101: Planning Meetings
Meeting planning is a thankless job. For the small business owner, executive assistant or anyone else who has to consult with multiple people with multiple calendar limitations to set a time, day and place — you know what we mean. The planner has to be flexible, organized and efficient.
Most importantly, be sure the goals of the meeting are clear: that there's a reason to meet. Don't just meet to meet. Here are three ways to get everyone in the room together and get it all accomplished:
Embrace the alternate date. Don't just leave it open-ended, as in, “What date works for you?” When trying to coordinate a meeting, have two dates to suggest. It will likely save you a second round of emails to see who is available when. Once the two dates are determined, says Diana Huggins in an article at LockerGnome.com, “put a hold on a meeting room ... You can always release unneeded time,” she notes.
Cover your bases. You don't want to muddle through inbox messages or voicemails for hours setting up a meeting, just to end up back at Square One, with time ticking. Jodi Glickman at HBR Blog Network suggests getting final approvals from key players before you book the room. Also, “keep a paper trail — save emails,” she writes, “in the event someone comes back and complains about a time they OK'd.”
Have a pre-meeting. You may find it's quicker to get everyone on a conference call to hammer out a day and time to meet, rather than emailing back and forth, says a blog entry at TheProfessionalAssistant.net. Also, “Send an email to everyone's assistants, if they have them,” the article states, to be sure that all involved are in the loop.
Image credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net.
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