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EFFECTIVE MEETING DESIGN AND FACILITATION

Effective Meetings
"A good leader talks little but when the work is done, the aim fulfilled, all others will say, 'We did this ourselves.'"
-Lao-Tse
Managers spend up to 40% of their time in meetings and although productive work is accomplished, every manager has been frustrated at one point or another by a meeting that is poorly designed and not well run.

THREE STEPS TO INSURE PRODUCTIVE MEETINGS
  1. Define the Outcomes Begin with the end in mind. What has to happen by the end of the session for the meeting to be a success? What is the end product or result?
  2. Design the Structure
 Once you know the outcome, you can design the structure. Is it a planning, problem-solving, decision-making, skill-building or team development session? From that information you can determine the agenda.
  3. Deliver Results A facilitator is a strategic thinking partner who helps articulate the outcome, design the structure, and deliver the results. It isn't cost-effective to bring in an external facilitator for a one or two hour meeting. Yet, when the importance of the outcome requires a half-day or more of the executive's time, it's worth it.