We’ve all been to meetings that are a waste of time and money. No matter if it’s the wrong person in the room or irrelevant discussions, time spent in meetings isn’t cheap. A well-organized agenda for meetings ensures that you achieve the purpose of your meeting and get closer towards the goals of your business.
A concise and clear agenda allows everyone to understand what’s planned for the meeting, and it helps participants prepare for it. Include the following items on your agenda to ensure it’s effective.
Define the goal of the meeting, and then list the expected outcomes of the meeting. This will keep you focused on the most important issues and will help you avoid unproductive side-bars.
Then, for each item on the agenda, you must define the topics to be discussed. This should include a brief description of the topic, who will be accountable for it and how much time needs to be allocated to the discussion. It’s also helpful to include the meeting’s location and time zone, especially for remote teams.
Think about listing each item on the agenda as a question that needs to be answered by an entire group. (Example: “What steps should we take to rent equipment?” ?”). Each discussion point could be made into a question to stimulate discussion and be aware of what is expected at the meeting.
Include a description of the process you plan to follow for each item on the agenda. This is one of the most neglected elements of a meeting and can dramatically increase the effectiveness of your meeting. Without a clear and concise process each participant will have to decide for themselves how to approach the subject which could lead to off-topic discussions or even a complete meeting that is a disaster. By having a procedure that allows participants to alter their remarks to remain within the allocated time or suggest additional time to discuss a particular issue.