When NOT to Have a Meeting…Important Meeting Effectiveness Tips from FireFly Facilitation

Stop…think…do you really need to have that meeting on Friday afternoon? Feel strange to give serious thought to not having a meeting? At FireFly Facilitation we believe you should question whether every meeting needs to be held.

How do you know when not to have a meeting?

Step One: Decide on the meeting deliverables – these will drive decisions on everything else.  A clear example of a deliverable…“A concrete action plan for solving the driver attendance problem.”

Here are some thought-starter questions to develop the meeting deliverable(s):

• How would you define success for this meeting?
  
  
• What three things must be accomplished?
  
  
• What should the participants know, think, feel and do differently once they leave the meeting?

Step Two: Cancel the meeting if…

• The timing is not right – all the information or key people are not available.
  
  
• A group decision is not needed.
  
  
• You can’t figure out what you want to accomplish – it will surely be a waste of valuable time.
  • Side note – Think about how much money will be wasted based on the salaries of the participants. And don’t even get me started on the lost opportunity cost and the drain on employee motivation when stuck in an unproductive meeting.

Step Three: Ask if there’s another way to achieve those meeting deliverables. Such as...

• A brief phone call or one-on-one conversation
  
  
• An email exchange
  
  
• Posting a document on a shared drive for people to add their comments and questions

My hope is you will never look at a meeting the same way again. You can now become known in your company for asking the most productive question of the day...

                       So, why are we meeting?

 
Next up on our blog: The Top Ten Pitfalls of Pitiful Meetings!

Which meetings, or parts of meetings, do you see as the biggest time waster? Share your thoughts here!

Comments

[Kimberly Douglas]

Michael was kind enough to email me with the results from the suggestions I gave him - and I wanted to share them with all of you!

"Kimberly:

We just had one of the best meetings we have had with this group. The feedback from those who participated has been most encouraging. I did as you suggested and sent out a memo and an agenda for all to read in advance. I was clear in terms of our goals and what we wanted to accomplish. Thank you for your advice.

Michael"

[Kimberly Douglas]

Great question, Michael!

As the leader you need to role model the behavior you want to see in them – but then make clear what you expect from them. Here are some ideas:

• Share sample questions that you’d like to see asked at meetings.
• Provide time during meetings for thought-provoking content.
• Send out pre-reading with questions and ask them to come prepared to engage in a dialogue.

In summary, be clear on what you expect and give them the tools to be successful, then hold them accountable.

[Michael P.]

A good meeting, I am told, should be like a drama. you need to plan for it and also be prepared to stir the pot with questions. I have a team that is beginning to gain a sense of what we are trying to accomplish, but they seem to look to me to be the one always to ask the tough question. As the leader of the group, is that my responsibility or should I be proactively trying to get more engagement and commitment to active participation?

[Kimberly Douglas]

Thanks for your question, Desiree! Online meetings are a growing part of corporate life today. We hear from our clients that about 50 to 75% of their meetings are held "virtually" these days - and they see that number only increasing. Since this is such a big issue for so many companies, I am going to write a blog just on this topic! Look for it in the next day or so.

[Desiree Scales]

When is it "ok" to do online meetings and what are your thoughts on those?