I Hate Internal Meetings

I was talking to an old colleague (not that he was old, but someone who we worked together, well, as I think about it, he is old . . . LOL, I am sure I will get a comment if he is a reader of this blog). The topic of our discussion turned to internal meetings and how much he hated them (which we agreed). Now, I am not saying that all internal meetings are bad, but good ones are an exception to the rule.

Some thoughts on internal meetings.

1. Does it make sense to have the meeting? Don't have a meeting if there's a more cost-effective way to achieve your objective. Do a quick calculation of a past internal meeting and see the costs and the value achieved, was the return on the investment in time and costs worthwhile?

2. Supply participants with an agenda days before the meeting. In addition, have each participant required to something before the meeting to establish that this meeting is serious and expects something from everyone, and not "just show up".

3. Establish ground rules for do's and dont's meeting behaviors. Manage the meeting and the process, by keeping to the agenda and timing.

4. End all meetings with a review of action steps and results. Continue to go back to that list to ensure items are on target to ensure the ROI continues.

5. Ask everyone for input on what could have been improved in the meeting for next time

You still might not like internal meetings, but maybe they will be more productive and bearable!