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Chapter 8 Holding a Meeting Student Materials

Chapter 8 HOLDING A MEETING

Reference MaterialReference Materialss22

88.1 Situation.1 Situation 448.2 8.2 How can Meetings Help?How can Meetings Help?

448.3 The Language of Meetings8.3 The Language of Meetings

6688.4 .4 Documents Used in a MeetingDocuments Used in a Meeting

778.5 8.5 Notice of MeetingNotice of Meeting

9988.6.6 AgendaAgenda

10108.78.7 MemorandumMemorandum

1313(a)(a) Points on Writing a MemorandumPoints on Writing a Memorandum

1414(b)(b) Using Templates to Prepare Using Templates to Prepare a a

MemorandumMemorandum 1515

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8.88.8 ConclusionConclusion2020

8.8.9 Case Practices9 Case Practices 2121

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Reference Materials(a) Web-sites The following web-sites are resource centres providing guidelines and reference materials on writing meeting documents. Students are encouraged to browse through the web-pages for useful learning materials.

1. Consensus Decision Procedures: Brook’s Handouthttp://www.reclaiming.org/about/consensus/brook.html

2. Sample Template for a Meeting – Minutes Reporthttp://www.mapnp.org/library/writing/minutes.htm

3. TAPPED IN – Meeting Tipshttp://www.tappedin.org/info/meeting_tips.html

4. Top 7 Steps To Conducting More Effective Meetingshttp://top7business.com/archives/management/20000622.html

5. Writing Minuteshttp://www.sonoma.edu/CampusLife/clubs/clubhandbook/writingminutes.html

6. Writing up Clear Minuteshttp://web.mit.edu/brlewis/www/minutes/write.html

7. YALSA: How to Plan and Run a Meetinghttp://www.ala.org/yalsa/yalsainfo/planrunmtg.html

(b) Reference BooksThe following books provide an in-depth treatment of business communication, giving a vast amount of case studies and activities for illustrating key concepts and processes. They also include a collection of sample letters and documents of different functions. Students are recommended to refer to these books for the topics to be discussed in this chapter.

1. Bentley, Mauree. Mary Munter’s Business Communication: Strategy and Skills.Singapore: Prentice Hall, 1991.Chapter 14 Holding Meetings and Answering Questions

2. Bovee, Courtland L., and John V. Thill. Business Communication Today. 6th ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2000. Part 7 Component Chapter A Format and Layout of Business Documents

3. Guffey, Mary Ellen. Business Communication: Process & Product. 3rd ed. New York: South-Western College Publishing, 2000.Chapter 2 Communicating in Teams: Listening, Nonverbal Communication,

Collaboration, and Meeting Skills

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4. Ng, Christina, Loon, Yvonne, Radcliffe, Julie and Tang, Eunice. All About Meetings.Hong Kong: Department of English, City University of Hong Kong, 1996Chapter 1 Introduction to Meeting / Chapter 3 Notice of Meeting / Chapter 4 Agenda

5. Taylor, Shirley. Communication For Business – A Practical Approach. 2nd ed. London: Pitman Publishing, 1993.Unit 10 Memoranda / Unit 13 Meetings

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Chapter 8HOLDING A MEETING

8.1 Situation

Consider the case of Vicky Fashion Company. The company has been established for ten years. It has grown from a small company with a staff of three members to a medium-sized company with a staff of fifty members. The company has several departments with different functions. In the past ten years, members in these departments did not hold any formal meetings. They believed they could communicate well by having informal face-to-face talks. Vicky Kan, the General Manager, has discovered many errors due to misunderstanding. She then decides that regular meetings should be held for formal communication and that relevant documents should be prepared prior to the meetings. With the increased use of meetings for communication and written records as follow-up for agreements, errors due to misunderstanding have been greatly reduced. The workflow in the organisation has become more efficient.

8.2 How can Meetings Help? From the above case, it is clear that meetings could enhance the effectiveness of communication among the staff. In a meeting, people gather for a purpose, e.g. discussion or decision making. In general, a meeting can serve the following functions:

(a) Giving Information

People taking part in a meeting may present the information they have collected from different sources. This sharing of information allows everybody to have a basic understanding of the matters under discussion.

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This chapter discusses how meetings serve as one of the communication channels in organisations. For example, in meetings:

Information about opinions and comments can be gathered. Information about company policies and changes in markets can be disseminated.

To improve the effectiveness of meetings, documents giving the nature and details of the meeting should be prepared before the meeting, for instance, a notice of meeting and an agenda. This chapter also introduces to students the use of a common document for internal communication – a memorandum. It is mainly used to inform staff of important information and company policies. Exercises and case practices at the end of the chapter give students the chances to practise preparing these documents.


(b) Reporting on Progress

Responsible persons may have to report to the participants of the meeting on the progress of some pre-determined activities.

