Meeting Mania

by Vic Pakalnis

In this new era of horizontal management and working across boundaries, it can be difficult to build relationships, get consensus and make decisions. Meetings are as inevitable as the sun rising in the east. How can we structure them so that they are productive, achieve our goals and leave relations better than when we started?

There are differing organizational cultures, different levels of governments, varying management styles and, of course, who has time these days to do it right? The first edition of Robert’s Rules of
Order was written in 1876. It tries to ensure decisions can be made despite the adversarial forces at play during a meeting. It establishes a system of motions, amendments and a decision by a majority present.

Municipal council meetings, parliamentary committees and the like do require this regime. But in normal dealings between ministries, governments and even within organizations, a new norm is evolving for meeting rules.

WHAT ARE THE KEY COMPONENTS OF A SUCCESSFUL MEETING? Over two decades of meetings – seeing the good, bad and ugly, the author in collaboration with colleagues within the Ontario Public Service has evolved the following checklist. It works. It has been used for evaluating meetings and improving them. A simple five-point measure is used to evaluate the components and by consensus (conducted in good spirit at the end of each meeting for five minutes), different views can be tabled and improvements made over time.

MEETING EVALUATION: At the end of the meeting, it’s important to give participants the chance to evaluate the proceedings. Ask, “What positive things can we do to improve the next meeting?” and “What things did we do that we should not do at the next meeting?” These twelve components, plus the evaluation, can help you have successful meetings. But it’s important to keep in mind that the “new meeting norms” are still evolving. The new Robert’s Rules of Order is still waiting for an innovative Robert or Roberta to write them. In the meantime, remember there is no such thing as a really bad meeting, but some are better than others!!


COMPONENTS OF A SUCCESSFUL MEETING
1. AGENDA
You need to have a strong agenda. This will set the tone for the meeting. However, do not cram too many topics into your agenda – you will never be able to get to all of them and you’ll create frustration. It’s important to provide all participants with an agenda before the meeting starts. Your agenda must include a list of the topics to be covered and also who will address each topic and for how long. When you send the agenda, include the time, date and location of the meeting and any background information participants will need to know to hold an informed discussion on the meeting topics.

That said, these days the most effective of modern agendas are much “looser” than in the past.
Start with “Introductions” or “Chairs Opening Remarks” as the first item. Set the stage for a collegial meeting and outline the important items to come and target those vital few that all should participate in. The reality of our electronic age is that we are managing at the speed of light. Issues evolve daily and new relevant information can emerge hourly. Given that many meetings are held monthly or quarterly, it is important to have an up-to-date agenda based on the needs of the people around the table. Otherwise, hidden agendas emerge and are discussed inappropriately under other items.

Finally, a new agenda item has emerged, that is the “Round table” which allows for quick updates from all participants. The roundtable discussion is often the most important part of the meeting because this is when participants feel the most comfortable and this can often lead to the best, most spontaneous, discussion. Limit the roundtables reports to 5 minutes to get the maximum benefit. If an issue arises that will take more time, place it under “Any Other Business” later in the agenda.

2. MINUTES
The minutes should be clear, concise and easy-to-read. The agenda can be used as an outline when writing the minutes. It’s important to include presentations when writing the minutes (e-versions in particular) and remember the minutes are not a “play-by-play” of the meeting – they simply capture the most important points and decisions.

3. ACTION
The decision items must be actioned/implemented. Don't finish any discussion in the meeting without deciding how to act on it. It has to be someone’s responsibility to ensure action items are implemented.

4. PUNCTUALITY
It’s important to begin your meetings on time and end on time and for all members to be present during the discussions. Breaks can be moved depending on the flow of the discussion. However external speakers that come in for a specific time should be respected by holding to their time slots.

5. TIME MANAGEMENT
This is part science, but mostly art. The Chair acts as the check on a well-oiled system that extends discussion when required, shortens discussion or moves an item to a different time if required. Judging how much time is required in the first place is sometimes negotiated with the speaker, however, what it ends up to be is at the call of the chair and the rhythm of the meeting.

6. EXTERNAL INTERRUPTIONS
If possible, keep external interruptions to a minimum. They disrupt the flow of a meeting and it can be very difficult to get back on track. Of course in public administration, timing is not always our choice and if political issues suddenly erupt and an answer is needed – accommodate short departures from the meeting by shifting agenda items as required.

7. PRESENTATIONS
Information should be presented effectively. This is a time when a little work prior to the meeting can save you a lot of headache. For example, it is important to ensure audio visual aids are running smoothly before a meeting commences. Of course technical glitches are inevitable, but you can lessen their frequency by planning ahead. And have a plan B – overhead transparencies or hard copy PowerPoint presentations if the computer fails. If presentations are sent out ahead of time – the presentation can be shortened to allow for more discussion.

8. ANALYSIS AND COMPREHENSION
Is everyone prepared? Have they listened, but more importantly, have they understood? It’s important to allow people to ask questions –build question and answer time into your agenda.

9. EFFECTIVE INVOLVEMENT
Meetings require open communication. If participants feel comfortable making their opinions known, there will be more engagement and better decisions. The Chair should make encouraging participation a top priority.

10. CONFLICT RESOLUTION
Was the conflict resolution constructive and cooperative? Inevitably conflicts arise, the maturity of the participants and the skill of the Chair will determine whether the conflict leads to a better decision or to a lack of consensus and a worsening of relationships. Sometimes additional time is needed to resolve the conflict, sometimes additional information or analysis. Participants involved in the conflict can sometimes provide that judgment or in other cases the Chair calls the shot and either grasps an emerging consensus or postpones the item for a different meeting.

11. DIGRESSIONS FROM TOPIC
Digressions eat up time and can derail a meeting. However they can be a healthy break in a stressful discussion particularly if the digression is humorous.

12. GUEST SPEAKERS
Sometimes to attract the right people to the table you need luminaries as guest speakers. In other cases, guests are brought in to present facts or describe a technical issue that requires a management decision. Whoever the guest, respect their time and respect their message. Don’t shoot the messenger if the message is a negative one and don’t compromise them in having them overstaying their time at the meeting.



Vic Pakalnis, P.Eng., M.Eng., MBA, is Regional Director, Eastern Ontario with the Ontario Ministry of Labour. He is also Chair of the Provincial Interministerial Council and a Board member of the Quarter Century Club, Radiation Safety Institute of Canada, Minerva Canada, Transportation Health and Safety Association of Ontario and on the editorial board of CGE.