Check out our tips on how to make staff meetings productive and useful.
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Holding regular employee meetings is a great idea. But holding effective employee meetings is an even better idea.
That’s right—just because your employees are together in one room once a week for an hour doesn’t mean improvements will occur or needs will be met. If the meeting does not effectively communicate to employees what is expected of them, it’s like you didn’t meet at all.
Here are some tips on how you can help ensure future employee meetings will be useful for everyone involved.
Get their attention.
This may sound silly, but in this day and age of electronic gadgets it’s hard to keep anyone’s attention for very long. And even though you may ask your employees to turn off their cell phone ringers and tablet notifications, that doesn’t mean they’re not still surreptitiously playing Candy Crush during the meeting. Situate chairs so you can easily determine everyone’s activities. (And if someone is clearly not engaged, pull them aside after the meeting to discuss the matter!)
Have an agenda.
Agendas are not just for board meetings! Having a clear outline helps eyou remember everything you want to cover and keeps things moving so you don’t run out of time before getting to everything. And remember the agenda should not just be for you. Check with staff before each meeting to see what items they’d like to be added to the agenda for discussion.
Take minutes.
Lots of things may be discussed during a meeting, and you may miss something. Have someone designated as the “secretary” for each meeting to take notes. The notes should then be typed up within 24 to 48 hours following the meeting and sent to all staff members. This helps ensure tasks that were assigned are completed and decisions that were made are remembered.
Don’t forget to listen.
When leading a meeting, you’re normally the one doing the majority of the talking. However, a staff meeting is also a great opportunity for you to listen. In need of new marketing ideas? Ask your staff. Recently experienced a customer complaint and wondering if there could have been a better way to handle it? Ask your staff. Thinking of adding a new service? Ask your staff. Sometimes workers have ideas you don’t, because they are in the trenches working with clients day in and day out.
Take time to praise.
Use your employee meetings to spotlight people who have been doing a great job. Be generous and specific with your praise. Making staff feel appreciated is a fantastic morale booster, and will make for a tighter, more efficient team.
