How many meetings do project managers facilitate in any
given day? Between requirement, design, internal status, issue resolution, and
client status meetings the number can be staggering. The skills associated with
facilitating a meeting become paramount to the project manager. Keeping a
meeting on track, on time, and valuable to those attending makes a difference
and can make or break a career. I am also acutely aware that there are some
meetings that, despite all the know how in the world, simply don’t go as
planned. There are the x key techniques that are designed to create a
successful meeting outcome, whether the meeting goes as planned or goes off in
a direction you didn’t see coming.
Vision
Every meeting has a purpose, a desired outcome. The key is
to consider the entire meeting from the perspective of what success looks like.
The vision for the end of the meeting, with all participants leaving with the
same understanding of what is next or what was decided sets the stage for the
content and flow of the meeting. This is important for everything from status
reporting to issue resolution meetings. Status meetings can be some of the
biggest culprits for meetings going in a direction other than what was planned.
Setting the stage and maintaining the context of the meeting throughout the
meeting by coming back to the vision, the purpose, and the desired outcome keeps
meetings on track. It supports halting conversations that require follow on
research, preventing someone from hijacking the meeting, and circular
conversations that have no end.
The significance of vision is one of focus. When you have taken the time to gain alignment
with the meeting participants prior to the start of the meeting, maintaining
the flow to stay on course becomes vision focused, it is not about the people
involved. Finding the graceful way to stop conversations outside of the purpose
becomes one of revisiting the vision. A cautionary note. Be aware when many
participants have shifted away from the initial purpose and have aligned with a
different conversation, one they believe is of greater importance than the
original purpose or outcome. Being able to move with them and gain alignment
from the group that the direction needs to shift clears the way for a
successful meeting. As with all things, there is a graceful middle ground,
where allowing the conversation to flow and ensuring the flow is in the
direction of the desired outcome is the role of the facilitator. Rigidity and laxness
would be best avoided. Rigor would best describe the role of the facilitator
when describing what it takes to maintain a vision focused meeting.
Agenda
Having defined the purpose and clear vision for the outcome of the meeting, the agenda creates the flow for getting to the end. Ensuring the basics are taken care of, such as how much time each topic will take, what mechanism will be used during each topic, and who will lead each topic allows the agenda to flow freely. Three items which would be best to include in all agendas are:
- Introduction including attendance, statement of purpose, a review of the agenda, and gaining alignment on the purpose and agenda topics
- Action Items review
- Decision review
· Maintaining the timing of each of the topics is important. This includes interrupting the conversation to let everyone know that the time is running over and gaining alignment on continuing the discussion or creating action items to resolve the topic later would be appropriate. Gaining alignment from the participants on the “what’s next” allows them to take ownership of the outcome of the meeting.
Visual Queues
Seeing it in writing matters. When participants see their
words, or a paraphrase of their words, it allows them to let their points go.
Rather than continuing the conversation based on a perception of not being heard,
they are able to see that what they have said matters, it is part of the permanent
record. Not only that, recalling what happens in a meeting can be extremely
challenging, the written notes, one authentic voice for the outcomes, something
to be followed up with, the visual action items and decisions of the meeting,
allow everyone to have a common understanding. Being able to review this
information before the close of a meeting allows everyone to have a common
understanding of the outcome and what comes next.
Summary
There are three things that allow meetings to run smoothly.
A clear vision, an agenda that supports the vision, and visible outcomes from a
meeting. I know, there is a lot more nuance than those three things. The
problem is, we rarely take the time to prepare and plan for those three things
to be completed in excellence. Gaining alignment along the way will create
success and ownership of the outcomes of the meeting. One of the last things to
remember, you can plan the plans, you cannot plan the results. Another way to
say that is to be clear on the purpose, the desired outcome, and a vision for what
you want to create with the participants during the meeting while letting go of
any expectations as to what will happen as the meeting unfolds. Being attached
to a meeting going a certain way causes tension and stress. Allowing the
meeting to flow and moving with it reduces tension and stress and will cause
successful meetings.
