Managers Need to Lead Effective Meetings: Here’s How

Tips for the webinar

Training Industry webinars

Today’s Speaker

www.meetingforresults.com

Managers Need Meetings to Get Work Done And their performance may be judged by the meetings they lead!

5

Photo credit: Rein Skullerud, for WFP

Your Challenges? Poll Questions…

What is your greatest meeting challenge?

1. Keeping everyone engaged?

2. Staying on time and task?

3. Difficult discussions?

4. Difficulty reaching decisions?

6

Take-Aways

Practices to structure your meetings to address common challenges including:

– keeping everyone engaged in a productive discussion,

– time management,

– difficult decision-making

– virtual meetings.

You will see how structure can make your meetings, and those of managers you work with, more successful.

And address your questions …

7

Structure’s Influence: Which Meeting Would

You Rather Attend?

9

Unseen Structures Affect What We Do …

Unseen Structures of Meetings

• Structure: Physical, temporal, procedural aspects of meetings…with an impact on how we interact with each other and the work of the meeting.

• Different structures naturally support different behaviors.

• Structure is always present…but choosing the right structure can make a great meeting.

Tools for Creating Effective Meeting Structures

1) Keeping everyone engaged: FATT, 1-2-All, PALPaR, Go-Around, Three Reaction Questions, Visible Note Taking

2) Staying on time & task: FATT, Visible Note Taking, Four Responsibilities

3) Difficult discussions & decision-making:

5Cs, 80/20 Principle, PALPaR, Three Reaction Questions

4) Virtual meetings: FATT, Go-Around, Visible Note Taking

11

Using the Tools

12

Plan ahead to use one of the tools. And then just use them…avoid discussing process with your group first.

Story Time…Challenge: Managing Discussions and Decisions

• 10 team members

• One person always had a lot to say

• Another always seemed to have a different view

• Others participated on an uneven basis

• Unclear decision-making … and some decisions don’t stick

My recommendations to the leader involved how she could focus and balance discussions and build alignment on decisions.

The Next Meeting

• Leader shares agenda including plan that needs approval.

• She introduces decision and asks person responsible to present proposed plan.

• He presents the plan.

• The leader asks all to reflect for a moment… and then turn to another person to share views on 3 questions...

• What do you like about the plan?

• Where do you need further information?

• Where do you have concerns?

Meeting Continues: Gathering Reactions…

• She goes around again and asks each pair to share their thoughts on: questions and concerns. She asks all to listen without comment.

• After a few minutes, she asks each pair to share what they discussed in response to the first question…what they liked. She writes replies on flip chart.

• Next, she asks the person who made the proposal for his replies to what he’s heard.

Meeting Concludes: Reply and Decision

• Finally, she asks each person to speak in turn (no cross-talk) about his/her support … or if further changes or clarifications are necessary.

• All say they support or at least consent to plan and agree that it should go ahead.

• This discussion lasted about 40 minutes and created a clear, well-supported decision.

Some Key Structural Choices

She used the following tools to create a structure for an effective meeting:

FATTPALPaRThree Reaction QuestionsGo-Around

• Defining the task.• Creating a structure for discussion.• Having a clear process for decision.

FATTDefining a Clear Task: Focused, Actionable, Timely, Timed

Rather than “communication planning,” she listed

• “Decide on plan for maintaining website and Facebook page.”

Tip: Include the action and the expected result:

• “Create (action) a list of priorities for work on product improvements (result).”

• “Decide (action) on budget proposal for redesigning office space (result).”

A clear task helps participants come prepared and stay focused.

PALPaRCreating an Effective Exchange in Response to Some Proposal

Present: Make the presentation…but don’t take questions (yet).

Ask: Participants to talk in small groups.– Provide specific directions, like Three Reaction Questions.

Listen: Take reports from each small group. Get responses to one question at a time. Record the feedback where all can see.

Pause: Take a few minutes (or longer) to reflect on the feedback and develop a thoughtful response

and…

Reply: Summarize what you heard and then how you are respond to the feedback.

19

Three Reaction QuestionsGathering Balanced Feedback

• Present idea/proposal. Then ask participants to reflect on their own or in small groups to answer these questions:

1. What do you like about …?

2. Where do you need further information?

3. Where do you have concerns?

• After a few minutes, take reports, one question at a time beginning with the first.

• Get all replies to first question before proceeding to the second.

20

Go-AroundHearing from Everyone Present

• Give everyone a specific, brief time to check-in or speak to some proposal.

• One person speaks at a time while everyone else just listens.

• Hear from all without any discussion, interjections or back-and-forth exchange.

• Great for building consensus or checking for consent.

21

Chat Question…

How many participants in your typical face-face meeting?

22

1-2-All Effective Engagement for Any Size Group…

With more participants, it is hard to keep all engaged. Here’s what you can do.

After introducing a subject or question to be addressed by the group, complete the following steps.

1: Individual Reflection. Give individuals a minute or two to gather their own thoughts. (This is the “1” of the tool).

2: Small Group Discussion. Ask participants to turn to their neighbors to form small, 2-3 person groups to share their ideas.

All: Whole Group Report. Ask each group for a brief report (typically 1-3 minutes) summarizing their small group discussion.

23

Visible Note TakingRecording the progress of the group’s discussion.

24

Shows progress of discussion and that comments were recognized. (Not the same as taking “minutes”.)

• Maintain an ongoing record of comments using speaker’s words. Abbreviations and phrases OK.

