. People may need to tend to children, they may not feel “camera ready” if the meeting falls at an odd time of day, or they may not feel comfortable broadcasting their bedroom to coworkers.

Use the meeting notes template in Confluence to save time and structure your notes for easier reading.

Make it remote-friendly, even if you’re in the office

Even if everyone in the group typically works from the office, there’s always a chance somebody will end up working remotely that day to care for a sick child or let the electrician in. So set up a virtual meeting link just in case.

If you have a remote participant, consider asking the entire group to  join remotely  from their desks. It puts everyone on a level playing field and encourages more balanced participation. Plus, nobody likes being the giant head on the TV screen at the front of the conference room.

Effective meetings provide a safe space for divergent thinking

A bit of divergence goes a long way when you’re looking for creative ideas, puzzling through solutions to a problem, or exploring options. You don’t have to put a specific brainstorming exercise on the agenda, but you do have to make the group feel comfortable expressing opposing opinions or offering up off-the-wall ideas.

Build trust in the room

People need assurance that stepping outside the norm won’t be a career-ending move. Known as psychological safety , this is one of the leading indicators of a high-performing team. (And what is a group of people in a meeting, if not a temporary team?) As the meeting organizer and facilitator, you have a chance to lead by example and be the first to broach a controversial topic or offer an unusual perspective or idea.

You can also  build trust by asking questions that prompt a deeper discussion , even when you think you know the answer. Questions like “Why do we think that’s true?” or “Can you expand on that?” or “How could we measure that?” demonstrate humility and curiosity on your part, which sets the tone for the rest of the group.

How to counteract 3 types of bias and run inclusive meetings

Be inclusive.

If you’ve done a good job gathering a group with diverse knowledge and perspectives, everyone will be “the odd one out” in one way or another. The only introvert, the only person from finance, the person who just started last week. Your job now is to take advantage of that diversity by making sure everyone is (and  feels ) heard.

Ask the new hire how things look from their still-fresh point of view.  Draw out the introvert  toward the end of a discussion by asking whether they see points the group hasn’t considered yet. Encourage the lone representative from finance to share how the decision would affect their team. If one person starts to dominate the meeting, ask them to take over capturing notes on the whiteboard. This transitions them into listening mode and gives the rest of the group a better chance to discuss their perspective.

If your meeting includes a mix of in-person and virtual attendees, pay attention to whether participation seems balanced. It’s easy for the in-person group to dominate the discussion without realizing it. Make a point to ask the virtual attendees for input proactively throughout the meeting so you get the full benefit of their expertise.

Effective meetings produce real, shareable results

You know the meeting’s purpose because you’ve thought it through. You crafted an agenda designed to achieve the goal. Now stay the course! Be mindful not to meander off-topic or dive too deep into technical discussions. (Just how long is “too long” and how deep is “too deep” is up to you as meeting facilitator to decide.)

Create a “parking lot” on your whiteboard, your shared Confluence page, or your Trello board to capture ideas, topics, and questions outside the meeting’s scope. The catch is that you’re honor-bound to follow up on them, or you’ll lose the group’s trust.

If the meeting centers on a decision, don’t let your team members off the hook and settle for a “maybe.” Push for that decision or recommendation so people can start pursuing action items as soon as they walk out of the room. You might not reach full agreement, but that’s OK. Effective teamwork means agreeing to trust each other enough to rally behind the decision once it’s been made.

Consider using the DACI method to clarify each person’s role: driver, approver, contributor, or informed.

Chances are, your meeting will generate some kind of artifact: an action plan, a collection of ideas, a  customer journey , a list of next steps, etc. Atlassian meetings typically capture all that stuff as a page in Confluence (the wiki-flavored intranet tool we make) and share the page with everyone on the invite list and other relevant people. Sharing via email and Google Docs works fine, too.

Err on the side of sharing with more people than is strictly necessary. It’s really hard to keep track of exactly what everyone around you is up to, or how the outcome of your meeting will intersect with their work. Sharing broadly reduces the chance you’ll discover conflicts late in the game, and might even lead to joining forces with a team doing complementary work.

If the meeting isn’t effective, change it!

The fact that you’re still reading means you’re committed to running a great meeting. Yay! Turns out, though, that you’re not the sole judge of whether the meeting was productive or not.

Discuss the experience with your fellow attendees, and solicit feedback with questions like these:

• Did this meeting result in something of value to the business?
• Did we include the right people? If not, who should or shouldn’t be included in the future?
• Were the meeting’s purpose and agenda clear?
• Was it easy for you to contribute to the discussion?
• For recurring meetings: are we holding this meeting on the right cadence? If not, how should we adjust?

Even if the meeting was a one-off, this feedback helps you make your next meeting better. And if (ok: when) you start to feel like your calendar is overloaded with commitments, run the Ritual Reset play from the Atlassian Team Playbook to see if you can streamline any meetings or eliminate them altogether.

Keep an ongoing, open dialogue amongst the people you meet with most frequently, and emphasize progress over perfection. Continuous improvement for the win!

Advice, stories, and expertise about work life today.

• Career Advice

Making Meetings Less Miserable

By  Jennifer Lundquist and Joya Misra

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It has been said that the only things certain in life are death and taxes. We would like to add meetings to the list. It is almost axiomatic that faculty members abhor meetings.

One of our colleagues has on her office door the classic New Yorker cartoon depicting a businessman on the phone saying, “How about never -- is never good for you?” Another colleague admits to using the Doodle Polls scheduling app to make himself free as a bird -- whenever no one else is. And that is not surprising. One study shows that faculty members spend 17 percent of their workweek in meetings. Another finds that, at any given time, 35 percent of academics serve on five or more committees.

We write this essay because, if we value our academic freedom and faculty self-governance, at least some academic meetings are well worth having. What follows is some advice to make the most productive use of your and your colleagues’ time at those meetings.

We take our essay title from an associate professor’s comment during a series of focus groups that we conducted on faculty work-life balance at our university. It is a common sentiment. Most new professors anticipate a professional life filled with student engagement and making new research discoveries. But, as one of our participants pointed out, “Academia is a whole series of bait and switch. You go to grad school because you are good in college classes and then have to switch and write a dissertation …. When you get good, you are asked to do service.”

The most precious resource that faculty members have is their time, yet self-governance is also a precious communal resource that we don’t often recognize. Committees, task forces and meetings can be a crucially important part of our work, especially at colleges and universities that depend upon faculty self-governance. Sadly, tenure and promotion criteria, which often value only research productivity and teaching, create a perverse incentive to shirk on service work. But the potential costs are high, with a withdrawal of faculty involvement and the consolidation of decision making at the upper levels. That makes it vital to ensure that academic meetings are productive and respectful of faculty time. (For some deliciously snarky pushback from faculty on bad meetings, see here .)

The midcareer and senior faculty with whom we spoke lamented not just the waste of their time in poorly run meetings but also their own lack of knowledge about how to run meetings when they first moved into leadership positions. A clear message coming out of those discussions with faculty members was the need for administrative skill development. Since then, our university has begun providing training in such skills for new department chairs through the LEAD program (Leadership Enhancement for Academic Departments). In addition, our faculty development and workplace learning centers now team up to provide a popular seminar for faculty and staff called “Running Effective Meetings.”

Although faculty members may feel unprepared to lead meetings, many are already well versed in the art of leading a class discussion. Despite a few key differences, a well-run meeting shares many similarities with the active-learning-oriented classroom. In their book, Meeting Wise: Making the Most of Collaborative Time for Educators , Kathryn Parker Boudett and Elizabeth A. City, two scholars from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, argue just this.

To make academic meetings more productive and effective, we provide a number of tips based on discussions with faculty members, advice from our campus centers ( TEFD and WLD ), and the larger research literature on meeting efficacy.

Is the meeting necessary? First, assess whether a meeting is the best venue in which to respond to the perceived need. Can you articulate the goal of the meeting in a sentence? If you merely need to give a series of announcements, a meeting is an inappropriate venue. A mass email or newsletter distribution is a better approach.

Next, do you expect the meeting to end in some final actionable objectives? If yes, then ask yourself: Can I achieve these goals just as easily with a phone call? Or would a series of one-on-one meetings be more effective? Canceling meetings that have no clear purpose or definable end goal -- or not scheduling them in the first place -- will make you many friends.

Premeeting preparation. To avoid wasting your colleagues’ time with yet another insufferable meeting, you must invest a significant amount of your own time up front. Much like prepping for a class, you need a well-thought-out facilitation plan. That plan is the meeting agenda.

Agenda items are most effective when framed as questions to be answered by the group rather than general topics. Ideally you will indicate an estimated time to be spent on each item. If this is too much structure for you, you should at least indicate an end time for the meeting.

Meetings that are too long encourage rambling and tangential discussion. Some private sector organizations encourage the 15-minute meeting or the standing meeting for this reason. Generally speaking, most meetings should not exceed 1.5 hours, and ideally last less than an hour.

Send the agenda out in advance and invite additional items if applicable. If you can decenter yourself as the meeting leader and assign each item to someone else, so much the better. If you have material you would like members to read prior to the meeting, send it out well in advance of the meeting (we recommend at least 72 hours) along with the final agenda document.

Facilitation. It can be difficult to both facilitate a meeting and take useful notes. If it is a high-stakes meeting, consider asking someone else from the group to take notes. At the end of each agenda item discussion, summarize what was decided and verify with the group before recording it and moving on. If an item proves to be more complex than anticipated and a decision cannot be reached, it is often best for you to intervene and suggest tabling the item for future discussion, enabling you to move on to the next item.

One of the down sides to meeting-driven decision making is that it can favor those with the loudest voices yet not necessarily the best ideas. To offset that, you can ask attendees to also send some brief written responses to the agenda items in advance of the meeting.

