We now attend more meetings at work in a mid-Covid environment. Whether we’re working from home or in the office, it’s important to understand the different types of meetings we take part in.
The sizes, contents, and context of the various meeting types are obvious differences.
You can make sure every meeting has a clear objective and purpose by carefully planning ahead and exercising strong leadership. Making that happen requires being able to recognize the kinds of meetings that are typical in the business world. Let’s start by learning about the various meeting types and how to ensure that they benefit both you and your team.
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Table of Contents
Important Factors To Consider
There are a few details to consider when deciding how to structure a meeting, regardless of the type you intend to conduct.
Group Size
Although the size of your group may not affect the meeting’s ultimate objectives, it will affect its potential location and format. You might need a method to make sure everyone’s voice is heard in large meetings, for instance. If it’s big enough, you might even want to think about holding it as a webinar rather than an in-person meeting.
Intent
What’s the goal of this meeting, exactly? Are you just gathering to generate ideas, or do you need the team to make a decision? There is a clear difference in objectives there, so you will need to approach decision-making differently than you would if you were simply brainstorming.
Participants
People’s interactions will be influenced by the roles they play within an organization and by their interpersonal connections. Are all the attendees at the meeting close friends or coworkers? This team dynamic may encourage collaboration toward a common objective. Before you can move forward, you might need to diffuse some tension if there is a meeting between two opposing factions.
In-person Or Remote
Remote meetings sometimes lack the intimacy that comes naturally with face-to-face interactions. If you intend to conduct your meeting remotely, you’ll need to think about the logistics of getting everyone logged in and make sure that the participation requirements are made clear right away.
7 Different Types Of Meetings
Every meeting we attend should have a clear purpose. Let’s become acquainted with some crucial types so that we can better comprehend how to handle them.
Here are the 7 most common business meetings types:
- Meetings for making decisions. When a group action is required, this type of call is made.
- Team-building gatherings. The purpose of these gatherings is to strengthen group cohesiveness and enhance teamwork.
- Meetings to solve problems. These are employed when a team needs to work together to address a particular issue.
- Meetings for brainstorming. These are used to come up with new concepts or connect new or innovative ideas.
- One-on-one meetings. This is an appointment between two people to talk about a specific topic.
- Regular planning sessions. These are held every three months and are used to plan how a team will carry out the objectives of the company.
- Check-in meetings. During these meetings, task progress is compared to an anticipated result.
Let’s look at each in a bit more detail:
1. Decision-making Meetings
A team leader guides a collaborative effort known as a decision-making meeting.
According to McKinsey, it typically has 6 to 8 participants and a detailed agenda outlining the decisions that must be made.
Key decision-makers or subject-matter experts are the participants in this activity. For instance, only specific staff members, such as hiring managers, will be involved in the decision to hire someone new.
To run an effective decision-making meeting, participants must know in advance how the decision will be made, explains a written in the Harvard Business Review.
For instance, the key decision-maker will make the final decision if the team is unable to reach an agreement within 60 minutes and will instead put the matter to a vote. It saves time to know in advance how the decision will be made.
Information gathering is a crucial component of meetings where decisions are made. In order to make the best choice, you should ensure that you are fully informed.
Examples:
- Deciding on a new hire
- Making an employer branding change
- Operational changes like downsizing or cutting costs
- Final approval of a design
2. Team-building Meetings
Team building events aim to improve cohesion, trust, and teamwork. Employee happiness and productivity both rise when coworkers collaborate more effectively.
Using games or team challenges, a team-building session aims to foster a fun and engaging environment. For organizers or leaders, this is a fantastic chance to get involved and build stronger relationships with their teams.
Virtual team-building meetings are becoming more and more crucial as employees work from home more frequently. They’re a way to interact and build relationships with staff members who operate from home and might otherwise feel cut off from the rest of the company. Engaging with remote workers helps keep the workplace culture and morale positive.
Examples:
- Virtual board games
- Virtual team challenges
- Lunch and learns
- Internal TED Talks
- Team outings
3. Problem-solving Meetings
These interconnected meetings are held with the sole objective of generating fresh concepts.
A variety of individuals with distinctive perspectives, abilities, and backgrounds are greatly beneficial in problem-solving meetings.
Meetings can be used to brainstorm new ideas for the future or to solve a specific problem. Once the scope and focus areas are established, attendees frequently have to come up with original solutions.
These gatherings serve as the foundation for subsequent decision-making sessions where the solution is verified and adopted.
Examples:
- Operational problems
- Productivity issues
- High employee turnover
4. Brainstorming Meetings
Innovation meetings take place during brainstorming sessions. Participants work together to develop original and creative ideas.
Team members collaborate during these sessions either on an equal basis or with the assistance of a facilitator. These idea-generating meetings are loosely structured, allowing teams to “think big” and tap into their creative potential. Employees use a variety of brainstorming strategies, such as mind mapping, to generate new concepts or products.
Meetings where ideas are generated work best with diverse teams. Better ideas, potential blind spots, and more inventive solutions are produced by diverse perspectives.