(c) Assigning Duties

Persons held responsible for a project will assign duties to the participants for completing the project.

(d) Requesting Assistance

Requests for assistance may be necessary at any time. Permission must be sought through the meeting from the people who have the authority.

(e) Expressing Ideas or Opinions

Participants may express their ideas so that the others can share. They can also exchange opinions so as to arrive at a mutual understanding from diversified points of view.

The Student Union is going to organise a seminar on further studies and careers. As the Chairman of the Student Union, you have decided to hold a meeting to arrange for the seminar. How do you plan for the meeting? If you do not have proper planning, what will happen?

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8.3 The Language of MeetingsTo achieve the purposes of meetings, participants should express their ideas efficiently and effectively with good communication skills. At different stages of a meeting, expressions with specific meanings are used to convey clear and precise information to allow for efficient and effective communication. The following table lists some of the most common expressions used in meetings.

Starting a Meeting

To start the meeting

Let’s get down to business.Shall we begin?

To state the purpose

The purpose of this meeting is…The problem we are going to consider is…The issue for today’s meeting is…We are here to discuss…

Leading the Discussion

To give opinions In my opinion …I think that …From my point of view…As far as I can see …Besides, we can…Personally, I …My concern is that…Perhaps we can…

To give examples Let’s take…for an example.For example, we may consider… Let me cite an example…

To add In addition,Also, Another issue is ...Not only…, but also…

To agree I’m all for it …Absolutely!I fully support the proposal.That’s exactly what I have in mind!I couldn’t agree more.I agree with what Mr Chan has just said.

To disagree I disagree completely.That’s not quite right! I think.I'm sorry I think you’re mistaken here.I doubt if that would work.

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I’m not sure if …But I don’t think it’s right to …Don’t you think…is better?You’re right to some extent, but I think…

To propose Wouldn’t it be a good idea to …I’d recommend that…I’d like to suggest that ...

To ask for clarification

Are you saying that…?Could you elaborate on this point?Would you mind explaining…?

To interrupt I have a point to make here.Excuse me. Can I say something?Excuse me, I’d like to …

Ending a Meeting

To summarise The main points of our discussion are…To conclude, we should…To summarise, we have …To sum up, …

To close The meeting is now adjourned.That’s all for today.If no one has anything to add, I’d like to…

Table 8.1 Some Common Expressions Used in Meetings

8.4 Documents Used in a MeetingA number of documents are prepared before, during and after a meeting.

Before a meeting, notices and agendas are issued to inform the participants of the date, time, venue and the matters to be discussed in the meeting.

During the meeting, notes are taken.

After the meeting, a set of minutes is prepared to summarise the matters discussed and decisions made in the meeting. Copies of the minutes are distributed to all participants before the next meeting. In the next meeting, the Chairman signs the minutes after they are confirmed as true records of the last meeting. Minutes are normally signed before being filed as official records. Some minutes of regular and routine meetings, however, may not be signed as they are prepared for record purposes only.

Vicky Kan distributes a memorandum to the staff about holding meetings. She requires that documents such as notice, agenda and minutes should be prepared for the meeting. All these documents should be filed as records.

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Besides formal expressions, there are terms with specific meaning used in various documents of meetings. The following table lists the meaning of some of these common terms.

Terms Meaningabsence with

apologiesa list of the absentees

ad hoc meeting a meeting held for a particular purpose(to) adjourn to end until a later date

Annual General Meeting (AGM)

a meeting to be held annually and to be attended by all people concerned

consensus a general agreement of the group(to) convene to call a meetingin attendance a list of the people who only sit at the meeting

but do not participate in the discussion majority vote an idea agreed by over half of the members in

the groupmembers present a list of the people attending the meeting

motion a proposal putting forward for discussion at a formal meeting

move to propose a motion for discussionmover a member who puts forward a proposal

opposer a member disagreeing with another memberproposer a member putting forward an idea

proxy vote a vote by a member on behalf of another member

quorumthe least number of members that must be present at a meeting before its proceedings can have authority

resolution a motion being put to the vote and agreed to by a majority of the members

seconder a member agreeing with another memberunanimous vote a formal absolute agreement by the group

Table 8.2 Some Terms Used in Documents of Meetings

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8.5 Notice of MeetingA notice of meeting is sent to every person invited to the meeting. It states the type, place, date, time, people involved and very often the purpose of the meeting. Sometimes, it will be combined with an agenda.

Why is a notice of meeting necessary?

Notice of MeetingNotice of Meeting

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Vicky Fashion Company

NOTICE OF MEETING

To: All Members of Staff

The Second Staff Meeting will be held in the Conference Room on Tuesday, 5 June 20 -- at 11:00 am.