Another approach is to use techniques like brainswarming . Often you will need to channel your small-group classroom discussion skills to bring out engagement from more quiet members. Ego and dominance displays are inevitable among some faculty members, and it is important to intervene proactively to keep monopolizers, skeptics, snipers and distractors from derailing your meeting. Useful tips for how to deal with these four personas can be found here . Voting on important decisions is one clear way of ensuring that everyone’s voice is heard and helps create more democratic forms of governance.

Meeting in groups larger than eight to 10 people tends to be more difficult to manage and will often require you to draw from strategies like small-group breakout sessions that are successfully used in the classroom. People commonly apply Robert’s Rules of Order at larger meetings, like departmental meetings. These 19th-century parliamentary rules of engagement are still surprisingly effective and help meetings move efficiently toward a common goal if practiced properly. (It took three years of faculty meetings before assistant professors in one department realized they were not the brilliant invention of their own colleague named Robert.) Although many faculty members dislike the formality of Robert’s Rules, here is one gem that bears repeating: “No member can speak a second time to a question as long as any member desires to speak who has not spoken to the question” (Article VII Debate).

At the end of the meeting, have the group draw up a list of actionable tasks, along with the name of each member who will carry out the task. Afterward, send the group a summary of the meeting decisions and assignments.

We all secretly hope that our students leave our classrooms energized and inspired. While it’s perhaps delusional to hope that our colleagues will walk out of meetings feeling the same way, we have synthesized some important practices here that will put their time to good use.

All this said, and beyond all the strategies that we’ve enumerated, the faculty members invited to the meeting must, first and foremost, feel invested. When faculty committee recommendations are ignored, or a small cabal makes decisions and simply announces them at the meeting, faculty cynicism will fester. To lead effective meetings, your most important task will be to communicate to faculty members that their deliberations will further a common goal and influence the outcomes that they care about.

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The Rules of Effective Meetings

Introduction, meeting overview, analysis of the meeting’s effectiveness, meeting organization.

A meeting is a gathering of two or more people aimed to discuss a topic, often in a formal or business setting. The effectiveness of a meeting is determined by its agenda, the role of the meeting’s leader, and the environment. To organize a successful meeting, the person responsible needs to possess a set of relevant skills and follow certain rules to help the attendees reach an understanding, solve problems, and achieve the desired goal.

The meeting was held within the organization I am employed in on a part-time basis. It was initiated by the project manager and held in Zoom. Its participants were the members of the department involved in the project and part-time employees responsible for its different aspects. It was a scheduled meeting, the purpose of which was to discuss the results of the completed stage of the project, the changes in the work process at the next stage, and the challenges faced by the team.

The meeting was announced via email, with the manager communicating its purpose and asking the participants to prepare a list of issues they have encountered that they would like to make known to other team members. Relevant information was provided on the time and date of the meeting, and the participants who would not be able to attend were asked to notify the manager. Presumably, the most convenient time for the meeting was discussed with the members of the main project team, with part-time employees only being informed about it after it was agreed upon.

The project manager opened the meeting with an announcement of its objectives and explanation of its importance. During the first part of the meeting, she informed the participants on the results of the completed stage of the project and the client’s feedback and announced the objectives for the next stage of the project. Then, she invited team members to discuss the changes in the work process and address the challenges that they encountered at the previous stage. At the end of the meeting, the manager summed up the results, outlining some main points, defining short-term goals, and going over the work process once again for each participant to know its role.

The project manager was the host and leader of the meeting and moderated the discussion. Her role in the team and during the meeting is based on legitimate and expert powers. Legitimate power rests “in the belief among employees that their manager has the right to give orders based on their position” (Victor, n.d.). Expert power is grounded in the employees’ belief that their leader has a particularly high level of knowledge or a specialized skill set (Victor, n.d.). In this project, employees respect and listen to the manager because they know that she has been appointed to be in charge of the project, and she has the most comprehensive knowledge of all its aspects. Being responsible for the communication with the client, she informs the team about their feedback and new requirements and reports to the client about the team’s progress.

The manager’s communicating style was formal during the introductory part but when the discussion started, the participants were able to switch to informal communication. They were invited to share their views on the challenges they encountered, suggest the ways of addressing them, and give their opinion on the ways to improve the work process at the next stage. First, the matters that concerned the members of the main team were discussed, and then, part-time employees responsible for secondary tasks within the project were invited to share their perspective. The discussion was open and everyone was free to share their opinions and suggestions regardless of their position.

There was no visible tension or open conflicts between the participants. However, due to the informal style of the discussion, the members of the main team felt free to make private jokes and make fun of each other, which distracted other participants. It was easy to understand because they have been working together on this project for a long time but slightly uncomfortable for the outside employees who were not familiar with the context. The manager did not interrupt them, although it seemed that this behavior was inconsistent with the nature of the discussion.

The meeting was held in Zoom with video cameras turned on, and it was possible to observe the participants’ body language. Most of them did not show any disrespect and actively participated in the discussion. Some of the issues raised did not concern all team members, and from the body language of some participants it was evident that they were losing their interest for some time. Their postures became more relaxed, they checked their phones, and did not give their opinion on the subject. No tension was visible and the behavior of participants was consistent with the open and friendly environment fostered in the company. Judging by the participants’ behavior, it was evident that they all were interested in the project and committed to the common goal.

The intended outcome of the meeting was that all team members were informed on the requirements and changes in the project at its next stage, main challenges were identified, and solutions proposed. This outcome was achieved and team members were appointed in charge of addressing some of the identified issues, such as the development of new scripts, simplifying some operations, and database compilation. The success of the meeting was determined by the active involvement of all participants and the well-structured organization of the meeting by the manager. The pivotal moment that contributed to the meeting’s success was the suggestions made by part-time employees, who were able to provide a new perspective on the project. Overall, the meeting was both informative, productive, and motivating; its main objectives were achieved, and it laid the foundation for the project’s improvement at its next stage.

The meeting’s effectiveness is determined by its contribution to the work process. Effective meeting strategies help a team move forward in a meaningful way by allowing them to come to a shared decision, brainstorm new ideas, or workshop a solution to a problem (Phillips, 2018). Successful meetings increase motivation, boost productivity, improve the work process, inspire greater team collaboration, and increase the overall happiness of employees (Phillips, 2018). The analyzed meeting’s effectiveness was determined by the following characteristics:

• Clear purpose.
• Well-defined objectives.
• Participants’ ability to bring diverse perspectives and knowledge.
• Project manager’s professionalism in the meeting’s organization and moderation.
• Openness of the discussion.
• Shared understanding of the project and its goals.
• Successful communication between participants.
• Good plan and structure.
• Well-formulated results and decisions.
• Convenient time, agreed with the main team members.
• Well-selected engaged participants.
• Comfortable meeting environment.
• Absence of interruptions and distractions.

The effectiveness of the meeting was negatively affected by the following factors:

• Unsuccessful time-management (the meeting lasted longer than it was planned).
• Informal style of the discussion.
• Lack of visual materials.
• Lack of engagement of some participants during some parts of the discussion.

The most important factors of the meeting’s effectiveness were its clearly defined purpose and objectives, the participant’s ability to engage in an open discussion, and the project’s manager’s skills in effective meeting organization. According to Matthews (2009), the most important element of any meeting is the objective. Before holding a meeting, one needs to define its purpose and desired outcomes. An effective meeting agenda “clearly states its goals and discussion topics” and provides team member with all the necessary information for participation (Lennon, n.d.). In the analyzed meeting, its purpose and objectives were well-formulated by the manager, the participants were informed about them in advance, and the objectives were adhered throughout the meeting.

The second factor of effectiveness was the participants’ ability to bring their knowledge and expertise into the discussion and share their perspective. It was accomplished by the attendees being asked to prepare an overview of challenges they encountered when working on the project and participate in the brainstorm to address them. With each member of the team being familiar with the project in detail, each was able to contribute to the discussion and help to identify the best possible solutions. As a result, the meeting’s objectives were achieved and improvements proposed.

The third factor was the role of the project manager in the meeting’s organization and moderation. The successful project manager’s skills include meeting planning, scheduling, time management, organization skills, and the ability to motivate team members. According to Means et al. (2007), a successful project manager is a facilitator, who organizes a meeting in a structured way to help its participants to reach common understandings and solve problems. A good manager encourages participation, including raising objectives and openly expressing opinions (“Are you running meetings,” 2007). In the analyzed meeting, the manager has effectively established and communicated the objectives, ensured attendance, created a positive and productive environment, got people engaged, and effectively communicated meeting results (Means et al., 2007). It contributed to the meeting’s success and motivated team members to actively participate in the discussion and develop collaborative solutions.

The meeting’s effectiveness was negatively affected by unsuccessful time-management, informal style of the discussion, and the lack of visual materials. The meeting lasted longer than it was planned, which made it hard for attendees to concentrate on the discussed subjects. It was the fault of the manager, who did not keep track of time and, probably, wanted the meeting to embrace as many issues as possible. It could have been solved by breaking the meetings into several parts, reducing the time allocated for the discussion of each problem, or focusing the meeting on their identification rather than brainstorming.

The informal style of the discussion was the source of both advantages and disadvantages of the meeting. On the positive side, it created an open and friendly environment, made the meeting more dynamic and entertaining, and allow new participants to feel at ease. On the negative side, it made some members of the team too relaxed and the style of communication too informal, which distracted other participants from the meeting objectives and made them uncomfortable. The manager could have addressed this issue by telling team members to stick to a more formal communicating style.

