Sometimes meetings can devolve into simply handing out instructions to fulfill predetermined goals set by the business leadership, but an effective way to make your meetings engaging is to use them as a forum for your team to set company objectives. Only handing out responsibilities at meetings does little to inspire, as it takes away employee creativity and their sense of being contributors. By taking some time to crowdsource your company goals, allowing employees to contribute to how projects should move forward, and encouraging them to provide benchmarks to monitor progress, it will make your team feel as if they are a part of the process, rather than just underlings given orders. By having your employees involved in the planning and implementation of company goals in your monthly meetings, you can keep them engaged while building a positive business culture.
My number one tip for running an engaging monthly meeting is to have a guest speaker. A guest speaker can really add some excitement to your meeting and help keep things engaging and interesting for your employees. A guest speaker can be anyone from a business leader, expert in their field, or even a comedian. Whatever you choose, make sure that the speaker is relevant to your business and the topic of the meeting. A good speaker will not only keep your employees engaged, but they will also help to develop and grow your business through their knowledge and expertise.
One of the most frustrating aspects of long meetings that do not have a break (and often have incredibly low level of engagement) is that employees do not have windows of time in which to engage and share their responses immediately following a specific aspect of the meeting. Many employees will not want to wait until the end of the meeting to discuss, and would rather save their thought or response for an upcoming meeting break, rather than wait and potentially lose aspects of their ideas due to a lack of initial engagement, or simply forgetting due to the length of the meeting.
Cater a different cuisine for each monthly meeting. Choose a theme, such as “Around the World in 80 Days,” to get employees excited about trying new things outside of their experience while they work. Meetings inevitably need elements to spice up their engagement. Everyone loves food and many cuisines have diverse offerings that will help your teams explore outside their comfort zones. Using food and cuisine as a tool can also help brands engage with employees about wellness. Choose some notable ingredients featured in every cuisine you cater that have desirable health benefits or unique properties to whet employees’ physical and mental appetites.
Try a different approach to communicating your message during your next meeting. Use a fireside conversation style rather than the team leader giving a one-sided presentation: Invite employees to offer their interview questions at an open discussion that your leader should have with an employee who is conducting the interview. Throughout the meeting, try to involve your team members frequently, ideally every ten minutes. Utilizing Live Polls throughout your meeting schedule is one option. Live connection can refocus workers who are starting to drift off. Polls are fortunately very flexible.
Even though this seems evident and simple, organizations still seem to have trouble with not having a clear plan. Employees dislike meetings when there is a lack of structure and order, as noted in a study published in the Management Research Review titled "Employee's attitudes towards more meetings." To address this, I recommend providing attendees with a detailed agenda for the meeting. On the big day, don't let all your preparation go to waste by losing focus or going off-topic.
Your monthly meetings should have tangible outcomes, such as projects to complete or tasks to assign. Each meeting should focus on a particular goal and result in clear action points that the team can take away. This will help ensure that everyone is on the same page and has an understanding of what they need to be working towards. Having actionable outcomes also helps to hold people accountable and encourages them to be proactive in their approach. So, at the end of each meeting make sure that everyone has a solid understanding of what's expected from them and the timeframe for when it needs to be completed.
Running an engaging monthly meeting requires focusing on the right things. It's a good idea to pick a meeting topic, so your team discussion stays on track. The worst thing that can happen is organizing a meeting without any purpose. That's why, as a meeting organizer, you should consider what is important for your team at the moment. Sometimes it might be a specific project that needs to be discussed. Other times, sharing some best practices that positively impacted your business. Whatever you choose, it's essential to let everyone know what you're going to talk about so that people can prepare and add value to the meeting. Also, sometimes choose a topic different from your regular discussions. For example, our team recently discussed our superpowers. It was a great way to get everyone involved, hear about some interesting talents, and get to know each other better. Picking an out-of-the-box topic fosters a team's creativity and strengthens workplace relationships.
One of the top reasons people drift off in meetings is because they don't know why they're in the meeting. And maybe they shouldn't be. Setting a goal before sending the meeting invite is a great way to - only invite who's needed - allow attendees to prepare - keep the meeting from going off-topic Meetings are a great format for making decisions and solving problems. If your meeting goal doesn't fall into one of those buckets, it might be better to share information in writing, e.g., for sharing updates with other team members. Once you have a clear goal, the meeting will be engaging and run itself.
One of the problems with monthly meetings, or even weekly meetings, is they tend to only focus on what happened in a series of boring status updates. I wouldn't call numbers boring, because they can make or break a sales/marketing team, but if the progress update is boring, the numbers sure aren't going to be fun. I use our monthly meetings as a strategy session. While we do give a brief 2-minute overview of how we did on our projects for the month, this part is literally 2 minutes long. It happens right at the beginning of the meeting. The last part of the meeting is an open floor session where anyone can share concerns or accomplishments. In between is the bread and butter of our engaging monthly meetings. My team leads and I identify problems or goals before the meeting that we want to work on in the upcoming month. We then spend the next 30 minutes running an interactive strategy session where we clearly state the goal or the problem and then solicit feedback. Works great!
