Effective Meetings Tips

The following are some tips to help you make your next meeting successful, effective and maybe even fun.

Before The Meeting

1. Define the purpose of the meeting.

2. Develop an agenda in cooperation with key participants. See a sample agenda.

3. Distribute the agenda and circulate background material, lengthy documents or articles prior to the meeting so members will be prepared and feel involved and up-to-date.

4. Choose an appropriate meeting time. Set a time limit and stick to it, if possible. Remember, members have other commitments. They will be more likely to attend meetings if you make them productive, predictable and as short as possible.

5. If possible, arrange the room so that members face each other, i.e., a circle or semi-circle. For large groups, try U-shaped rows.

6. Choose a location suitable to your group's size. Small rooms with too many people get stuffy and create tension. A larger room is more comfortable and encourages individual expression.

7. Use visual aids for interest (e.g., posters, diagrams, etc.). Post a large agenda up front to which members can refer.

8. Vary meeting places if possible to accommodate different members. Be sure everyone knows where and when the next meeting will be held.

During The Meeting

1. Greet members and make them feel welcome, even late members when appropriate.

2. If possible, serve light refreshments; they are good icebreakers and make your members feel special and comfortable.

3. Start on time. End on time.

4. Review the agenda and set priorities for the meeting.

5. Stick to the agenda.

Ex.1. Find the appropriate definitions.

1 A.G.M. a. a written record of everything said at a meeting

2 A.O.B. b. a type of vote, usually in writing and usually secret

3 agenda c. general agreement

4 ballot d. abbr. Any Other Business [usually the last item on an agenda]

5 casting vote e. a vote cast by one person for or in place of another

when the votes are otherwise equal

7 conference call f. a separate point for discussion [as listed on an agenda]

8 consensus j. a written programme or schedule for a meeting

9 item h. telephone call between three or more people

in different locations

10 minutes k. abbr. Annual General Meeting

11 proxy vote l. a deciding vote (usually by the chairman)

13 unanimous m. adj. in complete agreement; united in opinion

Text 2. Read the text and be ready for a comprehension checkup.

Ice Breakers

Ice breakers are a great way to begin a meeting. They help to relax participants, and that makes them more receptive to listening and contributing. An ice breaker can also serve to build a team atmosphere and to generate enthusiasm. Ice breakers can be fun, amusing, humorous, thoughtful, surprising or just plain silly. The days of one-liner jokes as ice breakers are gone, and there are many new creative ideas. The most popular are games that have participants reveal something personal about themselves, or which encourage participants to get to know each other personally. The idea is that more than just having fun, the ice breaker will truly help to create group cohesion based on trust and understanding.

One of the tricks of an icebreaker is timing. It should not be too long otherwise the serious work of the meeting will not be given enough time. It should not be so short that participants feel it was a perfunctory exercise. Timing also depends on the size of the group, the overall length of the event, and the purpose of the event. An all-day retreat might warrant a half hour ice breaker, but a one-hour meeting may merit only a minute or two.

Ex.2. Insert the appropriate word.

1. There are a lot of … in this job, e.g. a company car, free healthcare, etc. 2. Staff lunches will be cheaper because the company will … them. 3.A laptop is … so it reduces the money you pay to the government. 4. They refused to compromise. They wouldn’t … from their position. 5. We want … in the market, so no one else can sell the products. 6. If we can not agree a final price, the whole deal is going to …. 7. I’m sorry but we can’t … your permission to use our brand name. 8. It’s our first job with MSH. We’ve done no … business with them.

(additional perks, budge, subsidize, tax deductable, grant, fall through, prior, exclusivity)

Text 3. Discuss the text below.

10 Characters You'll Meet at a Business Meeting

Monopolizer. The Monopolizer thinks he or she is the only one with wisdom on various subjects at the business meeting. The Monopolizer believes everyone else is there to hear him or her speak - and so they do - incessantly. They prattle on and on, arrogantly acting as though their ideas or beliefs are inherently more important than those of other employees. Sadly other people shy away from contributing, intimidated by the Monopolizer's strangle hold on the meeting.

Tangent Talker. The Tangent Talker hijacks the topic of the group by taking discussions off on tangents - topics unrelated to the issue at hand. Your meeting leader's ability to recognize the tangent and refocus is essential to a productive meeting. "Let's remember to confine ourselves to the topic at hand" is a good way to get back on track.

Devil's Advocate. This person seems to relish taking the opposite tack. Whatever the argument being put forth, this person delights in taking an opposing view. It's sport for them, an exercise in opposition. The more unpopular the stance the more exciting they find the challenge.

Cynic. Adroit at using the phrase, "it won't work," they are skilled at deflating and defeating whatever motion is in motion. "Can't be done." "They'll never buy it." "We tried it once and it was a failure." Their motto: just say no.

Fence Sitter. Fence Sitters are unable to make decisions. Despite being in a deliberative body, they are conflicted by multiple arguments, and can't "pull the trigger" when it's time to make a decision in a business meeting.Whether they are afraid of being wrong, or of disagreeing with someone else, or just going on record, they are a meeting monster for their inability to move the action forward.

Pandora's Box Opener. These meeting monsters just have to tackle issues that are emotional, touchy or are "hot buttons" for others in the business meeting. In every business meeting there are topics that are sure to strike a nerve, to provoke an emotional reaction or enter the group into a quagmire.The Pandora's Box Openers lead the entire meeting into areas that provoke frustration, animosities, and often resentment too. Once this box is opened, it's hard to get the issues back into the box. Discussions of salaries, promotions or personal styles often stir up issues that hijack meetings.

Brown Noser. There's likely a sycophant in many business meetings. This employee is obsequious, bending over backwards to ingratiate himself or herself to the boss, the meeting leader or another power broker. They're so busy currying favor with others, they subvert whatever true feelings they have about issues.

Attacker. The Attacker deftly mixes negativity with personal attacks, challenging others' ideas with vigor. Without regard to hurting others' feelings, the Attacker uses a confrontational style to object to others' ideas and go against the flow. Sadly, sometimes they don't even realize they're attacking.

Joker. Don't let the Joker's good nature fool you, Jokers can be meeting monsters. Their constant joking has the effect of diminishing others' serious ideas or suggestions. Their infusion of humor can belittle others' motions and makes it difficult for some to be taken seriously. There is a time and place for joking. While we all like a good laugh, constant joking disrupts a meeting and distracts attention from where it should be.

Robots. Yep, these meeting monsters are actually cell phones, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and laptop computers. Each distracts their owner and others, too, as they intrude upon participants' attention spans during business meetings.

A good meeting leader will create ground rules or norms for business meetings, including turning off these gadgets at their outset. It's hard to compete with human distractions, let alone electronic ones as well. As you can see, business meetings are full of characters. Study participant behavior in meetings, including your own behavior, to better understand your style of interaction. The character of your business meetings will surely be affected by the characters in your meeting. May the force be with you.

Ex.3. Complete the following sentences.

1. One of … of working with TVX is that we can access their client base. 2. Delivery of goods by May 21 is just not… We can’t do it. 3. If you can’t deliver by August, we can’t … the deadline to September. 4. The increased sales will all … a great advertising campaign. 5. We transport goods by … because ships are cheaper than planes. 6. We will transport the goods by road using our new … 7. The … for these products is rising – everybody wants them. 8. The goods are usually kept in … for a month before going to nearest trading malls.

(sea, freight, storage, feasible, trucks, extend, benefit, due to)

Text 4. Be ready ro retell the text.

---

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14