The third factor affecting the meeting’s effectiveness was the lack of visual materials. Although the manager was well-prepared, she has not presented the information visually, making it harder to comprehend. It could have been solved by sharing the screen with other participants to illustrate the issues she was talking about. However, it has only slightly affected the meeting effectiveness because the most important points and conclusions were shared with team members via email and uploaded into the shared project folder. Overall, the meeting was successful, and its drawbacks only leave room for improvement without significantly affecting its outcomes.

A new project was developed and needs to be introduced in a health service organization. The project is complex in size and nature and requires an expanded cross-section of expertise from within and outside of the organization. For the meeting to be effective, a comprehensive agenda needs to be developed, the meeting’s structure determined, relevant attendees invited, and measurable objectives and intended outcomes identified.

The meeting’s agenda is to introduce the new project, inform the attendees of its innovation and possible ways of implementation, and answer their questions. The proposed structure of the meeting includes three parts. The first is the introduction, which is intended to provide the background information about the project and introduce the project team. The second part features a detailed presentation of the project, involving basic information about its technical characteristics, benefits, costs, and ways of implementation. The third part is the discussion, when the participants are invited to ask questions, share their opinion, and give feedback on the project value.

The invited attendees should include the members of the project team, the representatives of relevant departments within the organization, and outside specialists. The project team should be represented by the manager and the team leader. The manager should act as the leader and host of the presentation, and the team leader should be able to answer questions concerning the project’s technical aspects. Ideally, the meeting should be attended by the organization’s top management and the representatives of the departments that would be involved in the project’s implementation. They should have relevant expertise to be able to understand the nature and benefits of the project and sufficient competence to contribute their ideas to the discussion of its benefits and drawbacks. Ideally, the representatives should include senior members of the financial, technical, and research departments. Outside specialists should be invited by the organization to provide independent assessment and critique of the project. Overall, the attendees should be able to both comprehend and develop the ideas expressed during the meeting and get inspired by them.

The effectiveness of a meeting depends on a number of factors. When organizing a meeting, the manager needs to focus on preparation, determining the meeting’s goal and objectives, inviting relevant participants, creating a productive meeting environment, ensuring effective communication, and summarizing the meeting’s results. Most mistakes made during meetings can be prevented and solved by the manager, therefore, their skills and knowledge play the most vital role in ensuring a meeting’s effectiveness.

Are you running meetings, or are meetings running you? (2007). Bates. Web.

Matthews, A. (2009). 6sSecrets of effective meetings [Video]. Web.

Means, J., Adams, T., & Spivey, M. (2007). Facilitating effective project meetings.

Phillips, J. (2018). How to run effective meetings . Slack. Web.

Victor, D. (n.d.). Leadership styles and bases of power. Reference for Business. Web.

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Effective Business Meetings and Conflict Management Essay

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Effective Meetings

Managing conflicts.

A business meeting is an event where three or more people gather with a view to interact and achieve a common agenda (Tropman, 2010, p12). Business meetings are characterised by purposeful exchange of views and ideas that culminates into agreeable solutions and common understanding. There are different forms of meetings depending on nature and scope. Some meetings initiate discussion on emerging issues while others brief members on an ongoing process (Tropman, 2010, p13). Meetings present a good or bad experience for participants depending on how they progress.

A good meeting should consider the feelings and suggestions of all participants. For instance, it is vital to consult among participants to determine the appropriate time and venue of the meeting. This ensures that all participants feel at ease while attending the meeting. Adequate preparation should precede a good meeting to ensure all participants are aware of relevant background information (Tropman, 2010, p19). A good meeting should adhere to procedure to ensure full participation by all attendants. For instance, a meeting should begin and end at the stipulated time to avoid inconveniencing participants. A good meeting should stick to the agenda and deal with matters that are relevant to the items of agenda. Any deviation leads to unnecessary delays and could cause omissions and alterations of the items of agenda (Tropman, 2010, p22). A good meeting should reach an agreeable position and yield positive outcomes. Meetings that fail to accomplish the above objectives result in poor outcomes. They often end up as bad meetings.

Communication technology can go a long way in improving the quality of a meeting. Organizers can seize the benefits of communication technology to ensure success of a meeting (Tropman, 2010, p27). For instance, email can help in sending notice of a meeting to all participants. The email may contain all necessary information about the meeting such as venue and time. Other tools such as fax can also improve the quality of a meeting (Tropman, 2010, p32).

A conflict is a situation where opposing parties hold divergent views regarding a common issue of importance (Goldsmith, 2002, p8). Conflict occurs when people differ on an issue to an extent where there is little or no room for cooperation. Conflict emanates from a multiplicity of factors such as limited resources, misplaced values and priorities, abdication of duties, change in environment, and competition (Goldsmith, 2002, p9). Conflict can be either constructive or destructive. In destructive conflicts, conflicting parties deviate from real issues and engage in meaningless confrontations that do not add value to the process of resolving the conflict. Destructive conflicts rarely achieve positive results. In most cases, they lead to a vicious and bitter conflict (Goldsmith, 2002, p11).

Constructive conflicts achieve balance between the interests and concerns of both parties. Both parties engage in mature discourse in a bid to achieve an agreeable position on their areas of contention (Goldsmith, 2002, p13). Both parties seize opportunities that present a way out of the conflict. In constructive conflicts, both parties are willing to compromise for the sake of the resolution process. Positive conflict can serve as a tool for improved decision-making. For instance, organizations can benefit from a situation of conflict by learning from outcomes of a conflict. The organization can major on the positive outcomes of a conflict to ameliorate its decision-making procedures (Goldsmith, 2002, p18). Positive conflict can provide vital lessons for an organization to ensure that such a conflict does not recur.

Tropman, J. (2010). Effective Meetings: Improving Group Decision Making . London: SAGE.

Goldsmith, J. (2002). Conflicts . Newyork: Aspen Publishers.

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How to run an effective meeting: A complete guide

Updated July 2021

Running an effective meeting is a little bit like landing someone on the moon. Accounting for every variable seems impossible, and your countless attempts to design the perfect meeting never seem to play out exactly as you had hoped. But bad meetings don’t need to exist.

And yes, with a little training, you can host the meetings of your dreams.

All that stands between you and eternal office glory is this article! Learn how to run an effective meeting by following these eight steps:

• Develop meeting ground rules
• Determine if the meeting is necessary
• Decide who needs to be in the meeting
• Tailor how you run each meeting
• Create a meeting agenda (and stick to it)
• Use visual guides to encourage meeting engagement
• Encourage participation
• Open and finish strong

🌟 Make sure every meeting is effective with our set of 5 free meeting agenda templates—each one tailored for a different type of meeting.

📝 Get free meeting agenda templates

1. Develop meeting ground rules for your teams

Establishing precedence for how meetings are conducted is essential to having consistently successful meeting outcomes. When this is done right it gives your team the expectations they need to conduct a meeting with as little friction as possible, leaving them to apply their energy only to the topic at hand. For this to be achieved, establish and consistently apply meeting rules and expectations of how participants are to prepare, behave during meetings, and take action after meetings. This can come down to the format of meetings, the expectations of participation, the scheduling of meetings, etc. —effective workforce management software may be the key to organising these internal processes. 

Here are some examples of meeting ground rules you might want to implement: 

• Arrive on time and be prepared to share updates. This one may seem simple, but providing an expectation of professionalism and engagement is something that will make everyone feel collectively responsible and accountable for making the meeting great.
• Stay on topic and no cross-talking. Again, this may seem obvious, but keeping expectations clear is a must-have for effective and efficient communication. While socializing and discussing other business matters should be welcomed, meetings should be conducted with a focus. Straying from the goal can quickly turn a great meeting into an impromptu happy hour. 
• Target problems, not people. A meeting is a great place for discussion and collaboration, but always stay focused on how your team can take on problems rather than criticizing the individual. 
• Follow up on the next steps soon after meetings (within a day or two if possible). Handling matters related to the meeting swiftly will make sure that issues stay top of mind. 

2. Determine if the meeting is necessary

One of the easiest ways to improve the quality of your meetings is to identify what meetings you can avoid entirely . An easy way to slim down your meeting schedule is to take an audit of your standing meetings and identify what value that meeting delivers to you and your team. You may find that some meetings are without direction and that topics are better addressed in smaller groups or on an as needed basis. 

Email and messaging can often alleviate the strain for check-ins or recurring updates. RingCentral’s app offers a convenient team messaging feature that allows you to connect with your team to share the updates your team needs without having to book time on everyone’s schedule. And if you do need to have a virtual meeting , you can do that—in the same app:

3. Decide who needs to be in the meeting 

Often, it can be difficult to determine who’s actually required to run an effective meeting, leading the host to simply invite everyone regardless of whether they need to be there. In order to have a truly effective and efficient meeting, it’s important to understand how each team member will be involved—and often this means trimming down the invite list to only those who are required.

Team members to invite:

• Stakeholders –  Stakeholders are team members who affected and can be affected by the meeting. These team members can contribute to the topic of discussion and benefit from being informed about project updates and future planning. 
• Relevant team members –  Team members with relevant updates and expertise related to the project can enhance the discussion and contribute to a deeper understanding of the project goals and objectives. 
• Outside contributors – Bringing in contributors from other projects can help your team understand how their objectives are impacted by external factors. This can offer you valuable insight in making decisions in the border context of your company. 

4. Tailor how you run each meeting

To run an effective meeting, you should have an understanding of your audience. What are their strengths and weaknesses? How do their roles apply to the information and objectives of this meeting? By leveraging your understanding of your audience you can enhance your connection and focus your presentation style to be conducive to your attendees strengths. It’s also important to know the scope of your meeting. Are you speaking to a single person? To a small group? Or to many? Knowing the scale of your meeting along with the type of audience can only enhance your ability to relate your content to them and enable you to directly address the areas that are actionable for your audience. 

