By Matt Krumrie

Meetings are a fact of everyday business in the corporate world. The goal of any meeting manager is to get the most out of the meeting in the least amount of time and be productive, informative, and motivating. Poorly managed meetings waste time and can have a negative effect on company morale and teamwork, but following some simple procedures, being well organized, being consistent, and being assertive can help you manage productive meetings.

Recurring meetings

Weekly meetings are a good time to update the staff on the state of the organization or projects during the past week. A weekly agenda can point out the positive happenings — and the negatives — in a manageable time frame. Biweekly or monthly meetings offer the chance to look at longer-range projects and results at a higher level.

For any meeting, keep the focus positive as much as you can. If negative issues must come up, focus only on negatives that affect the entire organization, rather than singling out individuals or departments.

Items that you might want to include in your agenda are:

• Updates on internal contests, special dates, or events.
• Praise for jobs that are well done. Include a list of those who are exceeding expectations or have brought in a new client, found a prospect, or completed a recent project. Make note of promotions or individuals who have been rewarded for exceptional performance within the company or by an outside source.
• Project updates, problems, or future work.
• Welcoming new employees or bidding goodbye to those leaving the organization or transferring.
• Birthday announcements. Check before you include these, though; some people might not be comfortable with such attention.
• Business news or industry news that affects your company or project.
• Training, motivational materials, or guest speakers.

Efficient meetings

Time is an important asset in business. If meetings are unproductive, too long, or drag on, employees and attendees might start to resent the time spent on meetings, and the company's bottom line suffers as well. For example, if you have four unproductive, hour-long meetings each week, four hours are wasted each week. If 10 people who each make an average of $15 an hour attend each meeting, the meeting costs $150 an hour in employee time. Using this time poorly four times a week equals a loss of $600 a week or approximately $30,000 a year.

You can spend this time and money more effectively and make the meetings you manage run more smoothly by:

• Knowing the meeting's goals and target attendees   This helps you create agendas that support the goal and keep the meeting on track.
• Knowing the tools needed   Are there materials to pass out? Are audio or visual aids needed? Should attendees bring portable computers? Will it be an online meeting or a phone conference? Knowing and providing the answers to these questions help ensure that the meeting moves forward smoothly.
• Taking minutes   Make sure someone will take meeting minutes, if it is not you.
• Using a checklist. Develop a general meeting organization checklist that you can run through or hand off to an aide if you are unavailable.
• Planning ahead and giving notice   Give your meeting attendees adequate notice and time to prepare documents, presentations, slides, videos, reports, and other materials before the meeting.
• Soliciting agenda items in advance   You can be more organized and run smoother meetings when the agenda is known in advance. Presenters and others have time to prepare, and other attendees know what to expect and what to bring if special equipment is required.
• Knowing your attendees   Keep the attendees in mind, and plan around their quirks or habits. Your goal is getting everyone on the same page quickly and efficiently. Planning for attendees who always run late or slow the meeting down by asking a lot of questions allows you to anticipate these potential derailments and avoid them before they happen.
• Sending meeting notes   Compile, organize, and create a report of each meeting to send to attendees and other interested parties. This helps keep people informed if they missed the meeting, helps jog the memories of those who attended, and helps you improve your meeting organization for the future.

Last-minute meetings

Most meeting managers and attendees dread last-minute meetings. Sudden, emergency meetings can be hard to control and run smoothly. Although they always seem to happen at the worst possible time of the day, last-minute meetings are sometimes necessary.

Organize and run a last-minute meeting by:

• Knowing the details   Who needs to be there, what will be discussed, when can the meeting be held, where can it be held — what space is available and appropriate — why does this meeting need to be held in such a hurry, and what will the attendees gain from this meeting?
• Getting the right tools   Determine whether you need any special equipment, information, or support.
• Designating a record keeper   It's important that someone takes notes, keeps an agenda, and records the meeting so that there is a record for later review.
• Using the meeting checklist. Even an emergency meeting can be run like a regular meeting on a lot of points.
• Scheduling time for questions   Emergency meetings generate a lot of confusion and questions.
• Expecting missing attendees   No matter how important the meeting, some people might not be able to attend.
• Being prepared for upset attendees   Confidence and good preparation, as well as a sense of humor help defuse tension and upset.
• Following up   Sending memos, e-mail messages, and meeting reports after the fact are even more important for last-minute meetings than regular meetings. Documenting the discussion can be used later as a tool or reference.
• Being flexible   Expect challenges and changes to your usual meeting structure — what is important to one attendee at this time might not be to another attendee.

General meeting tips

Beyond the specifics of meeting organization and management, the following tips can help you keep meetings on track:

• Be on time starting and ending meetings.
• Keep things short, to the point, and moving forward.
• Don't start over for latecomers.
• Keep records.
• Keep minutes, and distribute them afterward.
• Recap minutes of the previous meeting at the start of the next meeting.
• Stay on path, stay on task, and stay focused on the reason for the meeting.

Meetings will always be a fact of the working world. Productive meetings are beneficial and valuable, while those with nothing accomplished only alienate and upset attendees. Preparation and consistency are keys to organizing and running efficient, productive meetings.

More information

• Make an appointment or meeting private
• Informal Meeting Agenda
• Formal Meeting Agenda
• Meeting minutes
• Meeting agenda
• Demo: Take notes, keep notes, all in one place
• Demo: Get the look you like with OneNote stationery

About the author   Matt Krumrie is a writer and consultant who specializes in career, employment, and business topics. His articles and columns have appeared in over 60 magazines, newspapers, and Web sites in the United States, Canada, and Finland.