Chairing Successful Meetings
The success or failure of a meeting largely depends on the chairperson. If you are chairing a meeting this is what you need to do:
Prior To The Meeting:
Before the meeting starts ensure that it has proper terms of reference and that the members are briefed on what to expect and what they should be prepared to contribute. Plan the agenda to provide for a structured meeting, covering all the issues in a logical order. Prepare and issue briefing papers which will structure the meeting and spell out the background, thus saving time going into detail or reviewing purely factual information during the meeting.
During The Meeting:
- Start by clearly defining the objective of the meeting, setting a time-scale which you intend to keep.
- Go through each item of the agenda in turn ensuring that a firm conclusion is reached and recorded.
- Initiate the discussion on each item by setting the scene very briefly and asking for contributions – ask for answers to specific questions (which you should have prepared in advance) or you may refer the matter first to a member of the meeting who can make the best initial contribution (ideally you should have briefed the individual in advance).
- Invite contributions from other members of the meeting, taking care not to allow anyone to dominate the discussion.
- Bring people back to order if they drift from the point.
- If there is too much talk, remind members that they are there to make progress.
- Encourage the expression of different points of view and avoid crushing anyone too obviously if he or she has not made a sensible comment.
- Allow disagreement between members of the meeting but step in smartly if the atmosphere becomes too contentious.
- Chip in with questions or brief comments from time to time, but do not dominate the discussion.
- At appropriate moments during the meeting summarize the discussion, express views on where the committee has got to and outline your perception of the interim or final decision that has been made. Then check that the meeting agrees, amending the conclusion as necessary, and ensure that the decision is recorded exactly as made.
- Summarize what has been achieved at the end of the meeting, indicating who has to do what by when.
- If a further meeting is needed, agree the purpose of the meeting and what has to be done by those present before it takes place.
Remember that meetings can run in phases. For example, they start with an explanation, continue with a discussion of pros and cons, run into a side track and have to be brought into line, generate some heat because of contending points of view and eventually reach a point where you realize a decision has to be taken.
If you are chairing a meeting you may have to change your style accordingly. You may have to be decisive in bringing people to the point or business to a close, relaxed if you want to allow the discussion to keep going, or persuasive in order to draw people into the discussion.
