Running an Effective Meeting

We attend lots of meetings – meetings with our academic advisor, group project meetings, chapter meetings, student organization meetings, and maybe Delta Zeta Executive Board meetings. We have all experienced meetings that were great and those that were just very, very bad.

Think back to both of those experiences. What were the common characteristics among them? During a great meeting, you most likely felt the organizers were prepared, your time was respected and your concerns were addressed. In a not so great meeting, you may have experienced disorganization, participants talking over one other or the meeting lasting 20 minutes past its end time.

In Delta Zeta we value our sisters’ time and opinions, so it is crucial as a chapter leader, to be prepared to run an effective meeting. Reflecting on the questions below can help you succeed, whether this is your first new member meeting as the VP of New Member Education or your final chapter meeting as President.

• What guidelines/structure am I expected to follow, if any? Some meetings require use of a specific structure or procedure. For example, formal chapter meetings must use Robert’s Rules of Order.
• What is the purpose of the meeting/What do you want to accomplish? Knowing exactly what the meeting is for will help clarify the agenda, the audience and the intended outcomes.
• Who needs to be there? If you want to work on a specific project, must the whole committee be there? Are you having a brainstorming session where it would be helpful to include your advisory team as well?

 

After reflecting on these questions, it is now time to plan your agenda, prepare your materials, and execute the meeting. Here are some tips to succeed:

• Set time limits for the meeting and agenda items. During the meeting, this can help focus the discussion and demonstrates to participants that you respect their time.
• Designate someone to record minutes and distribute these minutes within a reasonable time following the meeting. You may choose to use Google docs, a Yahoo group or email to distribute your minutes. Know what works for your members and use it. Recording the decisions made during the meeting will help in the creation of to-do lists and help those who were not able to attend stay connected with the organization.
• Consider creating a “parking lot”. If something comes up in the meeting that is off topic, but should be discussed later, put it in your “parking lot” and then figure out the best place for discussion following the meeting.
• Encourage and expect civility. Disagreement during meetings is inevitable and, contrary to popular opinion, positive. Thorough discussing agenda items from all points of view can only strengthen your decision and your organization. No matter how different the two points of view, you should always encourage and expect civility and respect among participants.

 

Additional Resources

• For more information about running a formal chapter meeting, please consult your Ritual Manual.
• For more information about running other Delta Zeta meetings, please consult the President’s Manual, found on DZ Metro > College Officer Resources > Collegiate Resources > Manuals.
• For more information on Parliamentary Procedure, visit http://www.rulesonline.com/index.html.