• Record notes where all can see them. Flip chart or a shared screen (if virtual meeting).

Questions So Far?

25

Photo credit: Rein Skullerud, for WFP

For more on many of the tools mentioned here, see Six Tools for More Effective Meetings available for download at www.meetingforresults.com/resources

2) Staying on Time and Task

Tools:FATT

Visible Note Taking

Four Responsibilities

26

Story Time…Growing Company with Ineffective Meeting Culture

Situation:

• Managers’ meetings all follow style set by president

• Most meetings consist of updates on status of various items. Few clear tasks for whole group defined in advance.

• Most meetings run over time. Level of engagement was often low.

I was contacted by new director who questioned value of time spent in meetings.

I reviewed a number of their meetings and met with president and managers to help them begin making changes. I began with a conversation about their replies to the Meeting Culture Survey*.

*Meeting Culture Survey available for download at www.meetingforresults.com/resources

My Recommendations

• Make sure all meetings have real work for the group to do together. Updates rarely constitute real work for the group.

• Build a realistic agenda with clear tasks following FATT.

• Use volunteers to fulfill roles of time keeper and recorder. See Four Responsibilities. These build more shared ownership and engagement and help the meeting stay on time.

Four ResponsibilitiesSharing the Work of Running the Meeting

29

• Discussion leader: Makes sure each person who wants to speak is able to contribute in the time available.

• Timekeeper: Keeps track of the time available. Alerts the group when time planned for a discussion is running out.

• Recorder: Uses flip chart or white board to visibly record the real time progress of the group’s discussion where all can see it.

• Information manager/minutes: Maintains the formal documentation and recorded minutes of the group’s work.

3) Avoiding Difficulties as You Build Decisions

Tools:80/20 Principle

5CsPALPaR

Visible Note Taking

Go Around

30

Photo credit: Rein Skullerud, for WFP

80/20 Principle: Focusing on Areas of Agreement

We often agree on 80% of some situation but put most of the energy and time into the 20% we disagree on.

• Remind the group of this principle early in meeting.• Record areas of disagreement as points “not yet agreed.” • Keep the attention on areas of agreement.

Tip: Be sure to introduce this principle early in your meeting, not when you get stuck. And also make sure you follow-up on disagreed items in the future.

31

Five Cs of Decision-MakingChoosing and Communicating How You Will Decide

32

• Respectful dialogue means being clear how you will reach decisions.

• Five ways to reach decisions with a group, “5Cs”

– Consensus: full support• Two ways. Download Consensus Guidelines at

www.meetingforresults.com/resources

– Consent: permission

– Compromise: Alternative to no agreement

– Counting (votes): winners (and losers)

– Consulting: to the final decision-maker

How You Plan to Reach a Decision

33

• Productive engagement requires being clear how you want to involve stakeholders in decisions.

• Five ways to reach decisions with a group: “5Cs”– Consensus

– Consent

– Compromise

– Counting

– Consulting

All give full support

Acceptable as no big negatives …good enough

We each give up something to reach decision

Voting. Decision with most votes “wins”

Providing input to final decision-maker

How You Plan to Reach a Decision

Tools to reach decisions with a group:

– Consensus

– Consent

– Compromise

– Counting

– Consulting

80/20 Principle, Go-Around

Go-Around, Multi-Voting, Forces Review

Small group brings back proposal: PALPaR or 1-2-All

Reach decision by some other means first

PALPaR

Questions?

35

Photo credit: Rein Skullerude, for WFP

Photo credit: Rein Skullerud, for WFP

Underlying Structure of Virtual Meeting

1. Number of participants.

2. Time management.

3. How discussion is conducted.

4. How decision is achieved.

5. Physical arrangements.

36

Chat Questions…

In your virtual meetings, is everyone remote from each other… or are some sitting together?

37

How You Arrange Virtual “Space”Creating a level playing field…

• If you must mix remote and face-face participants:

– Make sure sound quality is great.

– Say name before speaking

– Go-Around group regularly to get equal input. Begin with those on speaker phone.

• Make sure all have same information in same form/medium – on a screen or in their hands.

38

How You Arrange Virtual “Structure”• Clear task/agenda (FATT)

• Use virtual flipchart or shared document (e.g., Google Docs) for ongoing notes.

• Plan how participants can make comments, ask questions, etc., don’t leave it to chance.

– Use of IM, email, “raising hands” and regular Go-around is important…

– Give everyone an equal opportunity to participate

• If you can’t see everyone, you can have pictures of all on call to remind you who has yet to speak…

39

40

Example: Making Participants Visible

Anne

JillJake

Jae

Michael

Delia

Rachel

Sally

NancyJudd Marta

PaulaDouglas

For More Information..Rick’s new book is available on Amazon. It is designed to help leaders adopt structures to make their meetings naturally more productive.

Excerpts from the book: Six Tools for More Effective Meetings, Consensus Guidelines, & Meeting Culture Survey available for download at www.meetingforresults.com/resources . And see Rick’s blog at www.meetingforresults.com/blog.

Contact Rick directly at:

rick@meetingforresults.com or 1-978-580-4262

41

Your Questions?

•

•

•

Upcoming webinars

More ways to get involved

Thank you!

On behalf of TrainingIndustry.com, thanks to:

• Today’s speaker: Rick Lent, Ph. D.

• Our sponsor: Skillsoft

• All of you for attending!

Questions or Comments?

Please contact Amanda Longo:

alongo@trainingindustry.com