Elevate your meetings: why running them well is the key to a better culture
Proven tips to create better outcomes from valuable (= expensive) time together, and how to improve your culture in the process
We’ve all sat through them. Meetings that seem to (or, god forbid, actually do) go on for hours. Meetings are potentially both boring and high stakes: getting a group of people together is costly, and has the potential to strengthen or undermine your culture. Because of this, it’s important to be thoughtful convening groups so that (a) it was time well spent (read: you actually achieve your business outcomes) and (b) everybody leaves feeling like it was time well spent.
So let’s talk about the Art Science VIBE Of Great Meetings and how to run them.
First: Table stakes. Start on time, have an agenda. If you’re not doing those two things, start now. The agenda doesn’t need to be complex. Consider the rule for yourself: “No agenda, no attender.” Hopefully the grammar is awful enough to make it stick. If nobody has been thoughtful enough to plan out the time, why should anyone give up an hour for it?
Now, let’s get beyond the obvious to consider eight practical, actionable tips that can elevate meetings and create a better team vibe:
Set one clear objective: If you achieve nothing else, identify what you’ll get done in this time that makes it worthwhile.
Prioritize pre-reads and asynchronous context-setting: Share information (not just the agenda) 24 hours or more ahead of the meeting. This allows participants to digest the material and come prepared with thoughts and questions. This is truly the most inclusive way to account for different learning styles and get the most out of everyone.
Encourage active participation: Foster an environment that solicits all perspectives. As the meeting convener, you can do this explicitly. Ask for input from people who haven’t spoken as much, invite junior folks to speak before senior… This is a culture moment!
Rotate roles: Cultivate a sense of ownership among attendees by rotating key roles like the facilitator, note-taker, and timekeeper. Consider modeling the most culturally “junior” role yourself, or asking the most senior person in the room to do (consider asking them beforehand).
Use your objective to shape your meeting: Adapt the way you host the conversation to the objective you’re aiming for. Things like room layout, whether you’re standing or sitting, cameras on or off can all impact the vibe of a conversation. Be thoughtful here.
Create a culture of feedback: Encourage attendees to share their thoughts on meeting effectiveness and actively address any concerns. Consider a last-moment finger shoot before leaving the meeting (two thumbs up = great use of time, one = okay but could have been better, none = see me after class).
Trust that people know how time is best spent: Empower team members to evaluate the necessity of each meeting and decline or suggest alternatives when appropriate. That’s right. Meetings aren’t compulsory unless they really are—good agendas make it easier to work out how to spend time (and less likely to leave yourself dealing with irritated, shortchanged attendees at the end).
Deal with disruptive or difficult people: Address issues promptly and diplomatically, either through direct conversation (in private) or by establishing ground rules upfront to maintain a respectful and productive environment (or both!). And importantly, be consistent—one set of rules for all builds trust.
A word on remote meetings: because they’re here to stay
The transition to hybrid and remote work has obviously impacted the way meetings are conducted. Many of the tips above apply to both remote and in-person meetings, but virtual gatherings require specific considerations, here are a few:
Use the tech to your advantage: Use tools like breakout rooms, chat functions, and polls to facilitate engagement and collaboration, especially in info-heavy meetings. Select the right platform for the meeting type and size to ensure a seamless experience.
Maintain connection: Allocate time for casual conversations and team-building activities to help maintain a sense of connection among team members. If it’s all business and there’s no corridor chat, you’re missing out on the opportunity to build connection (and reinforce culture).
Establish remote meeting etiquette: Set consistent expectations for camera usage, muting, and background noise to minimize distractions and ensure everyone can participate effectively.
Adapt to time zones: Be considerate of team members in different time zones by scheduling meetings at convenient times or rotating meeting times to distribute the burden fairly.
Encourage short breaks: For longer remote meetings (anything beyond an hour), schedule short breaks to prevent fatigue and maintain focus.
By implementing these strategies, meeting experiences can be transformed – becoming more engaging, productive, and beneficial for team members. You’ll have a happier team, more productivity and a more attractive place to work.
What challenges have you faced when putting together meetings? How have you chosen to run one-off vs. recurring meetings differently? Have you implemented a heads-down memo-first culture, a presentation-based “turn up with no context,” or something entirely different? I’d love to hear in the comments below.