How to Run a Successful Meeting and Training Session?
Written by KBA Director, Colin Wilson
Running boring meetings will disengage your team. Meetings and training sessions need to be upbeat and engaging. How do you empower your team if you don’t have the time to prepare for an up-and-coming meeting or training session? The goal of every meeting session is to get your team on the same page by discussing goals and objectives. Everyone has a role to play. Many companies schedule a meeting for the sake of having a meeting, simply because one is locked in every week.
The following happens if you are not 100% prepared and rock up on the day to simply go through the motions:
- Your team becomes disengaged
- Team members cannot wait for it to finish so they can get on with what they think is important to them – this may not be aligned with your company goals and objectives
Getting your meetings and training sessions into a good rhythm is hard for many companies. Business owners and managers struggle with being time poor. While planning and setting meeting agendas sound easy and should be straight forward, it rarely is. I’m sure we’ve all experienced how meetings are a great success in the first few weeks, but then gradually lose their impact. These meetings become boring because we get busy, and planning good meetings or training sessions becomes a secondary thing. This causes these sessions to lose their impact and cohesion in the long run.
You need to remember that while you, as the leader, judge your people on their performance, you are also being judged on your performance. And one of those key performance factors your staff judge you on is the way you plan, organise, run, and facilitate meetings and training sessions. Many companies also work in a reactive manner, having a meeting after things go wrong. I am a big believer in having proactive meetings that focuses on what the company and its people are trying to achieve.
Some of my tips on running effective meetings and training sessions include asking yourself the questions below:
- What do you want to achieve during this meeting or training session?
- How will you best get your message across?
- How do you know that everyone has heard and understood the message of the meeting or training session?
- Do you feel empowered while running a meeting or training session?
- Are your staff prepared to listen, learn, and engage in the message of the meeting or training session?
Some leaders think that because the meeting or a training session is scheduled, then it needs to happen, regardless of timing or the current situation at hand.
My tips on improving a meeting or training session are:
- Design your meetings to meet the needs of your team. A great way to achieve this is to ask your team for input on what they want and need in a meeting or in an up and coming training session.
- Be 100% planned and organised with an agenda, and always work a week or two in advance. Be proactive rather than last minute reactive.
- To spice things up, you can run a quiz or ask specific members of your team to discuss something meaningful at your next meeting that is empowering for them and others.
- Remember, a boring meeting will always be remembered and puts a downer on the next meeting ahead. Meetings and training sessions need to be constructive and get your message across. You also need to acknowledge, recognise, and praise staff who have gone above and beyond.
- When you set new goals and objectives, or create tasks for staff, in meetings or training sessions, then make sure you have someone take the minutes of the meeting. Have these minutes sent out companywide to keep everyone accountable for the next meeting.
It is the business owner, manager, or team leader who leads the company, setting the tone and expectations of meetings and training sessions. If you are not 100% organised for your team meetings or training sessions, then you have failed your team.
But you don’t have to do this all on your own. You can engage other managers, team leaders, and even emerging leaders in the company to help with the planning process. You need to create projects, product or system champions who can assist and help you to get your message across. This is done by creating company objectives, a company mission, as well as visions and values for your business. Further, your meetings and training sessions also need to be all aligned of where you want your company to go and grow.
If you struggle or fail at all of above, then you simply won’t have good business cohesion or collaboration. This lack of cohesion and collaboration will make it hard to set or create tasks for your departments and staff. It will also be difficult to implement updates, tasks, and projects required for the benefit of your business. Your leadership may become an issue, and company productivity and culture may falter due to the result a lack of organised leadership. Let KBA help you improve and raise the bar for your team meetings and training sessions.
KBA are here to help your business, whether it be Business Advice, Support, Leadership, Management, or Sales Training, to the end-to-end process of HR Advice and Support. We are here to help. Our team brings our passion to your business, to help drive the results you need to perform. We help our clients to stay positive and drive the motivation needed to be successful.
If you are struggling, then seek professional help to get your company back on track for 2021. Book an appointment to see Colin or one of KBA’s great HR Consultants who are ready to help you and your company go from good to great! Sign up to one of our FREE Webinars or download FREE Useful information from our website.
KBA useful Information to help you:
- KBA FREE Information: https://keyba.com.au/free-resources/
- KBA Business Advice & Support: https://keyba.com.au/business-advice-strategy/
- KBA Professional Sales Training: https://keyba.com.au/professional-sales-training/
- KBA HR Advice & Support: https://keyba.com.au/hr-advice-support/
At KBA we are a team that are very passionate about taking businesses from good to great. If you need help growing your company or for ways to better motivate and manage your staff, then please contacts us today. We are here to help!
If you would like help or want to know more about our services, please contact us at Key Business Advisors on 1300 4 ADVICE
