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BUSINESS SKILLS TIPS 27 – MANAGING MEETINGS
Do you hold formal or informal meetings? Today, managing meetings is much more informal compared to how it used to be done. Perhaps, if you are involved in a large structured business, a corporation or public company most meetings are still more formal. In such companies, not to mention counsel and government departments, there is a need to record every detail. In that way, not only is control of the business easier and the passing of valuable information between employees, the issuing of tasks and the understanding of where people are in relation to outcomes much more comprehensive and recordable, but by being visible too, managers are kept up to date with progress. Thus, managing meetings has always been an art-form that was not only necessary but sensible.
Nowadays more informal meetings can occur over lunch, in the pub, online, and so on, so their style tends to be informal. None the less, taking notes or recording the meeting so as to record outcomes, is still a must do.
This b.s.t. is to remind listeners that even if your meetings follow a more informal structure they need to be controlled to get the most out of them and to avoid time wasting and forgetfulness. It is human nature to ‘forget’ tasks that we have been asked to do which we do not necessarily want to do or care about. Better by far to have the instruction recorded or objections to the instruction raised at the point of time rather than when the ‘instructed’ is being expected to present the outcome of the requested task one is greeted with, “Oh, I didn’t have time”, or, “I wasn’t able to locate, find, discover, reach . . . . “. Frustrating for all concerned because the expectation of the outcome remains in the atmosphere like an ex wife at the funeral, to haunt everyone.
Better by far to be dealt with at the time, as well as who is presenting what under which item of the Agenda, who has undertaken to carry out certain tasks (recorded in the notes of the meeting), when the next meeting will be held and who will be bringing what to that meeting. All these items should be written up in the notes of the meeting and circulated later to each of those attending. Only then, can managing meetings become less of a time waster and more of a management skill.