What type of meeting are you in?

• If you’re leading a 1:1 meeting, you can adjust your presentation style to be more conversational. In this format, an open dialogue can often achieve the best results and most value in the meeting. For individuals who work remotely, a video call works best. 
• If you’re leading a 1:few meeting, the same principle applies: keep it conversational, but also stay organized. As you increase the size of a meeting, it becomes ever more important to stay on task. Applying slightly more structure in a 1:few setting can help keep the conversation going with measured goals.
• If you’re leading a 1:many meeting, you can adapt the 1:few approach with some success, but keep in mind that you must keep the meeting on topic and make sure that every agenda item is addressed and that goals are met. A 1:many meeting can be a battleground for speaking time and if not controlled adequately it can easily get out of control. Take the time to set the stage and keep the attention of your audience directed at the objective at hand. For those who work remotely, RingCentra’s free conference call service allows up to 100 participants.  

5. Set a meeting agenda (and stick to it)

Once you know a meeting needs to be on the books, provide your team with the context, goals, and expectations necessary to make sure that everyone is ready to have a successful meeting. This can come in many forms, but the most effective is often an agenda.

Here are some tips to build an agenda that helps you run an effective meeting:

• Keep it simple. Your agenda shouldn’t be an essay! Bulleted lists are often the most concise and clear way to get information to your audience. 
• Make the heading short, clear, and objective. You don’t have to explain the entire meeting itself in the header. Just make sure the reader knows its purpose and can interpret the context. 
• Only give information pertinent to the meeting itself. Your objective should always be to inform the reader about the meeting, its context, background, and goals. 
• A good meeting agenda should act as a launchpad for everyone to get on the same page quickly for a new project. Make it clear and easy to understand, even to a group unfamiliar with the project, and don’t assume that what makes sense to you does to everyone involved. 
• Always provide an objective for the meeting. Giving your team the goal ahead of time can help them prepare for the task at hand, making the meeting itself a better use of time and a more productive environment. 
• Schedule your meeting well ahead of your desired meeting date to allow everyone time to familiarize themselves with the agenda. Some meeting apps integrate with popular calendar tools like Google Calendar and Outlook , which allow you to create meeting invites with automatically generated meeting links. For example, here’s how RingCentral’s integration with Google Calendar looks in a meeting invite:

6. Use visual guides to promote engagement 

Adding visual elements to your presentation can further enhance your meeting, making it more compelling and memorable. Using easy-to-read slides and other visual tools such as videos and charts can help your audience better understand and engage with your content. 

This goes double for presenting to remote teams . When conducting a virtual call , slides can help enhance your presentation and engage your audience. RingCentral’s meeting tools let you share your screen, making it easy to present slides to your participants:

Slide design tips

• Always remember that you—not the slides—are the presentation. Never let the slides dominate your presentation; they should only supplement what you can say and show what you can not. The best way to determine if your slides are in control is to do a dry run of the presentation. If you find yourself reading off your slides or repeating what is already written, then try to cut down the text to only what is necessary to enhance your verbal presentation:

• Try to make the slides as visually compelling as possible and keep the text to a minimum. Nothing is worse than a slide presentation that looks like the tiny text in a Game of Thrones novel. By using text sparingly, you free up your audience to dedicate their attention to you as the presenter.  Many slide experts suggest that you should follow the 5/5/5 rule: use no more than 5 lines per slide, with no more than 5 words per line, and no more than 5 text-dominant slides in a row. This rule can help streamline your slide design and push you to condense or remove unnecessary information:

• Make your visual presentation cohesive. Focus on adding segues and transitional slides that help guide your audience from one topic to the next. One way that you can achieve this effect is by introducing a new topic by connecting it to the broader scope of the presentation. For example, if your meeting is focused on increasing sales, provide a slide detailing the ways in which your subtopic relates back to sales strategies. Providing this context at the beginning of a new topic can help establish the focus of your presentation, giving your audience a clear idea of what you hope to add to the meeting:

• At the conclusion of your presentation, use your final slides to help bring your audience back to the main topic of your meeting. 

7. Encourage participation in meetings

A business meeting doesn’t have to be a lecture. Leveraging the unique perspectives and skills of your team can make your meetings much more efficient and collaborative . Here are a few ways to encourage more participation in your meetings: 

Organize a discussion

Meetings are a fantastic opportunity to leverage the unique perspectives, skill sets, and experiences of everyone involved. With the proper organization and leadership, a collaborative discussion can bring about a more engaging meeting and new and unique solutions. 

• Allocating a portion of your meeting agenda for a brainstorming session is a great way to encourage discussion. As the organizer, you should define the objective of the brainstorming session, and work alongside your team to build upon ideas as they arise. For smaller meetings, you can promote open discussion between the whole group, however, in larger meetings it may be more effective to break into smaller groups and come back together to discuss ideas in the final portion of the exercise.  
• Another way to spur discussion is by allowing each group member to speak briefly. By passing the mic around the room, you can encourage everyone to share and collaborate as they build off of ideas and share their unique perspectives. 
• When covering a topic, surveying your team is a great way to keep them engaged. This can be easily achieved with a simple hand-raising exercise or even a digital poll. With meeting features including annotation and chat boxes , RingCentral enables you to collaborate and engage with ease. 

Create multidisciplinary teams for thought diversity

Bringing together a group of people of various backgrounds and job functions can create an even stronger team environment for involvement and collaboration. When you’re planning your next meeting, consider what types of stakeholders would contribute to the project and what unique perspectives may be an asset. 

A few tips for collaborating with a multidisciplinary team:

• When expanding the reach of a project to another team , make sure to define the contribution that’s expected of each group. Ensure that each group is aligned on their unique contributions to the project.
• At the beginning of the meeting, introduce all involved parties who may not be familiar with one another and outline how they’ll work together. Like a sports team, make sure that each member knows what role they play and how to work together.
• In the conclusion of your meeting, always structure your next steps in terms of each team’s responsibilities. 

Ask questions 

Including questions in your presentations can help guide conversation and can compel your audience to be actively engaged. When preparing your meeting, plan out how you can ask questions, and where they would make the most sense given your audience and topic. 

The end goal of asking questions is to benefit the group’s collective understanding, and as such, asking questions can be a great tool in compelling your audience to actively engage and contribute meaningfully to the conversation. As you ask questions, you can encourage others to build and adapt other answers. Oftentimes agreeing or disagreeing with a previous question can help propel discussion even further. 

8. Open strong, finish strong

To run an effective meeting, it’s important to open and close the meeting with purpose. You want to ensure that your audience understands immediately the objective of the meeting and any further actions that need to be taken after the meeting has concluded.

• Have your main points prepared and begin by outlining your agenda. While you have the whole meeting to go into further detail, make sure your audience is aware of what expectations exist for the meeting and which topics will be covered. This also gives you the opportunity to organize the flow of the meeting making it more clear and efficient. 
• Use the intro to give context to the topic of discussion. Outline in sufficient detail the background of the project and what steps have already been taken to get to this point. You want to make sure that all parties are aligned and aware of where the team is in the project cycle.
• Establish a clear objective for the meeting. As the leader of the meeting, you need to establish the desired outcome so that you and your team can stay focused on the task at hand and take the required steps to reach your measured outcome.  

Want to have more effective meetings right from the get-go? Check out this short clip from our Better Meetings Masterclass on how to meet with a purpose:

The conclusion

• The conclusion is an opportunity to inform your audience about what future actions must be taken. With the final minutes of your meeting, you should always leave your team with actionable next steps and a timeline for deliverables. 

• Always thank your audience! It’s critical to make your team feel valued and included. A simple gesture of encouragement such as a thank-you can go a long way and make participants more eager to get down to business and prepare for the next meeting. 

What makes an effective meeting?

Congratulations, you’ve climbed the mountaintop and learned what it takes to run an effective meeting in a repeatable, consistent way. Now it’s time to add your own flair to the meetings you lead. Good luck! 

Explore even more meeting resources and tips in our guide to better meetings.

Originally published Jul 01, 2020, updated Aug 23, 2024

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Effective Meeting Dynamics and Recommendations

During observing a community meeting, several aspects of effective structure, dynamics, and areas requiring improvement were discerned. Notably, the panel needed to improve its efficiency, which could have improved. However, it also showcased positive aspects and potential recommendations for enhancement. One notable observation was the need for a clear meeting goal. The purpose of the meeting was not explicitly stated at the outset, leading to confusion among participants. Without a well-defined plan, discussions tended to deviate and lacked a coherent direction.

Additionally, an agenda should have been presented at the beginning of the meeting. A structured schedule could have helped the flow of discussions, as participants were unsure about the topics to be covered. The management of the panel needed more structure. The meetings often drifted off-topic, and sure, participants dominated the conversation while others were marginalized. In this case, the leader’s role was ineffective due to a lack of control over the meeting’s dynamics. The dynamics within the session were affected by poor time management. Prolonged discussions on certain subjects resulted in a rushed debate on subsequent topics or the omission of some altogether. This imbalance in time allocation hindered the thorough exploration of ideas and decision-making.

Furthermore, a lack of active engagement and inclusivity was evident. Some participants hesitated to voice their opinions, and a few individuals monopolized the conversation. This aspect created an environment that could have been more conducive to collaborative problem-solving. In terms of positive aspects, there was evident genuine interest and commitment among participants. While the meeting structure required improvement, the attendees were enthusiastic about contributing to their community’s betterment.

