Tel: 0844 394 8877

Boulden Management Consultants

Management Skills  >  Half-Day Courses

Meetings Mastery

Boulden Management Consultants

Running well paced and productive meetings

Half Day Course

Course Brochure Download
Meetings Mastery brochure
  • Acquire a robust meeting planning process
  • Master tools for keeping people on track
  • Learn how to run ‘structured brainstorming’ sessions

Overview

This programme enables participants to plan, run and control meetings in a self confident and professional way. The course will give those attending the core skills needed to run meetings that have clear goals and are well structured so that participants feel that they are a worthwhile use of their time.

Learning objectives

By attending this highly interactive and practical course you will:

  • Gain an insight into the stages involved in effective planning
  • Understand the value of briefing people in advance of a meeting
  • Use a seven step process for running a meeting efficiently and professionally
  • Be aware of the three different types of business meeting that need be run
  • Acquire specific influencing skills to keep things on track

Who should attend?

All professional people who want to acquire a methodical and professional approach to managing the meetings that they run.




Workshop

Meetings planning process and understanding the three types of meeting

One of the most important aspect of planning a meeting is to realise that there are three distinct reasons for having a meeting and that each type needs a different format for the agenda if it is to run well. Here we identify the three types of meeting and discuss how to structure the agenda in accordance with the overall aim.

  • Specify the outcome. Which of the three types of meeting am I dealing with?
  • Decide topics and attendees
  • Planning for participation
  • Ordering the agenda
  • Notifying participants
  • Setting the stage. Organising the room and equipment etc.

Exercise: assessing how to improve your planning

Running meetings

Once a meeting starts the chairperson must control the flow of the meeting. He/she must make sure that the agenda is kept to and that any particular individual does not dominate the discussion.

  • State the outcome
  • Outlining the agenda
  • Agree the house rules
  • Ensuring active participation
  • Summarising outcomes
  • Closing the meeting
  • Writing the minutes

Exercise: self assessment of your ability to chair a meeting

Controlling meetings

The chairperson must ensure that the focus stays on the topic on the agenda and that the group does not digress e.g. on to another subject or personal observations. To do this he/she must make use of ‘control techniques’.

  • Three step assertive technique
  • Car parking
  • Bringing in
  • Rounds
  • Maintaining neutrality

Exercise: two person drills to learn the control techniques

Structured Brainstorming

Structured Brainstorming is a simple yet flexible problem solving and decision making meeting format that can be used in a variety of situations and circumstances.

  • Making the purpose of the meeting clear
  • Meeting format
  • Divergent thinking
  • Convergent thinking
  • Agreeing actions

Exercise: running a Structured Brainstorming Meeting



Feedback

Feedback is based upon peer review using Boulden assessment checklists. Completing the assessment checklists is not only valuable to the people involved in a given case study, it also helps those completing them to gain an in-depth understanding of the building blocks that make up an excellent meeting.


Remote Training

All of our workshops can be delivered as Remote Training via e-learning modules plus Zoom based virtual workshops. Please see our Virtual Training page for more information.


Contact

Further information on this course is available by contacting
Boulden Management Consultants:
via our Contact form
Tel: 0844 394 8877