Effective Team Mtgs Refreshers
You know what really grinds people’s gears? And probably yours too? Loooooooong meetings. Now, don’t get me wrong. Long meetings have their place if they’re productive and necessary - but you know what meetings I’m talking about. That one that happens every week or every month that feels endless. You care very much about your colleagues and their work but it feels more like an episode of Charlie Brown where it’s just the adults talking and barely any of the peanut characters. By the time you leave, you don’t even remember or know what the meeting was about despite your best efforts to tune in.
Over the weekend I was with spending some time with framily (friends that are actually like family) and I was asked, “What should I have my team cover in a staff mtg?” It reminded me how easy it is to get wrapped up in the business that we forget these very foundational goals and principles of effective team meetings. So I wanted to post a few considerations for you today:
Make a short amount of time, ideally at the beginning, to just be humans. Ask how each other are doing! It doesn’t have to be long - you can make it an icebreaker with a one word reflection. Or maybe just a quick “what’d you do over the weekend?” Doing this can help center your core - your relationships. It also helps build buy-in to the meeting. Be mindful to help folks settle in for a productive meeting by starting with a genuine commitment to hearing about their wellbeing.
Prioritize your report-backs. Everybody had something to do between the last time you guys got together and this time. Instead of reviewing everything one by one, encourage your team to report back on their top 1-3 items. This gives you a sense of what’s happening on the ground but also - what’s important to them (or what they think is important to you).
Figure out what’s coming up in the next 60-90 days that’s really important to help guide your connections with them later on an individual or small group basis. Reports due? Budget considerations? Important meetings coming up? Site visits? End of the quarter tasks? Ask folks to share about what’s coming up in that time frame to help align your team’s focus and energies.
Make time for appreciation! This was a HARD lesson for me to learn. People really enjoy getting recognized. So make time for it. Ask folks to shout-out some love to at least one person for something they appreciated since the last time you all got together.
Important announcements that include coming changes or changes that have been made. Don’t ignore this one. Yeah, I know you sent the email with the attachments. I’m almost positive at least 30% of people scanned it instead of digesting it. Repetition is your best friend. One key communications tip that never gets old: say what you’re gonna say, say it, and say what you said. Use your team mtgs to do a part of that cycle if you’ve made or are making changes.
Now, a couple of key pitfalls to avoid:
Avoid making room for rambling. It’s really easy for some folks to get lost in the sauce and take everybody else with them. Politely interrupt and encourage a more detailed check-in with their supervisor or you at a separate time - maybe even write it out. And genuinely care, don’t be mean about it! “Hey friend, I’m gonna stop you right there - it sounds like you’ve got quite a bit for us and we’re pretty limited on time. Let’s you and I connect offline so we can make sure everybody gets the info you’re sharing today. We don’t wanna miss out.”
Avoid making it JUST about the business. It’s so easy to just wanna jump in and go. I’m sure some of your team members would appreciate that as well sometimes. But I guarantee you, too many of these business-focused - no time for human element meetings - will inevitably create a seething undertone of dissociation from one another. And you can’t afford that as an employer.
Bottom line, your team meetings are important spaces that can help you keep connected with one another and keep each other on point with what’s going on. These are some of the ways you can keep them meaningful and productive.
