• POSTMORTEM AND

ANATOMY
• OF

Rachit Puri Navjot

Objectives
 Meaning of Meeting

“Meeting is a gathering of like people with a common

cause & a common agenda.”

Meeting management helps to set skills often

 Definitions
• A meeting is a purposeful formal
gathering of organizational members
to determine and undertake tasks to
advance the agenda, maintain
functions and processes and build
the group’s capacity to act in the
future.

• Meetings are concerned with people

and processes to develop and
Questions to ask yourself before
arranging or attending a meeting

Why? What? Who?

Why are we having What is this Who will be there?
this meeting? meeting? What’s Who needs to be
it for? there?
Why am I going?

When? Where Where to?

Is?the venue
When’s it taking What are the
place? desired outcomes?
appropriate for
What next?
the purpose?

& what would happen if we didn’t have the meeting – is

it necessary?
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 Some Reasons for
Meetings
• Dispense information. • Make/validate
• Solve problems. decisions.
• Plan/strategize tasks. • Create new options,
visions, directions.
• Air concerns.
• Establish new
• Invest in board growth
governance
and learning.
procedures.
• Motivate staff.
• Evaluate works in
progress.
• Celebrate successes.
 Why? What is the
purpose?
• Define and write the meeting
purpose—what you want to
accomplish.

• If you can’t, don’t call the meeting.

• Be inclusive-give all members of

organization some responsibility/
activity
 When not to call a
meeting?
• When other forms • When gathering a
of communication group can be
will work. avoided by talking
• If one or more key to one or two key
people can not people.
attend. • To substitute for
• Just because the your personal
meeting is action. (Make the
regularly decision!)
scheduled.
 What? What are you
going to discuss?
• Prepare an agenda.
• A good agenda is a control tool for
the leader.
• A good agenda is a preparation tool
for the other participants.
 Who?

•Invite only those

necessary to get
the job done.
•Caution! Keep in

mind your purpose.

Building rapport
may be more
important than
efficiency.
 When?

•This is driven by
who you need at
your meeting.
•Best time that most

of the key people

can attend the
meeting. (Do some
checking.)
•Allow adequate

notice time.
 Where?

•Centrally located or
most accessible to
the majority of the
people you want to
attend.
•Comfortable.

•Convenient.

•Conducive to

working without
distractions.
 Different Dimensions for a
Meeting
Meetings can be Meetings can be task
formal or informal
Formal oriented or process
oriented

Business Task
oriented

Informal
Process oriented Meetings can be
Teambuilding organised to
achieve business,
or for building the
team
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 Formal meetings

• Prepared Agenda Desired

– Apologies Outcomes:
– Declarations of Interest Formal record of
– Minutes of last meeting People present
– Matters arising
Discussion
– Reports points
– Topic(s) for today
Decisions
– AOB (any other
business) Next Steps
– Date of next meeting Report to higher
committee(s) 14
 Formal v Informal meetings

• Different styles and The difference

requirements when between
managing and
leading the
Chairing &
meeting Facilitating

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 Less formal meetings

• There is more likely to • Participants have

be choice about who different incentives to
chairs (or facilitates), attend (and reasons not
and opportunities for a to)
wider range of • The meeting is more
leadership style likely to be motivating
for participants and to
• The purpose of the achieve its purpose if
meeting will be a mix there is variety & fun
of business, • This might influence the
networking & team
choice of
development
– activity
• The process is as
– venue
important as the task
– refreshments
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 Conducting the meeting

Fail to plan, is a plan to fail………..

