We’ve written here a few times before about the costs of unnecessary meetings, some ways to avoid them, and ideas for making the meetings that you DO need more productive. A few years ago I stumbled across a very useful article that suggests some ways to increase the effectiveness of your meetings when you have no choice but to hold them. Some of these ideas I had been using before, and others I have added to my list of things to do. Some of them are pretty useful, and so I wanted to share a few that might help your employees get something out of your meetings and then jump quickly back into their creative mode.

FOCUS ON THE BASICS Every good meeting that I have ever been in had a clear goal, an agenda distributed beforehand, and a time limit. I spent 6 months leading a multi-office team at the Pentagon and we had our meetings on a regular schedule (so people could plan around them), an agenda that went around to everyone at 2 days in advance (with agenda items that had been solicited from the team members rather than just being created by me), and I encouraged others in the office to schedule meetings immediately after our designated cut-off time so we would have no choice but to end on time. It worked.

GET RID OF THE CHAIRS I had not heard this before reading the article, but I like it. It sends the message that we are not here to gab for the sake of gabbing, we instead need to get something done and move on. I was once at a farewell party where the guests of honor got to make a short speech, but had to keep their hand submerged in a bucket of ice water while talking. They said what was most important to them, and then we moved on. Different techniques, but a similar result.

START AT AN ODD TIME Folks going to a 10am meeting may not pay as much attention to the clock as those going to one scheduled at 10:10. For whatever reason, we tend to think of doing things “around” a time on the hour, but “at” an unusual time; if anything, they tend to come early for that one. The authors suggest you will keep stragglers to a minimum with this.

LIMIT THE SIZE I cannot tell you how many times in my career I have sat around and watched other people have a meeting. If people do not need to be there, don’t have them there. It not only wastes their time, it also encourages contributions from people who may not have anything to contribute but who cannot resist the chance to speak up. If your employees need to know what happened in a meeting, tell them afterwards, in less time than it would take for them to sit through the whole thing.

GET PEOPLE OFF THE FENCE The authors suggest that when you need to make a decision (which is one of the most useful reasons for having a meeting), have people suggest their positions early on. That sets the basis for a much faster, and more relevant, discussion. Take a tip from one of my mentors and solicit opinions from the most junior position first and then up through the most senior, so the junior folks are not influenced by their bosses.

MAKE ONE DAY MEETING-FREE I love this. Set aside one day per week when no one is allowed to schedule meetings. Then see if people are smiling more on that day.

Meetings can be an incredible waste of time. When used properly, though, they can be incredibly useful. Which would you prefer? When you need to have meetings, do it right, and make them work for you.