Many people in business complain that they have far too many meetings and that there are just 'meetings, for the sake of meetings'. This is a fair point, but if planned and managed correctly, face-to-face meetings can be a very effective form of communication within a company.
A meeting needs to have some kind of shared purpose which is relevant and useful for those attending. This can be achieved by ensuring that an initial agenda is sent to those who will be attending, in advance. The agenda will outline what the meeting is going to be about, in what order and what it is hoping to achieve.
The agenda should be closely followed and somebody, usually a manager or team leader, will have the responsibility of ensuring that it runs smoothly, timely and that everybody gets their say. Meetings, if not controlled effectively, can overrun massively which disrupts every body's day!
The best meetings I have attended are the ones where workers have to come up with a new idea to help improve something or for a new product or service. When everybody is together, face-to-face, they can share new ideas and expertise instantly, to help make a business more efficient and better for the customers. This can be achieved through 'brainstorming'.
Meetings are also great for getting instant feedback from people. A manager who has an announcement to make can get a really good idea as to how popular the announcement is from instant feedback and even the way the people in the room respond non-verbally (e.g. facial expressions).
So, overall, meetings are effective when organised and planned in advance and are also a great way of sourcing new ideas for a business. And if people don't fancy the journey to head office for a meeting - then there is always telephone conferencing (although you don't get to see those non-verbal reactions!).
A meeting needs to have some kind of shared purpose which is relevant and useful for those attending. This can be achieved by ensuring that an initial agenda is sent to those who will be attending, in advance. The agenda will outline what the meeting is going to be about, in what order and what it is hoping to achieve.
The agenda should be closely followed and somebody, usually a manager or team leader, will have the responsibility of ensuring that it runs smoothly, timely and that everybody gets their say. Meetings, if not controlled effectively, can overrun massively which disrupts every body's day!
The best meetings I have attended are the ones where workers have to come up with a new idea to help improve something or for a new product or service. When everybody is together, face-to-face, they can share new ideas and expertise instantly, to help make a business more efficient and better for the customers. This can be achieved through 'brainstorming'.
Meetings are also great for getting instant feedback from people. A manager who has an announcement to make can get a really good idea as to how popular the announcement is from instant feedback and even the way the people in the room respond non-verbally (e.g. facial expressions).
So, overall, meetings are effective when organised and planned in advance and are also a great way of sourcing new ideas for a business. And if people don't fancy the journey to head office for a meeting - then there is always telephone conferencing (although you don't get to see those non-verbal reactions!).
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