{"id":2112,"date":"2023-06-01T16:24:17","date_gmt":"2023-06-01T16:24:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/project.co\/?p=2112"},"modified":"2024-06-13T15:12:19","modified_gmt":"2024-06-13T15:12:19","slug":"staff-meeting-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/project.co\/staff-meeting-ideas\/","title":{"rendered":"8 staff meeting ideas to ensure time\u2019s well spent!"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Last updated on 13th June 2024<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we’re serving up eight electrifying staff meeting ideas that will leave your team buzzing with enthusiasm and eager to conquer any challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Say goodbye to yawns and hello to impactful discussions, creative brainstorming sessions, and an overall boost in team morale – as we turn your staff meetings from snooze-fests to success-fests!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8 ideas for more productive staff meetings <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. Set an agenda<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Assign a note-taker<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Allow for buffer time<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Assign a meeting leader<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Send a follow-up email<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Try lightening jams<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Don’t sit down<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. Test your tech beforehand<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Set an agenda<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A clear agenda that goes over exactly what you want to cover, and the outcomes you would like to achieve can help to steer your meeting in the right direction and make sure everyone\u2019s time is well spent.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you find that things are moving away from your agenda, you can make a note to discuss those items another time, before steering back towards what you\u2019ve planned to discuss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You don\u2019t need to spend too much time on your agenda, either. Just a bullet-pointed checklist will do. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it\u2019s important to make sure everyone is aware of it. The Project.co team meeting template<\/a> is perfect for creating a space where everyone can keep up to date on upcoming meetings. You can invite team members, add your agenda, and even create tasks that can be assigned to the correct people and actioned before or after the meeting.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n

\n <\/i>Our Insight\n<\/div>\n
\n A well-mapped agenda sent around to everyone the day before can make all the difference to your meetings. All you need to do is think about what has happened since your last meeting and talk about that, specifically<\/em>. This could be a recent social media campaign you launched or a roundup of new clients in your sales pipeline.\u00a0\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

Whatever you\u2019re discussing, an agenda can help keep things brief and on-track. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Assign a note-taker<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Something we can all be guilty of from time to time is forgetting about our meetings as soon <\/em>as we leave the room. We\u2019re already bounding on towards the next thing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By assigning a note-taker, you can ensure that your meeting minutes are jotted down and shared with the team. That way, everyone has something to refer back to. The notes can even be used to remind people of what they are required to do post-meeting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, you\u2019d expect everyone to write their own notes – and they can! But it\u2019s also good practice to have a set of impartial notes that covers everything that was discussed in a matter-of-fact way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To do this, assign one note-taker to record the meeting notes (we have meeting notes template<\/a> that\u2019s perfect for this!). This should be their main role for the meeting so that they don\u2019t get distracted and neglect the task.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a quick example of notes or minutes for a meeting that discussed a transition to remote working<\/a>:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n

\n Transition to remote working<\/strong>
– Normal working hours will apply
– Each team will have a morning check-in
– Managers to complete an end-of-day report summarising the day\u2019s accomplishments
– Use Slack for instant communication
– Use Zoom for conference calls and meetings\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

This is a very simple example, but it covers the basics of what meeting notes or minutes should look like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Allow \u2018buffer time\u2019<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While it\u2019s important to ensure that your time\u2019s well spent, it also important to be realistic. You\u2019re never going to be able to plan a meeting right down to the very minute, so allow for some \u2018buffer time\u2019 when things get off track. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buffer time<\/a> is exactly what it sounds like. It\u2019s a short amount of time that can be used as a buffer between tasks, or in this case, meeting topics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s likely that the beginning and the end of your meetings will be the most disruptive, while everyone gets greetings and farewells out of the way. So including 5 minutes or so either side for chit-chat like this could help you to forecast the time you have to spend on other parts of your agenda. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Assign a meeting leader<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Allowing for buffer time is all well and good, but it\u2019s also important to assign a meeting leader to ensure things get back on track swiftly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After all, you don\u2019t want to spend half of the meeting talking about what everyone ate for dinner last night! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By assigning a meeting leader you can ensure that your agenda is followed and that time is used effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And this doesn\u2019t have to be the role of the most senior member of staff in the room, anyone could be appointed as the meeting leader. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could appoint the person who is most involved with the topic at hand, for example, if you\u2019re talking about sales then let one of your sales team members lead the meeting. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n <\/i>Expert Tip\n<\/div>\n
\n It can be fun to take it in turns and find out which person is naturally best at leading meetings! \n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

5. Send a follow up email<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In addition to writing down meeting minutes, it also helps to send a follow up email to your team. This should serve as a reminder of what was discussed and can also include some action points for different team members. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is an example using the same meeting topic we used above: 
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As you can see, this email quickly summarises the important points of the meeting, gives people action points, and sets a date for the next meeting. Simple, yet effective! <\/p>\n\n\n

\n <\/i>Our Insight\n<\/div>\n
\n Sending a follow up email like this is a good way to ensure time is well spent because it makes sure that the action points are completed ahead of the next meeting.\u00a0\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

Without a follow up email, you could have staff members forgetting what they were supposed to do and creating delays or bottlenecks in the next meeting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Try lightning jams<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

So far we\u2019ve discussed ideas that can enhance your current meetings – but how about a new way to do meetings all together?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meet lightning jams! <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lightning jams can help your team make faster decisions. And they\u2019re actually pretty fun. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everyone in the room is given a pile of post-it notes and invited to write down as many problems, issues, or simply topics of discussion that they can in 4 minutes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The meeting leader should act as a moderator here, timing the exercise and also ensuring that team members don\u2019t confer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the end of the four minutes, the post-it notes are displayed in front of everyone (duplicates can be discarded) and then each team member is given 3 sticky dots. They can use these sticky dots to vote on the post-it notes that they feel highlight the three most important issues or topics. 
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The topics with the most votes are those that you focus on for the meeting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s a very simplified version of lightning jams and there\u2019s a lot more that you can do to make this more of a timed and structured exercise. If you have time, check out this video to learn more: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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