Prepare in advance to make meetings more effective.

Some considerations for successfully preparing a meeting:

  • clarify and communicate the driver for, and intended outcome of the meeting
  • decide who to invite
  • create an agenda
  • schedule the meeting enough in advance, so people have time to prepare
  • choose an appropriate duration for the meeting
  • be clear who will facilitate the meeting, who will take minutes and who will take care of any follow-up

Preparing an Agenda

Involve people in preparing and prioritizing an agenda and send it out in advance

For each agenda item agree on:

  • the driver
  • the intended outcome
  • the process
  • the time you want to spend on it
  • what people need to do to prepare

Support the Participants’ Preparation

  • consider what can be done in advance to prepare for the meeting
  • notify people about any expectations and prerequisites
  • make any resources available that people may need for preparation

As a participant

  • consider the pattern Artful Participation
  • review the agenda and consider how you can contribute to each item
  • bring up objections to an agenda, and if possible resolve them before the meeting
  • review improvement suggestions from the last meeting’s evaluation and consider how you might act on them