How to conduct a meeting: efficiently, step-by-step

Q: What to do before the meeting?

Occasion of the meeting Lire la suite

Meetings are chronophagic (meaning "they eat up a lot of time"). Therefore, it is best to be as brief as possible and run with a high degree of efficiency to take specific actions. The organization of a meeting refers to all actions to be taken to organize and carry out a meeting in good conditions, allowing for monitoring of its effects. This article is a collection of recommendations to help you conduct a meeting.

What to do before the meeting?

Occasion of the meeting

First of all, the purpose of having a meeting must be reflected to avoid succumbing to acute meetingitis, which is too frequent and pointless meetings. You should be able to answer the following questions:

What is the objective of the meeting?
Would a teleconference be enough?
Would a web conference or a virtual meeting suffice?

Scope of the meeting

There are also some organizational points to consider, such as:

Number and capacity of participants: It is desirable to restrict the number of participants to avoid reducing efficiency. It is also necessary to harmonize the participant profile, particularly at the technical level.
Duration: Ideally, the meeting should not last longer than 2 hours.
Agenda: The agenda delineates the work schedule into well-formulated subjects. Setting the correct time frames for the various agenda items is necessary.

Date and reservation of the room

Depending on the number of participants, finding a free conference room on a date when the participants are available is necessary. It is better to avoid school vacation periods when possible.

The meeting date must be set in advance (at least 15 days sounds good), to allow invitations and notices to be sent to the participant within a decent time frame.

The meeting room should be chosen based on the following constraints:

The capacity of the room (in terms of seats).
Dimensions and shape of the room (depending on presentation or activities).
Need for Internet access.
Presence of computers and audiovisual equipment (video projector).

Notice to participants

It is important to distribute the agenda to all participants, specifying, amongst other things, the meeting's location and starting and ending times. When appropriate, pass on an access plan summarizing the main facilities (subway, bus stop, railway station) near the meeting site.

To optimize the efficiency of exchanges and increase participation, you may send a preparatory document for the meeting in advance. The information in it may include the context or the main points.

Notice: Depending on the business or organization, a notice should be provided so that the individuals involved can be given assignments. There are regulatory constraints that allow for the validation of staff travel.
Invitation: an invitation should be addressed to the participants other than the staff of the business or organization.

What to do during the meeting?

Round-table discussion

A round-table discussion allows each participant to introduce themselves briefly, thus allowing new people or external participants to know the title of everyone.

It is strongly recommended that you ask participants to avoid using abbreviations and acronyms.

Signature sheet

For meetings involving individuals with a particular assignment, it is necessary to circulate a signature sheet to allow financial services to validate the travel costs.

Summary of the previous report of decisions

The decisions made in the previous meeting may be reviewed to refresh the participants' memory or monitor their implementation progress.

Designation of a secretary

It is desirable to designate a volunteer to draft the report. In the case of a series of meetings, each participant could take a turn as secretary.

Review of the agenda

Before getting to the core of the matter, it may be useful to briefly recap the meeting's agenda, the time allotted to each subject, and the participants.

The important points should preferably be addressed at the beginning of the meeting when concentration is at its peak.

Putting the participants at ease

To put the participants at ease, coffee and/or water can be served at the beginning of the meeting. Additionally, a room of the right size and with the right temperature may improve the efficiency of a meeting.

Drafting a decision report

A decision report, created collectively by all participants, allows you to highlight the major decisions made during the discussions.

Date of the next meeting

In the case of a series of meetings, it may be worthwhile to take advantage of the presence of the participants to agree upon a mutually acceptable date for the subsequent meeting(s).

What to do after the meeting?

Drafting the minutes

It is strongly recommended to draft minutes after the meeting while it is still fresh in your mind. The minutes could include the following:

The subject of the meeting.
Date of the meeting.
Participants (and persons excused).
Agenda.
Summary of every agenda item.
Report of decisions.

The minutes have several purposes:

Recording decisions.
Formalize the work done to allow, e.g., persons excused or otherwise absent from the meeting to know about the beginning and end.
Capitalize the information for memory.

At a minimum, if there are no minutes, creating a simple decision report is indispensable.

Distribute the minutes

The minutes should be distributed to all participants for validation. After approximately one week, if anyone has proposed any amendments, the final minutes should be re-sent to all participants.

How to conduct effective virtual meetings?

With the pandemic due to COVID-19, virtual conferences are more common, and chances are you have already participated in a Zoom meeting or wondered how to conduct a Zoom meeting. To carry out an online conference, you should consider its advantages and disadvantages and set some rules.

Advantages of Virtual Meetings

Less in a hurry: without traffic constraints, it is easier for participants to be on time. Also, if the meeting takes place in the beginning of the day, they likely got more sleep.
More comfortable at home: for many people, it is more comfortable to participate in a meeting from home because the physical environment is already adapted to their personal needs.

Disadvantages of Virtual Meetings

Less comfortable at home: you should also remember that participating in a meeting from home may be more difficult for some. For example, this may be the case for people with children, in small apartments, or loud neighbors.
Internet connection and equipment: problems due to a poor Internet connection and electronic devices are also common.

Some Rules

It may be important to set some rules for the meeting and yourself.

Cameras and microphones: most online conference platforms have the option of turning off the camera and/or the microphone. It may be a good idea to decide how to proceed with the participants during the meeting.
Encourage participation: it is more challenging to pay attention to the participants' reactions during a virtual meeting because we cannot see them in actual size, and the video image is often too small. This means you will have to make extra effort to animate the discussion and include everyone in the decisions.
Make sure everyone is listening: it is easier to get distracted by something on our computer - take the time to ensure everyone is paying attention to the topic.
Feedback: Take the time to discuss with the team the actions to take to optimize the virtual meetings.
Screen and Zoom fatigue: Staring at the screen for too long can cause eye fatigue. In the case of virtual meetings, this can be even harder because participants have to stare at the same image. In comparison, their eyes can rest during an ordinary meeting by looking away from different objects and directions at a variable distance; thus, the eye muscles aren't permanently stimulated.