Regular staff meetings are critical to an efficient and organized office. However, if those meetings are not conducted properly, the results could be an unfocused team and, ultimately, poor service for clients.
April Lynn Levitt, a Toronto-based coach with the Personal Coach, suggests four simple steps to more productive meetings:
1. Start on time
Meetings should be begin and end at their designated times. If you are late in starting a meeting, you will most likely go beyond your allotted time, which can then be problematic for those who have appointments immediately following the meeting.
Team members should not be strolling in after the meeting has begun. If you’re looking to rid certain staff members of this habit, Levitt provides a technique used by one of her clients, a financial advisor, to demonstrate the importance of punctuality:
“The meetings were supposed to start at 8:00 a.m. If the rest of the team wasn’t there, he would lock the door.”
The advisor had to carry out that process only a few times before tardiness ceased to be an issue.
2. Have different team members chair each meeting
Although you are the head of the team, you don’t necessarily have to lead every meeting. Changing the meeting chair can help liven up meetings and show staff that they have an important role.
For example, if you are meeting to discuss client service issues, you might ask your administrative assistant to lead that session. He or she is the first point of contact when clients have questions or are making appointments.
3. Take meeting notes
Many teams do not record minutes of their meetings, Levitt says. But note-taking should be a part of every meeting.
Notes are a handy resource for those who were absent from the meeting. They also provide reminders of the decisions that were made and any issues that have to be pursued at the next session.
Being the recorder isn’t necessarily a coveted role, so have team members take turns. Why not take on the role yourself on one of those times when you are not chairing the meeting?
4. Have separate meetings for long-term planning
Team meetings are usually weekly events, where you discuss immediate issues, such as that week’s appointments or new projects. However, you can make your team a part of your long-term planning by having meetings specifically for that purpose.
For example, you can hold an annual meeting to discuss goals and plans for the new year. Follow that up with quarterly meetings to gauge those plans’ progress and determine whether any additional actions are required.