Managing Meeting Participants: Practical Tips

Teamwork & CooperationCommunication & FeedbackAll employees≈ 25 min

Key skill: Meeting facilitation

Summary

Get every profile involved in a meeting — the talker, the silent one, the questioner, the latecomer — by building trust, understanding group dynamics, and asking questions that refocus the discussion all the way to a decision.

Target audience

Anyone who facilitates or takes part in meetings

Learning objectives

Encourage participants to bring their best selves to a meeting
Understand how groups function in meetings
Master the 10 rules of virtual meetings
Adapt your behavior to the group's different personalities: the silent, the off-topic, the talkers, the repeat questioners, latecomers, the distracted, and more

Module outline

StorytellingThe story of a manager who transforms how effective his meetings are by adopting a talent-centered approach
ArticlesThe minute of silence in meetings: the concept and how to use a gong · The different types of participants and how to manage them · The 10 golden rules of virtual meetings
Expert videoHow to bring quality facilitation to your meetings
AnchoringA quiz and true/false questions to deepen the topic and anchor what you've learned
Memo cardA downloadable coaching memo card: the key takeaways from the expert video
CommitmentConcrete examples to help you define your own commitment

Models & methods

A typology of difficult participants; the art of questioning; the 10 rules of virtual meetings; the Appreciative Inquiry method.

Research-based

A study on divergent thinking involving more than 1,500 children (Ken Robinson, TED): 98% scored as geniuses in kindergarten, versus 12% at age 15.