 Conducting a meeting takes
confidence, excellent
facilitation and
organisation skills. Know what
your meeting should achieve
and then make sure it is done.
Make a list of all the things you
need to do and consider before
you arrange a meeting.
 Things you need to consider, organise.
Reason for meeting – what is your main objective.
Who needs to attend to make this happen.
Is your meeting for information or making a decision
or both?
What do the participants need to bring.
Where will the meeting be and at what time. What is
on your agenda?
Do you need refreshments?
Who will take minutes and log actions? Are your
facilitation skills up to the job?
Remember - Plan, prepare, promote
and produce!
 The Mechanics:
Conducting the Meeting
• Start and end on time.
• Make introductions.
• Announce the agenda.
• State the desired outcomes; get
agreement.
• Establish ground rules.
• Stick to the agenda.
 The Mechanics:
Conducting the Meeting
• Maintain the group memory—
preferably on flip chart paper.
• Use an appropriate decision-making
tool.
• Assure that action items have names
and dates next to them.
• Review accomplishments.
• Draft next agenda—items, time,
date.
• Adjourn the meeting when it is over.
The Agenda
q Date / Time / Location /Attendees /
Apologies
Give a statement of purpose
Include minutes of last meeting
Include timings against each item
Have detail under each item to ensure
clarity
AOB?
Circulate prior to the meeting for
information

comments / additions / changes

 The agenda should include,
a reason for the meeting, include any previous
meeting information,
time allocated to each event,
Include details for clarity, do you want to include
AOB? (this can add valuable time to a meeting if
someone introduces a challenging topic. Ask
participants prior to the meeting for any items to
be added, with times and do not include AOB).
Make sure invites and notification is
communicated in plenty of time.
Obtain agreement of attendance.
The Participants

Have they all seen the agenda?

Do they know what their role will be?
Are they aware of what they need to bring?
Are they aware of the start and finish time?
Do they know where to be?
Have they any agenda points that need including?
 Participant
Responsibilities
• Prepare before the • Stick to the
meeting, as subject. Don't get
required. off on tangents.
• Be on time. • Listen to others.
• Listen to others. • Accept your share
• Contribute to the of the delegated
discussion as work.
appropriate. • Follow-up on your
• Assist leader-those responsibilities in a
presiding over timely fashion.
meeting
Make sure the participants
are fully informed about
every aspect of the
meeting, and
certainly make it known
what the meeting is to
achieve.
 The Art:
Facilitating the Meeting
• Listen actively. • Address conflict.
• Encourage • Assure that all
discussion, yet stay have a voice in
focused. decision-making.
• Steer people back
on course, yet
invite creativity.
• Summarize and
integrate.
 Facilitating the meeting

Know your audience

Have you got
everything you need?
Handouts?
Reference Material?
Is the room ok?
Does everything work?
CHECK IT!
 Tips for Facilitators
•Don’t get pulled
into resolving a
conflict between
two people. Ask
others for their
opinions, or ask if
there are other
issues. Focus on
passive majority.
•

Brainstorm ‘pros’
•

and ‘cons’ of each

 Tips for Facilitators
• Tell group no one • Give people a
gets to interrupt— break when they
except for you! start to goof off.
• Set time limits for • Use structured
discussion. activities—
• When one person brainstorming or
is dominating, nominal group—
others are not when entire group
participating. Focus has low
on them! participation.
 Key facilitation skills
Express ideas
Question effectively
Listen
Analyse appropriately
Provide positive feedback
Clarify misunderstandings
Manage interruptions

How does your list compare with ours?

q Friendly but business-like
q Positive and productive
q Neutral
q Organised
q Motivational
q Decisive

What other attributes should you have?

Please consider these, make a list, then compare with the list
provided in our information section.
Lets look at the key qualities
of an effective facilitator
Friendly and business like,
positive and productive,
neutral, organised,
motivational, and
you should have the ability
to make decisions.
Administration and Actions

It is important to:
Home in on actions - “So what needs to be
done?”
Note actions during the meeting - What, Who,
When
Summarise actions at the end
Send out a list of actions
Noting all the details from the meeting,
especially any actions is crucial
to the success of every meeting. Make
sure the note taker has the skills to do
this accurately.
All minutes and action points need to
be communicated and followed up.
All actions must have an owner and you
will need to check they are being done.
 Plan and Prepare
Meeting objective
Identify the right participants
What do they need to bring?
Meeting venue and time
Do you need to provide refreshments?
An agenda
Minute and action logging
How will you conduct the meeting?
 Effective discussion
skills:

• Clarify
• Balance participation
• Listen
• Summarise
• Stay on track Get the process
• Manage time right
• Test for consensus
• Evaluate meeting
 And finally……………

Carry out your agreed

actions
Monitor other people’s
actions
Don’t leave it until the next
meeting!
Find out what they thought
of it - any ideas for
improvement?
And finally, always, always, follow up.
 Conducting Effective Meetings

Facilitating meetings
Conducting the meeting
Controlling the agenda
Participation
Making decisions
Meeting minutes
Meeting follow up
 Meeting Minutes
• Include name of the group, the date,
the time, the place, the name of the
meeting.
• List names of attendees and absentees.
• Describe disposition of previous
minutes.
• Record old business, new business,
announcements, and reports.

42
 Meeting Minutes
• Record the vote and action taken.
• Conclude with the name and signature
of the individual recording the
minutes.

43
 Some
Facts….
Level of complexity of items
Tropman’s Agenda Bell

Start of meeting End of meeting

 The Gestalt
cycle Is very
Monitoring Energy useful in
understanding
how meetings
get stuck -
usually because
energy gets
blocked
somewhere.
Originally
devised to help
therapists
understand the
processes
individuals have
to go through to
achieve closure
The Gestalt Cycle 47
 Something’s going on
Closure Sensati here, not sure what.
on No one seems to be
Absence of closure =
people need to keep
on coming back to a
decision, something Awareness
Something’s happening but
Understandi no one seems to dare to
mention it. Alternatively,
ng how people are talking about it,
Contact meetings get but no one seems to know
what to do
Contact between
people Is achieved stuck
when they are
happy with the
Mobilisation
outcomes, feel a Action of Energy
A decision’s been taken We know what we need
but a lot of people still to do, but no one seems
aren’t happy with it – little to have much energy
commitment to action - for it. No one wants to
no sense of achievement commit themselves.
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 Staff meetings

• Purpose:
– Staff briefing
– Planning form
al
– Decision making
– Problem definition Process
& ideas generation
– Review /
Evaluation inform
al
– Discussion
– Networking
– Teambuilding
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 Organising Staff Meetings
• Short meetings to • Longer meetings or
deal with awaydays to deal
operational issues with strategic
– at regular issues, timed to fit
intervals in with annual
planning and
review cycles.

Choose the right type of

meeting to fit the topic
or focus.

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 Making meetings fun
• Introduce some
• Rotate chair energizers
• Vary location
• Refreshments
• Lightness and
• Manage length of humour ( between
agenda – be
realistic
serious items)
• Keep to time !
• Encourage
everyone to
Don’t put up with bad behaviour - work
out how to deal with difficult people
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 To your success…
• Sometimes you feel awkward about
asking a question…
• Sometimes there isn’t time…
• Sometimes you think about
something later…
Conducting Effective Meetings

C o m m u nication ONCISE

C s o f E ffective
THE 5
Don’t waffle - Stick to the Point
LARITY Don’t ‘stun’ the audience with
expertise
Signpost and link sessions
Simple sentences
Keep it simple
Frequent illustrations and examples
Use the language of the audience
ONTROL
One point at a time
Check understanding - Very important!
Establish rapport / Get to know them
Check everyone is performing the desired
activity
OURTESY Stay calm - appear confident - SMILE!

HARACTER
Listen and encourage participation
Express your personality
Be empathetic / assertive / open
Be down to earth and natural
Recognise that people …
Be enthusiastic
… don’t like training / speaking in Use humour / have a sense of
public / lack confidence / think humour
you’re testing them
And after all this
learning part, we
have a lighter side
for this
meeting also….