Profitable

August 2013

How to Lead Profitable Meetings

This is where you are, but…	THIS is where you WANT to be…
Meetings end with unspecific goals. Vague timelines make people wonder who is going to do what and by when.	Meetings are planned more effectively for better results. Achievable and measurable goals are clearly defined. Effective meeting facilitation skills are the norm. Specific timelines with clear responsibilities are the norm.
Employees dread attending meetings.	Break-out sessions are used effectively to reduce meeting time and maximize results. All participants are encouraged to contribute and provide value.
Meeting participants don’t feel heard or valued.	A safe environment is created. Norms and rules for resolving disagreements are established and followed by all participants.
Participants rarely contribute their honest ideas and feelings.	The value of pre-meeting assignments is clear. Roles for participation are defined for all.
Participants have different interpretations of what was said and agreed to.	Flip charting and note taking techniques to summarize and get consensus are the norm in all settings.

Unsuccessful and unproductive meetings are a waste of your organization’s valuable time and resources. Creating a productive and goal-oriented environment for your business or executive meetings is singularly one of the most valuable tools you can implement for your organization.

Successful leaders, executives and managers stay focused on how they can stay on course and continue to execute on the strategic & business Plan. Therefore, roughly 10-20% of time spent in meetings should be dedicated to looking at your strategic plan, business plan, vision, mission statement, or core values and discussing with participants how you and they intend to apply these principles so they positively impact everyone’s decisions, actions, statements and behaviors. At first this WILL seem cumbersome. But it is the only way to stay “on-course.” most executives and managers are ACTION oriented and believe the fire directly in front of them is of most importance. (If this belief is plaguing you and/or your executive or management team, you are fighting a losing battle and you know it). Get ahead of the curve and you will be able to lead proactively rather than reactively. A great fist step in this process is to make the most of everyone’s time and improving meeting productivity is usually where you will find the lowest hanging and sweetest fruit.

If you have tried these or similar (conferences, books, coaching, etc) steps before with limited results, you don’t have a meeting process problem you have a people, conflict or cultural issue. In that case, please contact me so we can dig a little deeper into the real problems and partner on finding solutions to these and not get sidetracked with superficial symptoms. Kelly@InternalBusinessSolutions.com

For a more exhaustive list regarding meetings, please go to http://www.internalbusinesssolutions.com/advanced-productive-business-meetings-protocol/?preview=true&preview_id=1318&preview_nonce=1fd9c6970a

Purpose of the meeting?

What is purpose or outcome you intend this meeting to produce; the end-result? The purpose should state why the meeting is needed.
Discuss clear objectives/challenges. Come prepared with all relevant information or better yet, email it prior to the meeting so people can have time to prepare (discussed at the bottom of this paper titled Pre-meeting assignments).
Discuss possible options
The group or leader (depending on your executive culture) decide on the best option given time and resources
One person is given the task to carry out the functions and is 100% accountable for its completion in the given time frame provided. Special note: all executives are responsible for its success, but this one person is 100% accountable.
A clear date and time will be given as to its final completion. If multiple stages are required, then milestone dates and times will be provided and met.
Desired outcomes?
1. Outcomes focus the meeting by indicating what information is to be shared and what decisions or actions need to occur.
2. A clear and concise agenda preferably sent at least 24 hours prior to meeting.

Active Facilitation Strategies

Set ground rules so people know how to behave. It keeps the meeting focused. Example:

Start & stop on time
All participate. The facilitator should invite the quieter members to participate
Challenge ideas instead of people
One conversation at a time. Don’t speak over people
We finish with a recap of who will complete what by when.