In addition, a clear meeting goal or agenda was absent, which led to a lack of focus and direction in the discussions. The participants seemed uncertain about the purpose of the meeting, resulting in meandering conversations that often deviated from the intended topics. This issue was a significant hindrance to achieving meaningful outcomes, as without a well-defined goal, the meeting lacked a cohesive purpose. Participation among the members was unequal, with specific individuals dominating the conversation while others remained quieter. This skewed participation led to an imbalance in the contributions and excluded valuable perspectives from those who needed to be more vocal. The dominating members tended to assert their opinions forcefully, making it difficult for other participants to voice their thoughts. This issue highlighted the need for active facilitation to ensure all members have an equal opportunity to express their views and contribute to the discussion.

Conflicts that arose during the meeting needed to be managed appropriately. Rather than being addressed and resolved constructively, conflicts often escalated into heated debates that hindered productive discourse. The lack of a structured conflict resolution mechanism resulted in tension and reduced the meeting’s overall effectiveness. Nonverbal communication proved to be distracting in some instances. Disinterested body language, side conversations, and disengaged expressions were observed among sure participants, which indicated a lack of attentiveness and respect for the ongoing discussions. Such nonverbal cues can disrupt the meeting flow and undermine the sense of collaboration and respect among attendees. In encouraging creative or critical thinking, the meeting demonstrated room for improvement. The discussions primarily revolved around conventional solutions and familiar ideas, with little encouragement for exploring innovative alternatives or challenging established norms. This action limited the potential for generating novel solutions and hindered the group’s ability to think critically about the issues.

Recommendations

In light of the observations made during the community meeting, several noteworthy recommendations can be implemented to address the identified shortcomings and enhance the overall effectiveness of the meeting. To rectify the need for a clear meeting goal and agenda, meeting organizers must establish a well-defined objective for each session and communicate it to participants beforehand. This objective could be expressed through an agenda distributed before the meeting (Tropman, 2013). This agenda should outline the topics to be discussed, the allotted time for each item, and any necessary background information. This approach will provide participants with a clear understanding of the meeting’s purpose and facilitate focused discussions.

The role of the meeting leader or facilitator must be strengthened to counteract the ineffective management and dynamic drift within the meeting. The leader should guide the discussions, ensuring they stay on track and are relevant to the agenda items. Encouraging equal participation among attendees and preventing dominating members from monopolizing the conversation is essential. The facilitator could implement round-robin discussions, where each participant can speak or encourage quieter members to share their viewpoints (Gea et al., 2019). Addressing poor time management requires a proactive approach. Allocating specific time limits to each agenda item and adhering to them will ensure that discussions are balanced and thorough. This approach will prevent some topics from receiving undue attention at the expense of others, promoting a comprehensive exploration of ideas and more effective decision-making.

The meeting environment should encourage open participation to foster active engagement and inclusivity. The facilitator can invite contributions from all attendees, seeking input from those who may be hesitant to speak up. Additionally, creating a respectful and collaborative atmosphere can be encouraged by setting ground rules for communication, ensuring that all ideas are treated with respect, regardless of the participant’s seniority or assertiveness. Resolving conflicts requires implementing a structured conflict resolution mechanism. This perspective could involve establishing a designated “conflict resolution” segment on the agenda, during which participants can voice disagreements in a controlled and respectful manner (Mbutu & Wanjigi, 2022). The facilitator is crucial in mediating these conflicts and guiding the discussion toward a resolution that aligns with the meeting’s goals.

Participants should be reminded of the importance of active listening and respectful engagement to address distracting nonverbal communication. The facilitator can set expectations for appropriate nonverbal cues and intervene if disengagement or side conversations arise. The meeting can maintain its focus and productivity to Promote an environment of attentiveness. Encouraging creative and critical thinking necessitates introducing exercises and approaches that stimulate innovation (Wahyudi et al., 2019). This strategy could incorporate brainstorming sessions where unconventional ideas are welcomed or assign individuals to play the “devil’s advocate” role to challenge established perspectives. Encouraging participants to think outside the box and explore new solutions will lead to more comprehensive problem-solving.

Gea, H. Y. F., Pangaribuan, J. J., & Sembiring, N. (2019). IMPROVING STUDENTS SPEAKING SKILLS BY USING ROUND ROBIN BRAINSTORMING TECHNIQUE FOR THE ELEVENTH MIA GRADE STUDENTS OF SMA DELI MURNI BANDAR BARU.  KAIROS ,  3 (1).

Mbutu, P., & Wanjigi, J. (2022). LEADERSHIP TRAINING PROGRAMS/MODELS, INTER-ETHNIC CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND THE YOUTH.  International Journal of Leadership and Governance ,  2 (1), 29-59.

Tropman, J. E. (2013). Effective meetings: Improving group decision making (Vol. 17). Sage Publications.

Wahyudi, W., Verawati, N. N. S. P., Ayub, S., & Prayogi, S. (2019). The effect of scientific creativity in inquiry learning to promote critical thinking ability of prospective teachers.  International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning (Online) ,  14 (14), 122.

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How to Design an Agenda for an Effective Meeting

• Roger Schwarz

A tool to waste less of your time.

To prevent holding a meeting in which participants are unprepared, veer off track, or waste the team’s time, you should create an effective meeting agenda that sets clear expectations for what needs to occur before and during the meeting. Seek input from your team members to ensure the agenda reflects their needs and keeps them engaged. If your entire team is meeting, then the issues discussed should affect everyone present and require the whole team’s effort to solve. Addressing topics that don’t impact everyone at the meeting wastes individuals’ valuable time. Another tactic for creating a better meeting agenda is listing topics as questions to be answered. Instead of writing “office space reallocation,” try “Under what conditions should we reallocate office space?” Let your team know if the purpose of the discussion is to share information, seek input on a decision, or make a decision. And indicate on the agenda who is leading each discussion so that they can prepare. These tips, and five others, will help your team stay focused in meetings.

We’ve all been in meetings where participants are unprepared, people veer off track, and the topics discussed are a waste of the team’s time. These problems — and others like them — stem from poor agenda design. An effective agenda sets clear expectations for what needs to occur before and during a meeting. It helps team members prepare, allocates time wisely, quickly gets everyone on the same topic, and identifies when the discussion is complete. If problems still occur during the meeting, a well-designed agenda increases the team’s ability to effectively and quickly address them.

• Roger Schwarz is an organizational psychologist, speaker, leadership team consultant, and president and CEO of Roger Schwarz & Associates . He is the author of Smart Leaders, Smarter Teams: How You and Your Team Get Unstuck to Get Results . LeadSmarter

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• Meeting agenda examples: How to plan, w ...

Meeting agenda examples: How to plan, write, and implement

Your agenda tells your team what to expect during a meeting and how they can prepare for it. Ideally, you’ll use your agenda to connect your team with the meeting’s purpose, assign tasks or items to team members, and designate a realistic amount of time to each agenda item. A great meeting agenda maximizes the meeting’s effectiveness and keeps your team on track.

An effective agenda communicates the purpose of your meeting, gives your team the chance to prepare their agenda items, and keeps everyone on track.

Whether you’re preparing for your next board meeting, staff meeting, or business meeting, we’ll help you write an agenda that will maximize your meeting’s potential.

What is a meeting agenda?

A meeting agenda serves as a structured roadmap for your meeting, detailing the topics and activities planned. Its primary role is to provide meeting participants with a clear framework, outlining the sequence of events, the leader for each agenda item, and the time allocated for each task. By having this agenda as a guide both before and throughout the meeting, it helps to facilitate an efficient and productive flow of discussion.

How to write a meeting agenda

Crafting a meeting agenda is a key step in ensuring a focused and productive meeting. Here's how to do it effectively.

1. Clarify meeting objectives

The first step in writing a meeting agenda is to clearly define any goals. In clarifying the goal, be as specific as possible. This specificity helps guide the discussion and ensure that the meeting remains focused. It also helps stakeholders prepare for the meeting.

For example, if the goal is to finalize the budget for the next quarter or discuss new business, participants would come prepared with relevant data and insights.

A well-defined goal also helps set the meeting's tone and align everyone's expectations. This clarity leads to a more structured discussion and a more productive meeting overall.

2. Invite participant input

Inviting input from participants before finalizing the agenda is a critical step in creating a comprehensive and inclusive meeting plan. This involves reaching out to potential attendees and asking if there's anything specific they would like to discuss or add to the meeting agenda.

For example, if you're planning a meeting for a project team, you could send an email asking each member to suggest topics they feel are important to address. This could reveal issues or ideas you hadn't considered, ensuring a more well-rounded agenda.

Incorporating participant input not only makes the agenda more comprehensive but also increases engagement. When team members see their suggestions included, they feel valued and are more likely to participate actively in the meeting. It also ensures that the meeting addresses the concerns of all attendees.

Gathering input can be done through various channels, like email, shared docs, or team collaboration tools. The key is to make it easy for meeting participants to contribute and to ensure their suggestions are considered and, where appropriate, included in the final agenda.

3. Outline key questions for discussion

Making a list of important things to talk about is important for keeping the meeting on track and focused. Start by identifying the main meeting topics that need to be addressed and framing them as questions.

For instance, if the meeting is to discuss the progress of an ongoing project, key questions might include:

What are the current roadblocks in the project?

How are we tracking against the project timeline

What resources are needed to maintain the pace of work?

These questions serve as talking points and a guide for the discussion, ensuring that all relevant topics are covered. They also help in structuring the conversation, making it easier for participants to prepare and engage effectively.

4. Define each task’s purpose

Each task or topic on the agenda should have a clearly defined purpose. This transparency helps participants understand the importance of each discussion point and how it relates to the overall goal of the meeting.

For example, if one of the agenda items is to review recent client feedback and performance metrics, the purpose might be to identify areas for improvement in customer service. By stating this purpose, participants can focus their thoughts on this specific objective, leading to a more targeted and fruitful discussion.

