When I was waiting for the elevator at Edelman the other day, I noticed a handy checklist about running effective meetings hanging on the wall.  The checklist listed helpful tips like preparing the agenda in advance, confirming attendees via Outlook reminders, and staging the meeting in a room that’s conducive to the get together’s purpose.  During my career, I’ve heard a lot of complaints about bosses, but one of the most common has to do with supervisors who refuse to have team meetings or run them inefficiently.  With that in mind, I’ve decided to post a checklist of my own designed for the new boss.

Team meetings serve a variety of purposes, including communicating new goals and information, building teamwork, motivating employees and providing a forum to resolve issues.  If you never call your group together as a team, your reports might feel isolated and uninformed and problem issues may fester because there is no opportunity to clear the air.  However, you don’t want to have meetings just for the sake of having meetings either.  Here are some meetings dos and don’ts:

·         DO allow your reports to have a say in determining the agenda.

·         DO distribute the agenda ahead of time and list the specific issues to be discussed.

·         DO plan something fun every now and then – like bringing in lunch or donuts.

·         DO have team members contribute to the meeting by providing a status for their areas.

·         DO keep the tone of the discussion open and positive.

·         DO encourage team members to freely voice their concerns, to listen and to help one another.

·         DO maintain a big picture perspective and calmly guide the group toward a consensus or solution.

·         DO consider your team’s time pressures and keep the meeting to an hour.

·         DON’T have meetings too often – once a week should be the maximum.

·         DON’T allow team members to interrupt each other or monopolize the discussion with their own opinions.

·         DON’T allow the discussion to wander off topic for too long.