Susan WONGSecretary

30 May 20--

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Practice 8.Practice 8.11 (Grade B) (Grade B)Mr Henry Wong, the Human Resources Manager of Vicky Fashion Company, instructs Vivian Ho, his secretary, to draft a notice for a monthly meeting of the Human Resources Department. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, 25 April 20--. The time is 10:00 am and the venue is the conference room. All members of the department should attend.

You are Vivian Ho. Draft the notice of the monthly meeting. Remember to write down the date for issuing the notice.

8.6 AgendaAn agenda is a formal schedule of the items to be discussed at a meeting. Usually the secretary drafts it. The chairman decides on the items for discussion. The agenda must be sent out before the day of the meeting to allow members sufficient time to make preparation beforehand. Normally, it is combined with the notice of a meeting and is put after the notice. The content of the agenda may be brief or comprehensive.

What are the major items in an agenda?

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AgendaAgenda

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Vicky Fashion Company

Second Staff Meeting

Date: 5 June 20--

Time: 11:00 am

Venue: Conference Room

AGENDA

1. Confirmation of minutes of the last meeting

2. Matters arising

3. Organising a training course for the senior staff members

4. Reviewing the advertising strategies

5. AOB

6. Date of the next meeting


Notice of Annual General MeetingNotice of Annual General Meeting

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The Owners of Sun Sun Building Association Limited

Notice of Annual General Meeting

Notice is hereby given that the 5th Annual General Meeting will be held at Room G01, Sun Sun Building, on Wednesday, 2 February 2000 commencing at 7:00 pm for the following purposes:

1. to confirm the minutes of the 4th Annual General Meeting held on Tuesday, 2 February 1999;

2. to receive and consider the Annual Report of the Executive Committee, the Statements of Accounts and Balance Sheets, and the Auditors’ Report for the year ending 31 January 1999;

3. to elect Executive Committee Members, Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Honourary Advisors for the session 2000-2001;

4. to appoint Auditors; and

5. to transact any other business of the Association.

By order of the Executive Committee

(signature)

(Karen FONG)Chairman

29 December 1999


Practice 8.2 (Grade B)Practice 8.2 (Grade B)You are Vivian Ho, the secretary of Vicky Fashion Company. Prepare an agenda for the Second Staff Meeting. The following details should be included:

1. Propose a new strategy to promote the new products.

2. Choose some staff members to study abroad.

3. Organise a language training course for all staff members.

4. Review the finances of last year and predict the finances for the coming year.

5. Discuss the feasibility of providing housing subsidies for the staff.

You should combine the agenda with the notice. The date of the meeting is Wednesday, 25 April 20--. The time is 10:00 am and the venue is the conference hall.

8.7 MemorandumThe memorandum is used for internal communication. The plural form of the word ‘memorandum’ is ‘memorandums’ or ‘memoranda’.

Discuss the main differences between a memorandum and a letter.

Preparing a memorandum is simple. All one needs to do is to fill in the names of the sender and receiver, the date, the subject headline and the content.

The content of a memorandum should be organised and written in a legible manner. The tone used in a memorandum reflects the relationship between the sender and the receiver.

In case of internal meetings, memorandums can be used to inform the participants. In case of meetings involving external parties, notices of meeting and agenda can be sent to the external parties via letters, faxes, e-mail messages, etc.

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(a) Points on Writing a Memorandum

(i) The content should be organised to fulfil its aim.

(ii) The tone should be appropriate for the relationship between both parties.

(iii) The length of a memorandum seldom exceeds two pages. It is common to include additional information in appendices. Memorandums with lengthy content may be written in the form of reports.

MemorandumMemorandum

Practice 8.3 (Grade C)Practice 8.3 (Grade C)You are Mr Koo F C, the Customer Service Manager of Vicky Fashion Company. A regular customer has lodged a complaint about the incorrect delivery of products. As an event like this will affect the image of the company, you ask Mr Gordon Lee, the Customer Service Officer, to start an investigation and report on its progress in the next meeting. Draft a memorandum to inform him of the task.(Note: Use dates and relevant information of your choice.)

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MEMORANDUM

To: Mr CHAN Hung Keung, Accounting Officer

From: TAM C W, General Manager

Date: 22 March 20--

Subject: Accounting Errors on the Sales Ledger

I have checked the accounting records of our firm and discovered that the records of our client, MKP Ltd, in the sales ledger do not match.

I suggest that appropriate steps should be taken to check the data on the sales ledger to ensure accuracy.


(b) Using Templates to Prepare a MemorandumSome templates for memorandums are available in MS Word. You can refer to Chapter 2 ‘Basic Skills of Word Processing’ for the steps in using templates and Chapter 5 ‘Purchasing and Returning Goods’ for templates of letters.

1. Choose the New command from the File menu bar.

2. The New dialog box is seen on the screen. Then choose the Memos folder.

Fig 8.2 Dialog Box of New

3. There are different types of memorandum for users to choose from, for example, contemporary memo, elegant memo and professional memo.

