A meeting comprises of an open debate or a discussion on certain important issues or business opportunities. Every meeting is held with some key points at hand and these key points usually gives rise to the Meeting Agenda. The Meeting Agenda will constitute the list of activities and issues to be discussed during the meeting. A Meeting Agenda allows the participants to organize and prepare themselves in advance before the meeting time. An effective agenda will set clear expectations for what will take place before and during the meeting. Here are some basics of Meeting Agenda that should be kept in mind for your next meeting.
Participation from Team Members
Each and every team member should be able to participate in the topics of discussion during the meeting. You should design a Meeting Agenda that includes items that reflect the needs of all team members so they can be able to participate in the meeting fruitfully and positively. You can ask them to suggest agenda items with reason why those items should be addressed in the meeting. This way the Meeting Agenda will cover all the key issues that are affecting the company whether positively or negatively.
Choose Topics That Will Cover the Needs of Everyone
Meetings are difficult to schedule and expensive too, and for this reasons they should be used to mainly discuss and make decisions on crucial issues that affect the whole company. So the Meeting Agenda should consist of topics that will cover and tackle general needs of every department of the company.
You should put agenda topics in question form. This will allow the members to prepare for the discussion and know whether their answers or comments are on track. This will also enhance and improve their understanding on the Meeting Agenda.
Note the Purpose of the Agenda Topic
An effective Meeting Agenda should clearly indicate whether the purpose of the topic is to share information, make decision, or seek participation from the members. It is very difficult for somebody to participate in any meeting discussion if they do not know whether to give comments, be part of decision making process, or to just listen and understand.
Estimate the Time Each Topic Will Take to Discuss
Estimating time for each agenda topic will allow you to state clearly in the agenda the start and end time of the meeting. So the members can organize and schedule their time accordingly. Timeframe for each topic will also allow the members to organize their comments to fit the allocated time so that they will have enough time to express their opinion without skipping any details.
The Process for Addressing Agenda Items
This process will identify the steps through which the members will come together to complete the meeting discussion and make decisions. This will increase the effectiveness of the meeting.
Choose Who Leads Each Agenda Topic
In any meeting, there is always a meeting leader who is responsible for leading the entire meeting. But each agenda topic should be allocated to someone who will lead the whole discussion.
End Meeting
The Meeting Agenda is the heart of the meeting and so it should include the closing of the meeting.
Download Simple Meeting Agenda Template