Hi there, My #1 tip for running an engaging monthly meeting is to change up the meeting format often, preferably each month. For example, you could host a roundtable discussion one month and then bring in a guest speaker the next month. Visual presentations, work review sessions, anything works, as long as it is new, different, and exciting.
Establishing a relaxed atmosphere from the start. A great way to do this is by setting aside time for casual conversation at the beginning of each meeting. This allows everyone to relax into their roles, connect with each other, and chat about what’s going on in their lives - all before getting down to business. Not only does this build stronger relationships among team members, but it also helps create an atmosphere of trust which can make problem-solving easier when more difficult topics arise during the actual meeting itself. By creating a comfortable space where ideas can be shared without judgement, you’ll find that everyone will be much more willing to contribute than if they feel like they are being scrutinized or interrogated! In addition, don't forget that humor is always key when trying to keep things lighthearted; humor breaks tension and encourages collaboration between colleagues so make sure there's plenty of opportunity for laughter throughout your meetings.
Some repetitiveness is necessary in business but it is also boring, and therefore eliminating that element from your monthly meetings is critical to making them engaging. Many times, business managers get stuck in ruts, having the same agenda order, talking about the same topics, and meeting in the same location every time, and this can quickly turn a meeting into drudgery. Therefore, changing agendas, providing different snacks and refreshments, and moving locations to an outdoor or other unique setting, will break the repetitiveness that plagues so many meetings. By taking the time to mix things up and get out of that monotonous pattern, you can make your meetings more engaging and enjoyable, rather than something that your team dreads.
To engage your team, utilize storytelling best practices in monthly meetings. For example, if you're providing a new sales tip to your team, explain how this tip has helped you in a previous business interaction. It's much easier for employees to recall information and ask questions when information is provided in a relatable manner.
Imagine what life was like 20 years ago. Imagine if a company came along in 2003 that sought to boost mental wellness through the power of psychedelics. It never would have happened for several reasons. But in the post-pandemic world, and in a world in which we are re-evaluating everything, we are a cutting-edge company that is using ketamine therapy as a way to make people feel better and healthier. We've encountered our share of doubters. There have been stories written about us that haven’t painted us in the most flattering light, but we believe in what we do because we’ve already seen amazing results in the marketplace. At every meeting, I remind our team just how important our work is and how challenging (but not insurmountable) it will be for us to prove the skeptics wrong. We are the future – and history will see it that way. Every meeting is engaging because everyone on the team is excited about our mission and how we’re changing people’s minds and improving our clients’ lives.
I believe that effective team meetings should cover more than just motions, reports, and due dates. There is a common gap between meetings and the company's overall goals and objectives. Your company's mission statement is a treasure trove of information that should be used to directly inform your meeting agenda. Everyone on the team needs to know what they're working toward and what they need to do for the company's success, therefore every meeting should have an objective related to the conversation.
My #1 tip for running an engaging monthly meeting is to have a clear agenda and purpose for the meeting. This will help attendees understand the importance of the meeting and what they can expect to achieve or accomplish during the meeting. It is also important to actively involve attendees in the discussion and decision-making process, as this can help foster a sense of ownership and commitment to the meeting's outcomes. Finally, incorporating interactive elements, such as breakout sessions or group activities, can help keep attendees engaged and energized throughout the meeting.
My best tip for running an engaging monthly meeting is to keep it short and focused. Keeping the meeting short gives everyone a clear sense of purpose and keeps their attention. It also allows you to cover more topics in less time, making it easier to stay on track. To do that, I recommend setting a specific length for each meeting, such as 30 minutes or an hour, and only covering the topic at hand. Also, remember to create a clear agenda so everyone knows what will be discussed and can come prepared with their thoughts and questions. Thus, you can save time and straight forward with the meeting topics.
This is something I've come across as a best practice particularly for digital meetings - people tend to tune those out in much higher concentrations than they would in-person ones and with good reason. What I recommend is starting the meeting with a quick and fun poll - how everyone would rate their weekend, what they think of the presenters outfit, etc., just so long as it is lighthearted and gets people feeling a bit more comfortable. You'll want to follow this up with a mid-meeting poll and a close-meeting poll - I've done something like what should we order for lunch and what talking point are you most interested in, for example.
Always make it a priority to celebrate something at every meeting. It can be anything small or significant, such as improving a process, successful integration onto a new platform, or an employee milestone such as someone reaching their KPIs, or celebrating a work anniversary. Celebrating achievements is a good way to show appreciation and help your employees feel prioritized. This is a great way to promote engagement and provide a positive atmosphere in monthly meetings, and can even play a role in retaining top talent.