Defining the purpose of each task also helps prevent the meeting from going off track. When participants understand why a topic is being discussed, they are less likely to veer off-topic, making the meeting more efficient.

5. Allocate time for agenda items

Effective meeting management requires allotting time for each item on the agenda. This includes determining the amount of time needed for each meeting topic or task and scheduling the meeting appropriately.

For instance, if you have five items on your agenda, you might allocate 10 minutes for a brief update, 20 minutes for brainstorming, and 15 minutes for discussing action items. This time allocation should be based on the complexity and importance of each topic.

Effective time management requires being realistic with your time estimates and factoring in extra time for unforeseen conversations or inquiries. This approach helps in keeping the meeting within the scheduled time frame, respecting everyone's time, and maintaining focus.

6. Assign topic facilitators

Assigning facilitators for each topic on the agenda can greatly enhance the effectiveness of the meeting. A facilitator’s role is to guide the discussion, make certain that the conversation stays on track, and that all voices are heard.

For example, if one of the agenda items is to discuss sales strategies, you might assign this topic to a senior salesperson. Their expertise and familiarity with the subject can help steer the conversation productively.

Facilitators should be chosen based on their knowledge of the topic and their ability to manage group discussions. They should also be briefed on their role and the expectations for the discussion.

7. Write the meeting agenda

Finally, compile all the elements into a structured and comprehensive agenda. The agenda should include the meeting’s goal, a list of topics to be discussed with their purposes, time allocations, and assigned facilitators. This structure provides a clear roadmap for the meeting, ensuring that all important points are covered.

Share the agenda with all participants well in advance of the meeting. This allows them to prepare and ensures that everyone is on the same page. A well-written agenda is a key tool in running an effective and productive meeting.

Tips to create an effective meeting agenda

Let’s start with some of our favorite tips on creating great meeting agendas so you can make the most of yours:

Create and share your meeting agenda as early as possible. At the very latest, you should share your meeting agenda an hour before the meeting time. This allows everyone to prepare for what’s going to happen. Your team can also relay questions or additional agenda items to you for a potential adjustment before the meeting. Besides, when your team members have a chance to properly prepare themselves, they’ll have a much easier time focusing during the meeting.

Link to any relevant pre-reading materials in advance. This can be the presentation deck, additional context, or a previous decision. Everyone arriving at the meeting will be on the same page and ready to move the discussion forward rather than asking a ton of questions that take up relevant time.

Assign facilitators for each agenda item. Remember that feeling of being called on in school when you didn’t know the answer? It’s a pretty terrible feeling that we’re sure you don’t want to evoke in your teammates. By assigning a facilitator for each agenda item before the meeting, you allow them to prepare for a quick rundown of the topic, questions, and feedback.

Define and prioritize your agenda items. Differentiate between the three categories of agenda items: informational, discussion topics, and action items. Clarifying the purpose of each agenda item helps your team member understand what’s most important and what to focus on. You’ll also want to prioritize which items are most important and absolutely have to be discussed during the meeting and which ones can be addressed asynchronously, should the clock run out.

Use your meeting agenda during the meeting to track notes and action items. That way, all of the meeting information is in one place. If anyone has questions about decisions or action items from the meeting, they have an easy place to find it. Bonus: Do this in Asana so you can assign out action items and next steps to ensure nothing falls through the cracks. Asana also integrates with Zoom and pulls in your Zoom recording or meeting transcript directly into the meeting agenda task.

Create flow by categorizing your agenda items. To maximize productivity, you’ll want to create a meeting agenda that flows well. Batch similar items together and ensure they can build off of one another. For example, list any informational items before the discussion items so your team has all of the information going into the discussion.

Allocate enough time for each item on your agenda. Nobody will complain about a meeting that runs short—keeping everyone longer than anticipated isn’t as much fun. Plan sufficient time for each agenda item by calculating an estimated time and adding a couple of minutes as a buffer. This will help with keeping your team on track and moving on from a topic when the time runs out.

By sticking to these best practices, you can ensure that your meeting agenda is a reliable tool and does the job—before, during, and after your meeting.

Why are meeting agendas important?

Whether you work from home and take virtual calls or sit in the office and meet in person, meetings can be incredibly draining. Beginning with some small talk may be nice to get to know each other better or catch up on what everyone did this past weekend but it certainly isn’t goal-oriented or productive. A meeting agenda can help your team maximize the potential of each meeting you hold.

Our research shows that unnecessary meetings accounted for 157 hours of “work” in 2020, compared to 103 in 2019. Considering a 40-hour work week, that’s almost four weeks of wasted time. This is where your meeting agenda comes in. If you’re doing it right, writing your meeting agenda is the first and best indicator of whether or not your meeting is actually necessary. If you find that everything on your meeting agenda can be discussed asynchronously , you can cancel the meeting and share your message in a time-saving email.

That isn’t to say all meetings should be replaced by emails. If you’re sure that the meeting is justified and necessary in order to drive your team’s progress, have that meeting. However, always make sure that you create an agenda before getting together so your team members know what you’ll be discussing and why the meeting matters.

Here are a few more great reasons to have meeting agendas:

Your agenda allows everyone to prepare for the meeting. Ideally, every item on your agenda will have a dedicated topic facilitator. When everyone going into the meeting knows what their responsibilities are in advance, they have time to prepare and will be more efficient during the meeting.

It shows you’re considerate of your team’s time. When your team receives a well-thought-out meeting agenda, they’ll immediately see that the meeting is actually necessary. Besides, it’s also a roadmap that will keep you on track during the meeting and ensure no time is wasted.

An agenda sets clear expectations of what will and won’t be discussed. Think of a meeting agenda as a way of setting boundaries and ensuring that only topics on the agenda will be talked about. If anything comes up during the meeting that needs to be discussed, write it down in your minutes and return to it later. Either at the end of your meeting—if you got through it faster than expected—asynchronously, or in the next meeting.

It keeps your team on track. Your meeting agenda will prevent your team from drifting off—whether that’s discussing non-agenda topics (like the barbecue at Kat’s place last night) or taking too much time for an item that had specific time allocated.

Your agenda will provide purpose, structure, and opportunities to collaborate. With a clear plan for everyone to follow, your team will go into the meeting knowing the purpose and goal of the meeting. Your meeting agenda also allows your team to direct their attention toward opportunities to collaborate, whether that’s during a brainstorming session , a town hall, or your daily standup.

Track next steps and action items so nothing falls through the cracks. Keep your agenda open during the meeting to capture any next steps or action items . By adding them directly into the agenda, these items won’t be forgotten when the meeting ends.

Meetings are great opportunities for your team to bond but the time spent on small talk can be worked into the first few minutes of the agenda rather than surfacing every now and then during the meeting, disrupting the flow and productivity or your team’s discussion.

Meeting agenda examples

We’ve discussed what makes a good meeting agenda and what you should avoid doing but, as always, it’s easiest to learn from a real life example. Let’s take a look at a project kickoff meeting agenda created in Asana:

As you can see, each item has a timebox and a teammate assigned to ensure everyone knows when it’s their turn and how long they have to lead their discussion or give their presentation. The agenda also has relevant files attached and is shared with all team members for visibility and better collaboration.

Meetings are a staple in the professional world, each with its own unique focus and dynamics. Understanding how to tailor your meeting agenda to the type of meeting you're conducting is key to ensuring effective communication and teamwork. Here are some common types of meetings and examples of how to structure their agendas.

Team meeting agenda

Team meetings serve as a platform for team building, decision making, and brainstorming. They can vary in frequency and duration but are essential for ensuring alignment and forward momentum. Effective team meeting agendas should include recurring items for regular meetings and space for new, ad-hoc topics. It’s also vital to track next steps and responsibilities assigned during the meeting. An example of a 45-minute team meeting agenda might cover metrics, a round-table plan, identification of blockers, and recognition of team members' contributions​​.

Daily Scrum meeting agenda

Daily scrum meetings, or stand-ups , are brief, focused gatherings aimed at keeping the team aligned during a sprint. These meetings typically cover blockers, a recap of the previous day’s work, goals for the current day, and progress towards sprint goals. The agility of these meetings helps in maintaining momentum and addressing issues promptly.

Project kickoff meeting agenda

Project kickoff meetings bring together cross-functional teams to start a new project. These meetings set the tone for the project and align everyone on objectives and expectations. The agenda should cover the project brief, roles and responsibilities, meeting cadence, actionable next steps, and a Q&A session to clarify doubts and ensure everyone is on the same page​​.

Retrospective meeting agenda

A retrospective meeting is a type of recurring meeting focused on reflecting on a past period of work, usually at the end of a project cycle or sprint. Its main purpose is to share information among team members about what worked well and what didn't. During the meeting, the entire team discusses various meeting topics, including successes, challenges, and blockers that impacted their work. This process helps in identifying areas for improvement and developing strategies to address any issues. Retrospective meetings are vital for continuous team development and ensuring better outcomes in future work cycles.

One-on-one meeting agenda

One-on-one meetings , whether they are between a manager and a direct report, peer-to-peer, or skip-level, are crucial for discussing work projects, roadblocks, and career development. They are foundational for building trust.

A good agenda for these meetings should balance topics like motivation, communication, growth, and work-related discussions. Avoid status updates; those are better suited for stand-up meetings. Sample questions for a weekly one-on-one might include assessing highlights and lowlights of the week, discussing any blockers, and inquiring about work-life balance​​.

