MODERN MANAGEMENT
Meetings: how
to turn a cost
into an asset
By Alan Manly
M
eetings often become
a work based social
function on company
time and at company cost. The
thought of socialising with fellow
staff and being paid at the same
time is sure to keep meetings a
popular distraction to lonely work
routines. Many companies have
a tendency to gravitate toward
their objectives by the sheer
momentum of the organisation,
with or without the meetings. To
assess the quality of a meeting
go no further than the official
minutes. Agenda items are
loosely worded. Action items are
carried over from one meeting
to the next. The most obvious
element missing in such meetings
is leadership. So, how can you
turn meetings from a cost into a
company asset?
Set the Agenda
Meetings need a reason. That’s
why issues to be discussed are
listed as items on the Agenda.
If you are running a meeting,
put all the issues that you want
30 ModernBusiness
February 2016
discussed on the agenda. Don’t be
afraid to itemise every issue that
you want discussed. It will give
you and others in the meeting a
firm guideline of what is expected
to be discussed. You will also
sleep better if all the news, good
and bad, is aired in the meeting.
Others of course may sleep less
when they see the agenda. Finally,
stick to the agenda. Exercise
leadership. Suppress your random
good ideas. Being smart and
quick witted may work against
you in your meeting. Boring is
good!
Know who is where
Sign an attendance sheet. This
sets the scene that the meeting
is serious. Apologies need to be
recorded along with late arrivals.
If anyone excuses themselves
from the meeting for any reason
the minutes should record the
time of leaving and returning.
The minutes should show who
was in the room at the time
that each agenda item was
discussed.
Timing is everything
Start the meeting on time. It’s
not the five or ten minutes that
you are focusing on. It’s the
leadership issue. Either you are
leading or following. Start on
time and let the others learn
that they will fall behind if they
are late. Then move in for total
control of the meeting. Items on
the agenda must be given serious
consideration and be shown to
have been considered. Each item
on the agenda should be run as a
separate meeting. The time at the
commencement of each agenda
item should be noted in the