3 Reasons Your Staff Meetings Are Unproductive

Who among us doesn't loathe a marathon staff meeting, especially one that we conclude is unproductive?  After all, at the end of the day time is money and wasted time does little to increase the bottom line.

Nonetheless, staff meetings (whether productive or not) are necessary  in the world of business.  So the trick is to conduct the meeting in such a way that the attendees remain engaged throughout and a productive session is the end result.

If you're not doing these 3 things, your meetings are probably not as productive as they could be:

1.  Plan A Specific Agenda For the Meeting

Decide in advance what the purpose and scope of the meeting are.  This should include, at minimum, an outline of relevant topics and subtopics to discussed during the meeting.   Keep the outline succinct.  Otherwise, you me fall prey to the meeting that "never ends."  There is no rule that you need to cover a dozen topics in a single meeting.  In fact, I discourage this practice as the staff will likely tire (or disengage) well before you reach topic #12.

2. Distribute The Meeting Agenda In Advance

Providing the meeting agenda in advance allows attendees to consider the topics to be discussed before the meeting starts. This usually eliminates the need for staff to spend the first part of the meeting becoming acquainted with the topic.  It is also advisable for the agenda to include a time allotment for the discussion of each topic and sub-topic. 

3. End The Meeting In A Timely Manner

Even the most productive meetings reach a plateau. There will come a moment when the creative minds in the room have tapped out and the intellectual minds in the room are on empty.  When that moment comes, or ideally just before that time, adjourn the meeting. Allow the staff to leave on a high note.  Hopefully, this way the next time that you announce a staff meeting, your agenda will be received  with excitement and the cycle of productive meetings will continue.

Feel free to leave your questions or comments below.  I'd love to hear what works for you.

Ebony Phillips, Esq. is a Personal Injury and Criminal Defense Attorney, at Phillips Law Group, LLC. She is a graduate of Emory law school.

www.PhillipsLawAtlanta.com | Ebony.Phillips@PhillipsLawAtlanta.com