Remote one-on-one meeting agenda

Remote one-on-one meetings require a slightly different approach, with a focus on rapport-building and clear communication. Since physical presence is lacking, these meetings benefit from a shared online agenda accessible to all participants. Key points could include checking in on general well-being, discussing current work assignments, and addressing any immediate concerns or assistance needed​​.

Skip-level meeting agenda

Skip-level meetings, involving senior managers and employees not in their direct report chain, offer a chance to connect across organizational levels. These meetings are ideal for discussing broader career development and providing feedback to senior leadership. Agenda items might cover clarity on company strategies and goals, personal professional objectives, and suggestions for organizational improvements​​.

Leadership team meeting agenda

Leadership team meetings are vital for strategic decision-making and issue resolution at the highest levels of an organization. An effective agenda for such meetings might include personal updates, reviewing key metrics, sharing wins and insights, discussing important messages, addressing pressing issues, and allocating time for an open discussion or "hot seat" session where specific topics are addressed in-depth​​.

Each type of meeting, be it an all-hands gathering, one-on-one discussion, performance review, or team brainstorming session, requires a thoughtfully crafted agenda to avoid unproductive meetings and keep discussions on track.

By using these meeting agenda examples, you can ensure that each meeting, regardless of its format, contributes meaningfully to the organization's goals and enhances teamwork and collaboration.

Running an effective meeting

It’s one thing to have an amazingly organized and detailed agenda that your team can reference before the meeting—using it as a tool during the meeting is a whole other ballpark. These tips will help you make your meeting agenda as useful during the meeting as it is as a preparation tool

Stick to your agenda. The best agenda becomes useless if you don’t stick to it during the meeting. Try not to bounce back and forth between agenda items but rather stick to the priorities you established earlier.

Stick to your timeboxes. It absolutely helps release some tension and lighten the mood if you have a bit of small talk or a quick check-in at the beginning of your meeting. That’s why you should allocate three to five minutes to this—and stick to the timeframe. Pictures of Kabir’s son’s adorable Halloween costume can be shared elsewhere so you have enough time to reach your meeting’s goals now.

Designate a note taker. At the beginning of the meeting, designate a note taker who will write down any questions, feedback, tasks, and ideas that come up during the meeting. You can rotate this position so everyone on your team gets to contribute at some point. Ideally, these notes are taken in the same place as the meeting agenda—this will make it a lot easier for team members to follow the notes and link them to agenda items. Notes can also be directly entered into Asana for real-time updating and tracking

Follow up after the meeting. Typically, the note taker will be responsible for following up with the meeting notes afterward. The notes should include any decisions that were made during the meeting, tasks that need to be completed, and questions that remained unanswered. If possible, assign teammates and add due dates to action items to keep accountability high. To ensure that these action items are tracked and completed, they should be promptly added to our Asana project management tool.

Make the most out of every meeting

With Asana, you can keep your meeting agenda, meeting minutes, and meeting action items in one place. Effortlessly share the agenda with your team and assign agenda items in real time so nothing falls through the cracks.

Streamlining your meetings with one central tool will reduce the amount of work about work your team faces, connect everyone to the purpose of the meeting, and allow for productive meetings everyone enjoys.

Related resources

New site openings: How to reduce costs and delays

8 steps to write an effective project status report

Provider onboarding software: Simplify your hiring process

Inventory management software: How to control your stock

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Effective Virtual Meetings, Essay Example

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In order for a virtual team to be successful, communication has to be effective and efficient. Communication is mainly done through a virtual team meeting, mostly via video calls or the telephone. However, in order for a virtual meeting to be effective and to ensure the facilitator keeps the meeting on track, there are certain standards that have to be observed.

Keeping the Meeting In-line

The facilitator is undoubtedly the most important asset when it comes to a virtual meeting, this is because the facilitator, whether it is the virtual team leader or a designated virtual team member, gives direction to the whole meeting and will determine how successful the meeting will be. The facilitator is meant to encourage suggestions while guiding the whole process, this enables the team to stay on track with the meeting’s agenda while creating a conducive environment for development. It is vital that the facilitator anticipates any pitfalls related to the virtual meetings.

In order to ensure that the discussions levied during the meeting are within the confines of the purpose and agenda of the meeting, the virtual team leader has to be ready to interrupt discussions. It is essential that the tem improves productivity by realizing progress in these meetings. As such, it is essential that the meeting is aligned with the desired goals.

Define Goals and Purpose of Meeting

It is essential to virtual tea members that time is utilized to realize maximum utility and productivity. As such, it is essential that the goals and targets of the meeting are clearly communicated to all team members, prior to the meeting. This can be achieved through the chosen mode of communication, either through social media or email. This is essential in ensuring that all team members do not diverge from the purpose of the meeting in their discussions.

Engaging All Virtual Team Members

A good virtual team meeting engages all the present team members in analysing the issues at hand, brainstorming on possible solutions and developing a framework upon which that solution will be implemented. Each of the team members has a unique role to play. As such, it is important that each team member is highlighted during the meeting. This helps to ensure that all team members achieve their set goals before the meetings.

Recognition of Contributions

It is essential that the virtual team leader develops a mechanism that allows him to identify the contributions made by each virtual team member (DeRosa & Lepsinger, 2010). By publicly acknowledging the effort given by a given virtual team member, the virtual team leader inspires and instils zeal into the recognized virtual team member and the other virtual team members as well. The prospect of recognition carries with it social status and respect amongst fellow virtual team members and the virtual team leader.

In conclusion, an effective virtual team meeting is essential in the success of a virtual team. These meetings have to be conducted in manner that will ensure all the intended meeting goals are realized at the end of the meeting. It is important that these goals be defined, it is also essential that the team leader keeps the team meeting in line and within the set confines in terms of its purpose and deliverables. It is also important that the team leader engages all the team members in the discussions while recognizing their contributions.

DeRosa, D. M., & Lepsinger, R. (2010). Virtual team success : a practical guide for working and leading from a distance. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Meister, J. C., & Willyerd, K. (2010, June 30). Leading Virtual Teams to Real Results. Retrieved from HBR Blog Network: http://blogs.hbr.org/2010/06/leading-virtual-teams-to-real/

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Effective Meeting Management Aspects

Introduction

How to write effective persuasive reports, parts of an effective presentation, steps in the interview process.

Meetings are common occurrences in business organizations. The role of a leader in a meeting is to maximize the benefits of the meeting; whether a meeting involves a team, a committee, or a group. Structuring a meeting for effectiveness needs preparation and effort. The leader should put into consideration the purpose for which the meeting was organized to manage effective meetings. There are various aspects of effective meeting management. These aspects include effective preparation and effort; facilitate open dialogue; being structured to solicit assistance in clarifications, analyses, and specific problem solving; provides a structure to facilitate a sense of identity; and preparing and dealing with both the task and people involved.

Effective management of meetings requires the leader to consider the purpose of the meeting was organized. Effective meeting management seeks clarity in information dissemination. For instance, a meeting is organized to spread information about what is happening and to provide time for questions and answers. A meeting can also be held to disseminate a directive from top management.

Effective meeting management provides for open dialogue to solicit group opinions and ideas on particular subjects. This aspect is important for meetings held for purpose of opinion seeking. Sought opinions are input strategies and used only for collecting data or testing group responses.

Effective meeting management must be structured to solicit assistance in clarifications, analyses, and offering solutions to problems. This aspect of problem-solving in effective meeting management is more action-oriented. Problem-solving meetings must follow a methodical structure, or else they can easily degenerate into complaint sessions or result in disputed recommendations. Effective management of these meetings calls for strong facilitation skills and knowledge in problem-solving techniques.

In sum, effectively managed meetings provide structures that allow a sense of identity. It is a forum for updating shared knowledge among the team. An effective meeting creates a sense of commitment to group decisions. The meeting leader can facilitate meeting effectiveness by preparing and dealing with both the task and people involved. The leader needs to listen carefully, process interactions, control the flow, and manage the meeting towards achieving the objectives. The ideal size of the meeting attendants must also be established for effective management. Meeting members must be carefully selected for best input.

Before commencement of report writing, there must be a clear reason for writing it. An effective report should be written with a clearly defined objective. There are four main reasons as to why reports are written. However, each report, type notwithstanding, will have its own specific objective. If the specific objective is not clear to the writer then there is little if any chance of the report being effective. The four main reasons for writing reports include: persuasive, that is, to achieve an agreement to a course of action; explanatory, to explain events that are specific; discursive, as a basis for discussion; informative, to inform. This paper is interested in discussing how to effective persuasive reports.

Clearly, the aim of persuasive reports is to persuade the reader to embrace a certain viewpoint. Persuasion is never a simple process. It is absolutely necessary to write legibly and concisely and to present arguments in such a way the recipient understands fully the writer’s thoughts and the processes leading to the recommendations. One cannot report all the data and information he/she has gathered as a result of the work they’ve done. One must therefore be able to summarize the information in a manner that allows for a full appreciation of the subject matter. To get an agreement, a report must be written in a particular way that persuades the reader to agree with the recommendations. This needs a special approach and structure which assists in achieving this.

A well-written effective persuasive report must outline the opportunity, review the implications, and draw conclusions with suggestions on whether or not to go ahead. The writer must ensure the report flows naturally from one step to the next so that the reader follows his thinking. It is insufficient to merely present facts, they need to be linked so that they gradually unfold the writer’s report and carry it to an understandable conclusion. A writer must always be clear in his mind about where he is taking his readers.

Effective report presentation must structure information so that it is easy to understand the first time it is read or heard. Undoubtedly, organized or patterned material makes it easier for the recipients to comprehend and retain. Even when the writer presents a lot of detail, it would be easier to follow if the overall procedure of organization is clear and precise. Every effective report presentation has an introduction, body and conclusion. A well-planned report presentation enables the recipients to effectively follow the writer’s ideas easily.