Pre-Meeting Assignments

Meetings are the biggest wasters of time in all organizations. Therefore, having participants prepared ahead of time and ready to discuss topics will ensure efficiency and productive decision making. Pre-meeting assignments are tasks done by participants in advance of the meeting. If you assign them abide by these rules:

Explain why it is important
Give adequate lead time
Provide clear instructions (i.e., read and be ready to discuss, analyze, or provide us with a synopsis of this topic etc)
Assign only if you intend to use it and then fully leverage the time and material

August 2013

This is where you are, but…	THIS is where you WANT to be…
No buy-in and no follow through from participants once they return from a workshop or training. Trainings are ineffective or off-target and result in poor recall on Monday morning when trying to implement the new skills.	People deeply understand and buy into the training because they were involved from the beginning. They support that which they helped create. Follow through over time is more consistent. Better information retention; a “learning environment” is created by staff where all continue to train and teach each other.
Workshop training manuals get shelved, forgotten, and collect dust.	Participants refer to training manuals and rely on them as valuable resources.
Training or team building is like a doughnut (enjoyable, but with no lasting nutritional value).	Consistent innovation moves people to take action and create new habits. A greater return is received on every training investment dollar.
The training is “off the shelf,” one-size-fits-all, or so generic it doesn’t translate well to our particular people and their specific challenges.	Trainings are specifically designed for our objectives, our culture, and our people so that individual and organizational growth can be measured and maintained. Participants are taught how to overcome daily challenges and integrate information.
We want to utilize the information, but work and pressing issues dictate our priorities. We just don’t have time right now.	Trainers don’t leave after one day. They partner with the organization to ensure long-term learning and return on investment is received. Morale is higher and more consistent. Prioritization is improved.
We don’t know how or don’t take the time to implement staff development because our culture/industry/business is unique.	Training is designed specifically for us from A to Z. Implementing the information is part of the training process and our people grow consistently over time as a result.

You May Want to Ask Yourself These Questions:

How do we establish or reestablish trust? Are you ready to improve and add extra strength to the back-bone of your organization?
How do our people communicate? How can we really improve communication, goal setting and execution so our people and departments GET RESULTS and we actually utilize all of our resources, people and departments as a UNIFIED whole toward specific objectives.
Where are we now and where do we all want to go? How can each member of our organization help to improve our bottom line and why should they?
Is any of this even possible?
If someone told me it was, would I believe them?
If I did believe them would I take the two minutes out of my busy day and do anything about it? would I call, text or email?

Profit from the inside out. I specialize’s in designing employee development programs tailored specifically for your staff and you. I provide you with the necessary training and tools to ensure that your staff continues to teach itself, monitor itself, and show improved results long after I have left.

Are you getting the best out of your employees? If not, then take steps to improve your organization by investing in an employee development program.

Make no mistake about it: all your closest competitors have good R & D… They have access to financing and resources, and they are training their people. The only resource which separates you from your closest competitors is… YOUR PEOPLE… SO INVEST IN THEM EFFECTIVELY.

All organizational challenges will ultimately be solved by and through your people! Whether your challenges are technical, financial, or in some other domain, these challenges will always hinge on human communications and processes. Understanding and improving communication is hugely important to your organization’s survival and success, because the bottom line is: it’s YOUR people who will ultimately take YOUR organization to the next level.

Important considerations for employee development:

Urgency and energy are produced to create a new future.
Broad participation quickly identifies performance gaps and their solutions, improving productivity and customer satisfaction.
First tackle the larger issues or conflicts that are tying up your organization’s time and effectiveness.
Alleviate stress and you emphasize camaraderie.
Employee morale will soar higher and stay more consistently positive through employee development; when employee’s morale is high, areas of need will be addressed more quickly and effectively, so problems won’t fester under the surface and get out of control.
Encouraging employee feedback on business challenges will help people grasp issues.
Employees will become aligned around a common purpose and will create new directions, because they understand both the difficulties and the opportunities of change and growth. In short, employee development creates “ownership.”
Lastly, it is virtually impossible to have satisfied customers and dissatisfied employees. Everyone knows when a clown has makeup on and your customers know it when your employees are faking the smiles. So quit insulting them, because in this competitive age they WILL shop you.

In essence, when employees realize that they have some semblance of control and are being heard, the company, the leadership, and the employees all benefit. Thus, it is through this improved communication and shared purpose that the value of employee development truly begins to sink in for all stakeholders. This is when your team will take your organization to the next level. Through employee development, you are guaranteed lasting commitment and support of your strategic plan and your company vision! Kelly@InternalBusinessSolutions.com

How to Lead Profitable Productive & Efficient Meetings: A Quick Guide

How to Lead Profitable Meetings

Profitable & Improved Staff Development

August 2013