Creating a Meeting Agenda

1/29/2017

Ok, you have decided that a meeting is needed. To get the most out of your meeting, the first step is to create a meeting agenda and share it in advance with everyone. If a meeting is needed, then it is worth planning ahead. Why?

In creating the agenda, you verify the need for a meeting. If you are unable to properly establish an agenda then a meeting may not be required.
Everyone knows what is to be discussed, prepared to tackle the problems, and understands the meeting purpose.
An agenda sets time limits so everyone can schedule their already busy day.
Following the agenda, keeps the meeting on point so you accomplish what you set out to do. There is nothing worse than finishing a meeting and still not have the answers to the questions you started out with.

Create the Agenda
First, make a list of questions you need answered. Identify who has the information you need to answer the question. Set time limits for each question or topic. Give it your best guess as to the time required. You may have to adjust the time somewhat but try not to deviate too much as the meeting may get off track.

Second, identify only those that need to be included in the meeting. List them on the meeting agenda. Having additional participants that are not directly involved in the issue to be discussed can slow the meeting, as well as waste the time of participants that can not contribute.

Third, send it out days in advance of the meeting so everyone has time to prepare, and they have the opportunity to share information that others may need about the specific topics prior to meeting. The agenda also signals each person on what they are expected to contribute.

Now create your agenda. Each agenda should include specific information or actions they need to take place prior to the meeting, and always end with time to recap decisions made, or a list of action items. Each topic area listed should identify who is responsible. If you need information presented, it should identify the individual responsible so they can properly prepare.

As we noted in the previous blog, each meeting should have a purpose. Primarily to exchange information for the purpose of making a decision or problem solving. Include the purpose of the meeting in the agenda. It should not be a secret.

A sample meeting agenda following this format has been included as a downloadable file in word format at the end of this article. Scroll down and read it. You should have a good idea what the meeting is for, and who is responsible for what information items.

In this example, you are Bill, the Services Manager. The participants are ones that increased their requests for rush mail orders to the mailroom over the past several months. NOTICE: At the end of the meeting you will provide a recap of decisions made and the solution(s) identified.

Conducting the Meeting
Now it is time for your meeting. You have prepared everyone in advance for what the purpose, topics, and the specific information they need.

Start the meeting with a quick review of the agenda. Make sure to state the purpose of the meeting, and this is your opportunity to share what outcomes you expect. Using our sample agenda; “Thanks everyone for coming. As you can see on the agenda, we are trying to find a solution to the number of mail rush requests we are receiving.”

Also, consider identifying a few key people to help keep the meeting on task. People that are participating can serve in these capacities:

Timekeeper - this person will monitor the clock and give a 2 minute warning when the time is about to expire for a particular topic. This keeps the discussion focused and as the leader, you can steer people back on topic as time is nearing the end.
Scribe - someone to keep notes for the meeting. Critical elements that should be noted during the meeting are the decisions to be made, any open tasks that need to be completed and by whom, and the results of the meeting. Shortly after the meeting, the scribe should share the meeting notes with everyone for any edits or corrections. This records the discussions, supporting the decisions reached, and clearly states the end result of the meeting.
Meeting Leader - generally this person will be you, but there are times that someone else may be responsible for leading the meeting. The leader makes sure to keep everyone on topic.

Productive meetings will always end with solutions, or if there is not enough information available, a list of next steps that will lead to second meeting agenda. Spending time in creating an agenda will ensure your meetings are needed, and meet the purpose you set for the meeting. Participants are prepared when the meeting starts so you can gain the most use of everyone’s time.