Open Forum Meetings

We have something called Friday Forum - an all hands meeting for OCTA team. Twice a month, our remote team jumps on Zoom and talks openly about everything that's happening— company progress, traction, fundraising, sales, product shipping, team dynamics—especially the uncomfortable stuff. We used to do this weekly, but realized that even though the conversations were meaningful, meeting weekly became a distraction. It disrupted momentum. Twice a month turned out to be the perfect balance: frequent enough to stay aligned, spaced enough to let us focus and build. Below is a screenshot some of our Friday Forum decks. Behind each one is a record of open, transparent conversations that kept us on track as we grew. Here's our simple framework: ↳ Cadence: Twice a month. Weekly is too rushed; monthly too disconnected. ↳ Format: Short, simple slides as talking points. Nothing fancy. ↳ Content: Everything uncomfortable—fundraising struggles, sales problems, delayed product launches, events, and team issues. If it's awkward to talk about, it's probably important. Every one of these Friday Forums is recorded. It's part of our commitment to transparency and good governance. Eventually, our goal is to share these openly—so other teams can learn from our journey, our mistakes, and our growth. How often does your team meet, and how do you ensure it helps your momentum rather than hurting it?

HOTEL & RESTAURANT OPERATORS WHO SURROUND THEMSELVES WITH YES PEOPLE ARE MISSING OUT John Parrino alcamohospitality.com The best leaders in hospitality don’t want yes people. They want people who challenge them, who ask questions, who push back, and who share opinions, insights, and ideation. This applies everywhere—manager meetings, executive committee meetings, agency meetings, security meetings, ownership meetings. Too many confuse leadership with authority. A title doesn’t make you right—it makes you responsible. WEEKLY MEETINGS → In a hotel, every department—front office, F&B, housekeeping, engineering, sales—must have an open forum to challenge each other. Weekly meetings should be the space where departments raise issues, disagree respectfully, and problem-solve together. That’s how you build a stronger team environment and a better guest journey. MANAGER & EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS → These meetings aren’t for rubber-stamping decisions. They should be open forums where managers and executives bring insights from their departments, challenge assumptions, and debate strategy for the good of the entire operation. PRE-SHIFT LINEUPS → Your servers, bartenders, and concierges are closest to the guest. If they don’t feel safe to share what they’re hearing, you’re blind to the realities of service. STRATEGY SESSIONS → If nobody questions the plan, you don’t have a strategy—you have a script. Real innovation comes when ideas are tested, challenged, and sharpened. AGENCY MEETINGS → PR, marketing, and content agencies shouldn’t just nod in agreement. Their role is to question campaigns, push for stronger storytelling, and present better alternatives. SECURITY MEETINGS → These aren’t just compliance checklists. Security and risk management teams must have the freedom to challenge operational practices and raise concerns before they become crises. OWNERSHIP MEETINGS → Ownership doesn’t need yes people—it needs truth. Executives should be empowered to push back, present real data, and offer new ideation to protect both brand and profitability. Real leadership in hotels and restaurants is about creating a culture where challenge, free discussion, and new insights are not only allowed but expected. If your people don’t feel safe to challenge you—or each other—they’ll stop thinking altogether. And when that happens? Innovation dies, service suffers, and your competition takes the lead. If your team isn’t challenging you, your guests eventually will. John Parrino alcamohospitality.com

🙋🏽♀️ OPEN FORUMS 🎙️ Don’t skip this leadership ritual with the highest ROI/minute You can start them from next week. Here’s my 7-step guide: WHAT ARE OPEN FORUMS? A whole team gathering where team members can ask any question to the leadership. You see them everywhere: politics (town halls), investing (shareholder meetings), social media (AMA). My focus here is on how organisations use Open Forums (OF). HERE’S HOW I DID THEM AT 321 EDUCATION: 1️⃣ People involved: For whole organization: I as CEO would lead the Open Forum (OF) & pull in relevant leaders as needed. For teams: The team lead would lead & I would join as needed. 2️⃣ Frequency & Duration In times of uncertainty (new project, difficult times) → Every 2 weeks In times of stability (high clarity & satisfaction, solid leaders in all teams) → Every 6 weeks Normally: Every 4 weeks Duration: 45 - 90 mins. 3️⃣ Collecting Questions We had an always active link to submit questions → <10% of Qs came this way 1 week before, we reminded people → 30%-40% of Qs At the start of each OF, we gave 15 mins to submit questions → ~50% Qs 4️⃣ Anonymous & Written Questions Why Anonymous: - Many hesitate to ask difficult questions publicly (power dynamics) - This anonymity is critical in tough times. Why written: - Verbal questions can sometimes become about venting & ‘point-making’ - Often 1-2 voices dominate the discussion 5️⃣ Prioritising Questions The OF organizer would categories Qs & combine repetitive ones. Then we answered each one. If there were too many, we got the team to vote. 6️⃣ Harsh, untrue, abusive Qs This is a consequence of anonymity. Over 10 years, we only had a few of them, but they do increase with size & in times of difficulty. Our policy was: we will read the harsh & untrue ones as is, but will censor the abusive ones. Reasoning: - Questions show what’s on people’s minds. A good way to deal with untruths is to bring them out in open & refute them respectfully but strongly. - We censored abusive questions to not give them a stage. If people wanted answers, they knew abuse was not the way to go. 7️⃣ My Answering Guidelines: I tried to answer with the openness & clarity I would want from my leader if the roles were reversed. For Q with no clear answer, I would share: - My sense of the situation - Options - Decision criteria-process-timelines For Q with confidential answers: ‘I can’t answer, here’s why…’ —————————————————— I did 100s of them over a decade. They were pivotal in increasing team ownership, strengthening culture & providing clarity & comfort during uncertain situations. The most common feedback we got after our open forums: ‘I feel heard, clear & aligned’ As a leader, there are very few things you can do, that will get this feedback. Open Forums can. Give them a try. #leadership #CEO #manager —————————————————— Are open forums a ritual in your team?

We’ve all experienced it—company offsites where the leadership goes through endless slides, and by the second coffee, you’re just trying to stay awake That’s not how we do Vision Day This year, instead of just delivering content we thought the team wanted to hear, we opened the floor for an unfiltered live Q&A session No scripts..no pre approved questions..just an open forum where anyone could ask anything Transparency isn’t just something we talk about—it’s something we live. Here's what we heard: - It gave the team real insights—not just a polished presentation - It made sure everyone felt heard, respected, and part of the journey - It turned Vision Day from a 1-way presentation into a 2-way conversation That’s what Vision Day is all about - listening, engaging, and making sure the whole team is aligned on where we’re going If your company does offsites, how do you make sure they’re engaging—not just another set of slides?