In the corporate world, meetings — an effective tool for brainstorming, gathering feedback, solving problems, and most importantly decision-making — take up about 50 to 60 percent of a manager’s time.

However, without proper planning and implementation, most meetings end up being unproductive.

Last week we saw the importance of effective planning; today let’s see some practical guidelines on how we can achieve our desired objectives/goals with minimum resources.

Always Start on Time

As people often plan their schedules around meetings, you should always start on time. When you start late, you signal that it is acceptable for employees to be late. And the ones who arrive on time will also be wasting quality time waiting for the latecomers.

After Breaks – To encourage people to return promptly after breaks, when calling for break, remember to state the following: a) Time now — “It’s now 1:30 p.m.” b) Duration of break — “We’ll take a 15-minute break” c) Time we will resume — “We will start again at 1:45 p.m.”

And for latecomers you could impose a penalty. It does not have to be a serious one; instead you could get them to clear the room after the session, or summarize the points discussed at the meeting. If you’re imposing such penalties, you must be strict regardless of rank/position.

Respect Others’ Views & Ideas

Each person should be given time to express their ideas and thoughts. You should establish at the start that no one should interrupt when someone else is speaking. On the other hand, each person should express one idea at a time, and give others a chance to put forward their ideas.

Avoid Hogging all the Airtime

You may come across people who enjoy talking (and listening to their own voice) with little or even nothing to contribute. As a leader, it is your duty to restrict this behavior as it is counterproductive and could sometimes be destructive to your meeting.

Progress Logically through the Meeting

When looking for solutions to problems/challenges, always do it logically and systematically. For example, a problem-solving process may be carried out in this manner: 1. Defining the problem at hand 2. Diagnosing it thoroughly 3. Discussing feasible solutions 4. Deciding on a solution

Apart from encouraging greater participation, this process can also guide your team back on track if the discussion digresses. You can say “Before diagnosing the problem, are we all satisfied with the definition?” if you wish to bring their attention back to defining the problem.

Minimize Possible Distractions

During meetings, you often have to remind people not to discuss personal or other unrelated matters. Also, you should make it clear if you feel that making/receiving calls or checking/sending text messages on their mobile phones will distract the momentum of your meetings.

Always remember the most productive meetings do not always last the longest. By following these practical guidelines, you are more likely to achieve your objectives with less time and effort, and make your next office meeting a success!

–Gulshan Harjani Chief Communication Consultant gulshan@successworkz.com

JP