How many times have you been to a meeting where everyone got their opinions out on the table but nothing was decided? Or how many recurring meetings have you sat through where you wished you could have been excused because even if you were to express an opinion, nothing would change?

We’ve all been there. I’ve worked with managers who have planed for their direct reports to page them out of meetings. I’ve seen telephone conferences purposefully scheduled at the same time as a meetings. I’ve witnessed people repeatedly bringing work to monthly information meetings because they’ve found them to be more of a “show and tell” session than highlighting what is mission critical and why it is important.

The main reason that meetings are not productive is because the group framework is not effective and the facilitator cannot move the meeting toward a predetermined purpose.

A Group Framework

Organizational culture plays a big role in the effectiveness of its meetings. Organizational culture refers to a set of values and beliefs that members of the organization share and that guide their behavior. Is the environment one in which everyone understands the mission and the vision of the organization? Are the core values of the organization exemplified everyday by its executive leadership? Group culture refers to the set of values and beliefs that are shared by the group. A group’s culture may differ from the organization’s culture because of the demographic and professions of the group’s members but a group will be more effective if the organizational culture is supportive.

Values and beliefs must be lived by everyone within the organization or the culture turns cynical. It is one thing to say that an organization values accountability and respect and another if members of the executive team are not visible in the organization and do not show compassion for their colleagues or customers.

A Clear Mission and Vision for the Group

Just as an organization has a mission and a vision for it to be effective so must a group. The mission of the group answers the question, “Why do we exist?” The group’s vision is a mental picture of the future the group seeks to create. So the mission of a monthly information meeting might be “To inform the management staff on the key indicators of the business while recognizing outstanding performance and enlisting their input in a specific action plan for areas that need attention.” Then people go away from the meeting understanding the specifics of what is going right and have helped define how to fix what is not. The vision might be that “At every meeting the group will evaluate whether or not to continue with its existing action items or modify them. Additionally the group will determine what new action needs to occur to improve on (a specific measure.)”

From a more strategic perspective a group may not understand what philosophical direction to take an organization. So instead of just having a discussion around this topic that may go in circles the group’s mission may be to decide what direction to take to best meet the mission of the organization as a whole. The group’s vision might be to become a recognized leader in a certain industry within two years. The meeting’s agenda may begin with a SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) to evaluate the current state of situation before making a plan.

The Facilitator

The role of the facilitator is key in determining the outcome of a meeting. A strong facilitator will see him or herself as a third party unless he/she is also an expert on the topic and will need to give relevant input. If the facilitator is also an expert, he or she will need to note when his or her comments are from outside the facilitator role. Most of the role will be facilitating. The facilitator will work with key people before the meeting to determine the mission and vision of the meeting as well as the agenda for pre-distribution, who will attend, who will take minutes, the meeting start and end times and the appropriate follow up. At the onset of the meeting the facilitator will establish the ground rules for the meeting such as: no idea is a bad idea; everyone can openly disagree but opinions must be expressed with the reasoning behind the assumption; the goal is to identify gaps or problems in a theory; and meeting end time. When the meeting is over, the facilitator clearly reiterates: who will take ownership of the actionable decisions that were made from the input of the group; when the next meeting will be; and what the deliverables are for that meeting. Try unconventional methods to gain enthusiasm. Hold short meetings standing up. Start at an unconventional time that is not on a quarter hour increment – such as 8:47 a.m.

Good meeting facilitation means making the fewest and smallest inferential leaps possible. An inference is a conclusion you reach on something you may have observed. A low level inference might be to ask someone who has made a comment to validate it with why they feel that way. A high level inference might be to point out that they do not seem to care what other people think. Stay with the low-level inferences.

12 Steps to Lead a Productive Meeting:

1.) Define the meeting mission (purpose) and vision (future view).

2.) Define the meeting facilitator and who will take minutes.

3.) Define who will attend the meeting – consider representation from all parties needed to define and implement any decisions as well as who would be affected.

4.) Define the meeting start and end times.

5.) Define and pre-distribute the agenda that should include the meeting mission and vision, any relevant reports, start and end times, and attendees.

6.) At the beginning of the meeting welcome everyone and if people in the room do not know each other do a round table self-introduction.

7.) State the ground rules of the meeting such as: this is a safe environment; no idea is a bad idea; everyone can openly disagree but opinions must be expressed with the reasoning behind them; the goal is define which ideas have the best chance to succeed.

8.) Work though the agenda items inviting a dialogue of views and creative scenarios.

9.) Write the ideas (not the names of who created them) on a chart visible by all. Gather consensus on which ideas have the least gaps and the greatest chance to succeed.

10.) If follow up information is needed or if a decision has been made assign an accountable party to execute and bring a report back to the group.

11.) Review the action items with the group and set those deliverable items at the beginning of the next meeting’s agenda.

12.) Thank everyone for their participation.

Effective meetings require planning, a healthy culture, a purpose and good leadership. Start now!

Follow Mary Lee’s tips on Twitter at StartingOverNow.

Get her free tip sheets on “Change – Here’s How!” and “Goal Setting for a Quick Turnaround” at http://www.startingovernow.com/Articles-and-Tip-Sheets.html.

Author's Bio: 

Mary Lee Gannon is a cultural turnaround and leadership expert who went from being a stay-at-home mother with four children to a difficult marriage, divorce, homelessness, and welfare to CEO. Her book "Starting Over - 25 Rules When You've Bottomed Out" is available on Amazon.com and details how she went from an earning capacity of $27,000 annually to president and CEO within just a few years. Visit her Web site at www.StartingOverNow.com.