When can meetings become unproductive?

Meetings can become time management pitfalls

- Meeting must be valuable

- Meeting must be necessary

Too many "useless" meetings

Too few meetings

Refusal to make decisions (team meeting are flooded with agenda items that are irrelevant)

Pecking orders in the meetings

Criticism and ridicule

Meeting at an inappropriate place and time

Inadequate notification of meeting time and subject matter

How do you conduct team meetings?

Start on time

Develop agenda "objectives"--

Generate a list and proceed, avoid getting hung up on the order of topics

Conduct one piece of business at a time

Allow each member to contribute in his own way (support, challenge, and counter, dig for reasons)

Silence does not necessarily mean agreement. Seek opinions.

Test for readiness to make a decision

Make the decision

Test for commitment to the decision

Assign roles and responsibilities (only after decisionmaking)

Agree on follow-up or accountability dates

Indicate the next step for the group

Set time and place for next meeting

End on time

Was the meeting necessary?

What. are the responsibilities of a team leader?

Ensure that all key milestones are met within time, cost, and performance constraints

Adhere to proper quality control standards

Ensure efficient and effective use of resources

Ensure proper staffing

Prepare realistic and acceptable project plan

Prepare project data items

Inform members of their responsibilities on the project

Compare predicted to actual cost and performance and take corrective actions

Track time, cost, performance, and resource commitments

Figure 1-3. Process observer review questions.

1. How did the team get started?

2. How well did the team set up its structure and goal for the meeting?

3. How did the members develop their procedures?

4. How did the team get out all the information and openly explore different points of view?

5. What information was accepted? Rejected?

6. How did the team stay on track?

7. What decision rules were used?

8. How was consensus achieved and tested

9. How did the team discuss its own functioning?

10. How active and evenly distributed was the participation?

11. What climate emerged?

(from: The Team Building Toolkit, by Deborah Harrington-Mackin, ISBN: 0-8144-7826-3)

Figure 1-4. Form for taking minutes.

Topic	Discussion	Decision	Responsibility/ Deadline

(from: The Team Building Toolkit, by Deborah Harrington-Mackin, ISBN: 0-8144-7826-3)

Figure 2-1. Sample team meeting format.

1. Meeting Structure

a. Review agenda

b. Set time limits for discussion of agenda items

c. Assign roles/responsibilities (facilitator, process observers, timekeeper, scribe)

d. Clarify authority and the team's role (if applicable)

11. Define Goal (expected outcome) for Meeting (do not proceed without a common goal)

Ill. Return to Structure

a. Decide on procedure to achieve goal including:

* Whole-team or small-team discussion

* Brainstorming and multivoting

* Type of decision making

* Special boundaries (breaks)

IV. Proceed With Meeting Agenda

V. Closure

a. Summation

b. Follow-up: where do we go from here?

c. Informing those not present

(from: The Team Building Toolkit, by Deborah Harrington-Mackin, ISBN: 0-8144-7826-3)

Figure 1-2. Sample help/hinder list.

Behaviors in the Team That ...

Help

Be on time/be prepared

Participate, volunteer

Engage in open, honest

communication

Listen to understand; speak to be understood

Stick to the agenda

Build on others' ideas

Be optimistic/positive about

team

Criticize ideas, not members

Provide leadership (when needed) without threatening formal facilitator

Perform promised follow-up

Pay attention, stay open- minded

Take problems seriously

Be courteous, honest, trusting

Say what you feel/think

Take risks

Use "we" expressions and

thought

Support each other

Show commitment toward

making it work

Display a sense of humor

Set realistic goals/time frame on goals

Establish clearly defined roles

Distribute labor equally

Hinder

Be critical, negative

Attack personality

Dominate

Engage in name calling/

stereotyping

Be manipulative

jump from one topic to another

Mask statements as questions

Selectively interpret

Agree with everything

Avoid decision making or

closure through sarcasm

Seek sympathy

Express futility, resignation, or helplessness

Withdraw psychologically

Reflect boredom/don't pay

attention

Be prejudiced

Be close-minded

Use "You" statements

Don't communicate,

cooperate, or participate

Judge ideas/others

Don't listen (engage in

subconversations)

Do other distracting work

(from: The Team Building Toolkit, by Deborah Harrington-Mackin, ISBN: 0-8144-7826-3)

Note Sheet:

1. How did the team get started?

2. How well did the team set up its structure and goal for the meeting?

3. How did the members develop their procedures?

4. How did the team get out all the information and openly explore different points of view?

5. What information was accepted? Rejected?

6. How did the team stay on track?

7. What decision rules were used?

8. How was consensus achieved and tested

9. How did the team discuss its own functioning?

10. How active and evenly distributed was the participation?

11. What climate emerged?

MEETING DATE:

Topic	Discussion	Decision	Responsibility/ Deadline