A good introduction of a report presentation must fulfill three uses: it must gain the attention of the reader; must show how the topic is relevant to the reader; and must provide a preview of the main points covered in the report. The first obligation of the writer is to get readers interested in the subject with attention-grabbing statements which may include; reference to an occasion or event, writing a brief story that may make readers visualize the main ideas the writer will be discussing, using a quotation by a recognized authority on the subject, thought-provoking questions that require recipients to be involved, reference to the topic or subject, or a writers personal story. Recipients respond readily to things they are familiar with, such as problems faced by their organizations, events in their regions, individuals they know, and others. They also respond to new, unusual or exotic ideas. Their attention may be captured on a promise of new information or a description of something beyond their experience. The introduction must indicate how the topic is relevant to the recipients. It also provides a preview of major points explored in the report.

The body of a presentation must capture one thing: the attention of the reader or listener is limited. For instance, when you analyze your own span of attention, be aware of your own tendency to let your mind wander. When you listen to a speaker or read a book for a moment, perhaps you will think of something else, such as some problem. Incorporate various techniques available to develop the body of the presentation. These include the use of statistics, citation of quotations, employ real or hypothetical examples, reference to personal experiences, and use of comparisons, contrasts or analogies to the recipient’s experience.

Presentations may have excellent introductions and bodies but still lack effectiveness. Good writers or speakers must leave favorable impressions in the minds of recipients. Normally, good conclusions should fulfill two purposes: the recipient must know what is expected of him/her; they should be in a proper frame of mind to carry it out. To realize these goals, the conclusion should have two main parts; a brief summary of the main points, and a final appeal that creates an appropriate ending. New information must not be introduced in your conclusion lest you appear unfinished. The conclusion should make a final effort at pushing the main agenda. It must leave the recipients with a sense of closure that lets them see what you have covered and what you would like to occur.

A good interview should be able to bring out information about the interviewee’s experience, judgment, character and maturity. After one has prepared adequately for the interview, it will then be the opportunity to face the interviewee. A successful interview has four distinct parts: first, the procedure to welcome the interviewee. Commence with making interviewees comfortable for effective conversation. Present a prepared genuine welcome statement, which can be as simple as making a comment like thanking the candidate for attending the interview. It is necessary to keep the welcome brief and not let consume the interview time. Conduct the interview in an environment that is free from interruptions.

Secondly, after you have developed a rapport with the interviewee, turn the conversation to determine the candidate’s abilities. Take the opportunity to ask questions you are prepared to abide by the interview guidelines. Inform the interviewee that you may ask additional questions at other points in the interview, which you will do if you realize the need for clarification.

Thirdly, offer the interviewee the opportunity to ask questions when you’ve asked all the questions that you feel were necessary. An interviewee, for instance, a candidate for a management position must have questions. Those who fail to have questions obviously have not prepared and may lack the requisite business acumen to qualify for the position. Respond to the questions appropriately, if an answer to the question posed can be determined from another source, inform the candidate that you will get the information and follow up later. The interviewee should interview with a basic understanding of say, the organization or position. Never dominate a conversation.

Lastly, provide an elaborate conclusion to the interview. A proper ending to an interview is just as important as an appropriate opening. It presents the opportunity to ask any extra questions or seek clarifications. Explain clearly the next steps in the interview process. This may include finding the interviewee’s availability for further interviews, or merely stating that the results of the interview will be reviewed and the interviewee should wait for feedback.

Bentley, Trevor. Report Writing in Business.

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Gathering With Intention to Maximize Staff Meetings

These strategies can help administrators reflect on why and how they gather their staff—improving meeting outcomes and creating a positive staff culture.

For district and building leadership, this is the perfect time to reflect on your all-staff gatherings. Specifically, really think about the when, where, who, how, and why of your gatherings. 

Before you read on, take a look back through your district calendar and answer these questions: 

• When did you gather? (How often? How long?)
• Where did you gather?
• Who was invited/required to be there? Who was there?
• How was the gathering conducted?
• Why did you meet? What did your group accomplish when you gathered? (Dig deep and be honest.)

With the responses to those questions in mind, consider the following points.

Why Are You Gathering?

The first thing you need to establish is why. This is so logical that we sometimes forget to articulate it. We fall into habits and expectations and just go through the motions without digging into why we gather.

So, why did you bring your staff together? In The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters , event organizer and author Priya Parker notes that every gathering needs a clear purpose. Just as educators articulate the purpose for each lesson, so too should each staff gathering have a clear reason for meeting.  

And please, save the precious in-person time for tasks that necessitate meeting in person . If it can be sent in an email or a video message, do that. 

I’ll ask again: Why are you bringing all these people together? What is the purpose of your back-to-school gathering(s)? Your staff meetings? Why are you bringing all the staff together? 

Below are some not-great reasons to gather: 

• We have in-service days to use.
• We have stuff to discuss.
• We need to learn this material.
• We should probably see each other. 

Here are better reasons to gather: 

• To provide staff an opportunity to get to know each other as people, not just educators.
• To spark inspiration and innovation with new ideas so that staff are energized for the year.
• To ensure that staff—teachers, secretaries, cooks, janitors, admin, librarians—understand how our building team is interconnected with one mission: to support every student to be their best self. 

Take a moment and write down a few goals. If you could accomplish anything with your staff, what would it be? You have a team of people dedicated to serving students. What would you love to accomplish with them? Why do you need them to gather?

Guided by your why—your purpose—you can now specify who needs to gather, where you should gather, and how the gathering should function to achieve your why.

Who needs to Gather?

Who needs to be there: New staff? Certain departments? Those who teach, serve, or support a specific grade level? While gathering everyone is necessary at times, depending on your why, gathering in small groups has several advantages. 

First, you’ll be able to dig into your purpose with clarity and specificity with those who actually need to be there. This will help you and your team accomplish more in less time. Second, staff will see that you honor their time and respect them as professionals. When they’re asked to attend, their expertise and input are needed, further increasing meeting focus and productivity. 

Might a couple of people complain? Feel left out? Of course. Because a couple of people are going to complain no matter how brilliant your plan is. Don’t deplete your energy and the energy of your team catering to those folks. Instead, extend invitations to specific people, and, when appropriate, let your team know that anyone is welcome to sit in and audit a gathering. While they may observe, they may not disrupt the gathering.

Alternatively, anticipate those complaints and extend special invitations with a unique function. For example, empower a staffer to be the Connector of Dots (bridging information between meetings), the Anthropologist (tasked with observing and noting how people are reacting and feeling to help improve the meeting), the Historian (sharing past practices and historical connections). Use those staffers productively, and help head off potential negativity. 

Where and How are you gathering?

Now that you know your why and who, you can play with your where and how. A group of 12 requires a different space than a group of 200. If your goal is to knock out all those required informative sessions, how might you do so in a way that simultaneously honors your why and your who?

Certainly the high school auditorium is a great resource, but what about meeting in the band/choir room? Or at a local coffee shop? Why not connect with an area sports team and meet at a local stadium? A community pool for dive–into–professional development (PD) (modeled after drive-in movies)? While these might feel out there, unprofessional, or impossible, consider how each of those spaces shifts the feeling, dynamic, and purpose of your gathering. Again, when you start with your why, you find the where to fit. 

How you gather and what you do with gathered attendees similarly depends on your why. Want staff to connect and build relationships? Don’t sit them in an auditorium that limits movement and has an inherent presenter-presentee dynamic. Instead, meet on the stage or in the gym so that people can move and connect. Want them to build relationships with students? Take the time to go on community walks and physically visit the areas of town in which students live. 

By keeping your eyes on the why, you can shift your where and how expectations to execute your purpose. 

Ideas for Back-To-School Gatherings

Each of the following back-to-school suggestions assumes that there are some practical to-dos that must occur during that time but also provides flexibility to curate unique and powerful experiences for your team.

Team scavenger hunt: Group staff (educators or everyone) into teams. Teams might be based on grade level or content or might mix teachers of all experience levels. Or perhaps those new to the district are all one team and have slightly different objectives than the five- to 10-year staffers, who have different objectives than the 10-plus-year staffers. If custodians, bus drivers, administrative staff, and cafeteria staff also participate, their tasks might also be different, but all the groups compete against each other.

Give each team their to-do list, and set them loose for a little competition. The where may be your whole building or even the whole community. 

Flip your PD: Create videos of key content and then assign those videos to staff. Many content management systems allow you to do this easily, and you can even build in comprehension questions to check for understanding and completion. 

Recruit team members, guardians, students, and community members to create the videos. This will allow you to make some powerful partnerships: Have a group of students create the suicide prevention video; ask a few parents or guardians to talk about your grade-book portal and what is expected to be posted each week. Tap into teachers to create some videos to spark inspiration and share new resources. 

Then, since some content may not pertain to everyone, assign videos to specific groups or individuals (think new to your district versus district veterans). Your where becomes flexible and allows you to use any all-staff time creatively.

Community potluck: Host a potluck featuring food that’s important to different community members or groups. Talk to the area chamber of commerce and partner with local businesses and restaurants to provide portions of the potluck. Have students nominate their favorite school lunch, and have that on the menu. Tap into your school board and/or parents association to gather community members to bring dishes that represent their cultures and traditions.  

The who here is much bigger than those who work in any one building; the who becomes about bringing the whole community together to emphasize that we’re all key players in the education of our kids. The where may be in the school with stations set up to accomplish different tasks. What might happen if parents and teachers were in a room together for an overview of the grade book and what is expected to be posted each week?

There is so little time to do all of the things we must do to get ready for a new year. By focusing on your why, you will have richer, more productive gatherings that help to energize and connect your team.