Examples:
- Product development
- Ad campaign creation
5. One-on-one Meetings
A one-on-one meeting is a conversation between two individuals. It is set aside for a specific objective.
For instance, it could be a meeting between a sales representative and a client or a manager and employee conducting a performance review.
A running list of the topics that each person needs to discuss is typical, even though you don’t have to stick to it during a one-on-one. The meeting is otherwise haphazardly organized and flows like a typical conversation.
Individual check-ins have gone up by 18% since the pandemic, according to Microsoft Workplace Insights. Regular touchpoints help remote employees feel connected and have fun, according to their research.
Examples:
- Weekly one-on-one
- New employee introduction
- Quarterly performance review
- Coaching or mentoring session
- Client sales meeting
6. Quarterly Planning Meetings
Teams get together every three months to implement the short- and long-term goals of the company strategically.
Attendance is limited to those who will carry out the plan, just like in problem-solving and decision-making meetings. The plan will be implemented with the help of each participant, who is also expected to contribute.
Although the meeting’s format can change, the team leader typically takes charge and assigns tasks to each participant.
A great way to keep team members motivated and track the progress of a team is to hold quarterly planning meetings. They provide an excellent opportunity to consider the previous quarter and review the tasks that must be completed in the upcoming one.
Examples:
- Strategic planning
- Project planning
- Event or campaign planning
7. Check-in Meetings
One of the most frequent kinds of meetings is the check-in session. Organizations regularly hold these progress-check meetings for several reasons:
- Share project updates and progress
- Ensure everyone is carrying out their roles and responsibilities
- Get employee feedback
- Discuss any challenges, successes, or ideas
- Figure out the next steps
For instance, staff members update their managers and team on their weekly progress during a team cadence meeting.
As more people work remotely and without managers in direct charge, check-in meetings are becoming more and more crucial. Regular check-ins ensure that remote workers are informed and that their goals are in line with those of the team.
Examples:
- Project status update meetings
- Client check-in meetings
- New employee onboarding check-in
- Weekly one-on-one check-in meetings
- Weekly team meetings
- Project debriefs
Tips To Plan Effective Meetings
There is no denying that since the pandemic started, meetings have become more frequent. According to a different Microsoft study, the growth of the hybrid workplace has resulted in a weekly meeting time increase of more than twofold.
Online meetings are a way to communicate, socialize, and share information because there are fewer opportunities for interaction in the workplace.
Making each meeting as productive and efficient as you can is crucial as your staff participates in a wider variety of meetings. Otherwise, they might have a negative impact on the productivity and morale of your team.
But before you start organizing your upcoming meeting, consider whether a meeting is actually necessary or whether an email would suffice. For instance, sending information via email is preferable if the meeting doesn’t require discussion or decision-making.
When a meeting is necessary, though, it must be worth both your time and that of your team members.
Here are a few tips to help you organize more efficient meetings:
Set Clear A Clear Objective And Agenda
Make sure you are fully aware of the meeting’s objectives prior to sending out the invitation. What is the end result that you are aiming for? You can use this to determine the nature of the meeting you need to hold and the attendees.
Once your meeting’s goal has been established, you must stick to a specific agenda to make sure every minute is utilized effectively.
According to a survey by the technology firm Barco, discussions about subjects unrelated to the meeting’s goals account for 13% of the total time spent in meetings. The amount of time spent talking about things that aren’t important to the meeting will decrease if you stick to the agenda.
Meetings that lack a clear structure often end up being ineffective.
Avoid Inviting Too Many Attendees
Determine which team mem
Don’t crowd the meeting by inviting more team members than are necessary. For instance, only important stakeholders should attend a meeting where decisions are made.
By doing this, it is made sure that everyone who needs to attend has a chance to participate and have their say.
Keep It Short
Make sure the meeting doesn’t last any longer than is necessary. As Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, is famously quoted as saying, “Less gets done during longer meetings.”
Microsoft discovered that 30-minute meetings are the best length for their staff. To increase productivity and avoid lengthy meetings that have a negative impact on employee happiness, employees naturally switched to shorter meetings.
Keep The Team Focused
Participants should be focused and well-prepared, and the facilitator or meeting leader should make sure of this. The team leader should step in, for example, if someone in the group keeps looking at their phone throughout the meeting.
Maintaining participant accountability makes sure that no time is wasted and that everyone benefits from the meeting.
Ensure Everyone Arrives On Time
Additionally, 11% of meetings are held while waiting for someone to show up, according to Barco’s survey. And one of the main reasons why a good meeting goes bad, according to Doodle’s State of Meetings report, is when people show up late.
When you begin your meeting, be on time and emphasize this to your team.
Takeaway
Meetings are a vital part of business today and a great way to generate ideas, make decisions, plan projects, or simply stay informed.
You should be better prepared to conduct each of these popular meeting types now that you are more aware of how they function.
Keeping this in mind, scheduling more productive meetings will help your team see how meetings can be a good use of their precious time. Planning increases productivity.
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