Fig 8.3 Choosing an Appropriate Template of Memo

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4. Choose either one of them and click Template in the Create New box. Then click OK.

Fig 8.4

5. You can type in the content in the prescribed locations in the templates in Fig 8.4, 8.5 and 8.6.

Fig 8.5 Contemporary Memo

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Fig 8.6 Elegant Memo

Fig 8.7 Professional Memo

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Practice 8.4 (Grade C)Practice 8.4 (Grade C)Using the templates in MS Word, create a memorandum for the following case:

A Sales Executive has completed an investigation into an incident of incorrect delivery and found that it was due to the out-dated database of the customers. He reports the finding to the Sales Manager and recommends updating the database regularly. (Note: Use names, dates and relevant information of your own choice.)

Practice 8.5 (Grade C)Practice 8.5 (Grade C)The Geography Society of your school is organising a field trip to Tung Ping Chau to observe the landscape on the island.

As the Chairman of the Geography Society, you convene the Working Committee to discuss the arrangements for the activity.

You are required to prepare the notice and agenda for the committee meeting.

(Note: Use dates and relevant information of your own choice.)

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Practice 8.6 (Grade B)Practice 8.6 (Grade B)The contract of operating a canteen in a printing factory will expire at the end of the year. The General Manager issues an agenda to invite staff members to comment on the food and service of the canteen. Members of the Board of Directors of the factory will then meet to discuss matters relating to the operation of the canteen.

You are required to prepare:(a) the memorandum, (b) the notice and agenda for the meeting of the directors.

(Note: Use names, post titles, dates and relevant information of your own choice.)

Practice 8.7 (Grade B)Practice 8.7 (Grade B)The Staff Welfare Committee of a bank is responsible for organising the Annual Award Ceremony for outstanding performance in the business of the branches. Members of the committee are drawn from various offices. Given a budget of HK$100,000 for the function, the committee will decide the form, venue and programme of the ceremony.

You are required to prepare:(a) the notice and agenda for the meeting of the committee,(b) a memorandum to inform staff members of the ceremony.

(Note: Use names, post titles, dates and relevant information of your own choice.)

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Assignment 8.1 (Grade B)Assignment 8.1 (Grade B)The Student Union of a school is going to hold a fund raising dinner party for a target of $20,000. The Executive Committee is responsible for organising the activity. Each member of the committee is to lead a task group in the capacity of the secretary of the task group. Students will be assigned to different task groups: food supply, bands and singers, publicity, accounting, venue, etc.

You are the secretary of the food supply task group. You are required to prepare:(a) the notice and agenda for the meeting of the task group on food supply,(b) a memorandum to inform the Executive Committee of the completed tasks.

(Note: Use names, post titles and dates of your own choice.)

8.8 ConclusionThis chapter has dealt with the functions and documents of holding meetings. Meetings allow a group of people to give, receive and share information in an interactive way. Distortion of information will be reduced to a minimum as instant clarification on queries can be made. It is an ideal way to exchange ideas and opinions, to discuss problems and to make decisions. A well-planned meeting with sufficient preparation in advance increases the efficiency and effectiveness of the meeting.

To ensure the effectiveness of a meeting, two documents should be prepared. Before holding a meeting, a notice and an agenda are issued to inform the participants of the date, time, venue and the matters to be discussed. During a meeting, the agenda serves as a guideline for discussion to ensure that important matters have been dealt with. Additional information or important decisions are recorded in the meeting. After a meeting, minutes are prepared to record the discussion and decisions made. A memorandum is mainly used for internal communication such as conveying company policies and management decisions.

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8.9 Case Practices Vicky Fashion Company is thinking of expanding its business to include not only business users but also household users. Mr Chan J V, the General Manager of Vicky Fashion Company would like to hold a meeting to discuss this strategic move.

Task 1 (Grade B)Task 1 (Grade B)You are Carol Lau, the secretary of Mr Chan J V. Prepare a combined notice of meeting and agenda for a meeting of the senior staff with the following information:

Details of the meeting:

Date: 22 September 20-- (Friday)Venue: Conference RoomTime: 2:30 pm

List of topics to be discussed in the meeting:

1. Expansion of business2. Extension of premises3. Strategies for marketing4. Scope of the products5. Recruitment of new staff6. AOB

Task 2 (Grade C)Task 2 (Grade C)You are Mr Chan J V, the General Manager of Vicky Fashion Company. You would like to inform the staff of the expansion of the market. Prepare a memorandum to include the following points:

1. The expansion will take effect in the coming years.

2. The scope of the expansion will include household users.

3. Staff members should expect a lot of changes due to the expansion.

4. Welfare schemes for employees will be improved and details will be disclosed in a week.

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