While conflict within a meeting can be creative and productive, it can also be wasteful and damaging.
It all depends on what the conflict is about. Read More
A key factor in whether conflict is productive or damaging lies in where that conflict takes place. Is it within the context of some level of common purpose? A shared intent that can be explicitly used to harness the merits of each perspective into an agreed way forward. Without it, people end up talking at cross purposes and with flawed assumptions.
The greater the sense of common purpose, the more likely that creative efforts will be found to solve the conflict. But if the conflict concerns the purpose, it is very difficult to find common ground to move forward.
Common Purpose
Agreeing from the outset what a meeting is for is key to ensuring the productivity of the thinking and discussion within it.
People recognise that a lot of wasted time takes place within meetings. Without a clear and common purpose it is difficult for them to agree on which activities are generating that waste. Read More
Good practice is to pre-circulate the objectives and agenda before the meeting. This gives people the opportunity to understand their part, and to effectively prepare themselves for that. However, as the Duke of Wellington’s quote testifies, people still lose sight of the objective amidst the pressures that surround them.
Restating the objective at the start of the meeting gives people the opportunity to reconnect themselves with the purpose of the meeting. This enables them to remind themselves of why this is important to them. Writing the objective up, and placing it in a visually prominent location provides an ongoing reminder of that purpose. It is also a useful tool for challenging whether the current activity is productively taking the meeting toward that objective.
Access Section 3 of the ToolChest for simple strategies on: Meeting type selection; use of SMART; clarity of purpose and process; and ‘signposting’.
Efficiency
Meetings efficiency is all about how well meetings utilise time and people to achieve their goals and deliver value to the organisation.
The factors which affect meetings efficiency are varied. But they often reflect the quality of a balance between good disciplines and enthusiastic participation. Read More
Efficient meetings are ones in which there is clear alignment of people and goals. And those where the processes have been developed to: Build on that alignment; efficiently resolve differences; engage everybody in supporting the decision making process; and draw out their experience and ideas to best move things forward.
To get more done in less (consumed) time within your meetings, consider the potential of the strategies highlighted in Section 4 of the ToolChest. We would in particular encourage you to focus on the following: Meeting tools, multi-channel participation, influencing styles, and better design of presentations to the meeting.
Strategic Improvement
Use the model below to develop a vision for how you want your meetings to be different going forward. Then research the resources above to develop a coherent plan for how you plan to bring about improvement.
For a complete copy of the Maturity Model, click here.
For other resources which support ‘alignment’, please go to: https://meeting.toolchest.org/tag/alignment/
