BUSINESS MEETINGS

WHICH WORD IS MISSING? 'There are three things you can predict in life: tax, death and more m_____________.‘ Mike Moore, Sydney Morning Herald

POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE ATTITUDE TOWARDS MEETINGS?

TYPES OF BUSINESS MEETINGS? C_____________ B_____________ P_____________ MEETING /TEAM MEETING D_____________ MEETING MEETING WITH S_____________ /C_____________ B_____________ MEETING A_____________ G_____________ MEETING (AGM) ANNUAL S_____________ MEETING E_____________ GENERAL MEETING (EGM) ONE-TO-ONE MEETING (F______________ -TO-FACE, T______________, V______________) S______________ MEETING M______________ MEETING

TYPES OF BUSINESS MEETINGS CHAT BRAINSTORMING PROJECT MEETING /TEAM MEETING DEPARTMENT MEETING MEETING WITH SUPPLIERS/CUSTOMERS BOARD MEETING ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (AGM) ANNUAL SALES MEETING EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING (EGM) ONE-TO-ONE MEETING (FACE-TO-FACE, TELECONFERENCE, VIDECONFERENCE) STAFF MEETING MANAGEMENT MEETING

WHICH TYPES OF MEETINGS ARE ILLUSTRATED BY THESE PICTURES?

READING - EFFECTIVE BUSINESS MEETINGS – RB, p. 6 I Discuss these questions before reading the text in the RB. Why are business meetings usually held? What are the typical problems associated with meetings? What makes meetings effective? What is the role of the chairperson in a meeting? II Read the text and find out.

VOCABULARY - Match these words to their definitions below: CHAIRPERSON, AGENDA, ITEM, MINUTES, AOB, CONSENSUS, VENUE, MINUTE TAKER the last item on the agenda, an abbreviation for “any other business”; the time during a meeting when people can discuss things that were not on the agenda a place where the meeting is held one of the subjects or issues discussed in the meeting, written on the agenda a person who writes down the things said and decided at the meeting a list of subjects to be discussed in the meeting a person who is in charge of the meeting an official written record of what is said and decided at the meeting agreement between all the people at a meeting

VOCABULARY - Match these nouns with the verbs below: VENUE, AGENDA, MEETING, MINUTE-TAKER, MINUTES, CONSENSUS CIRCULATE THE _______________ DRAW UP TAKE THE _______________ CALL PUT OFF CANCEL THE _______________ ATTEND CHAIR REACH _______________ APPOINT THE _______________ CHECK THE _______________

VOCABULARY- Read this dialogue and replace the Croatian words with their English translation. A: Hi, John. Do you know that Louise wants to sazvati sastanak for tomorrow? B: Really? What’s on the dnevni red? A: Staff lateness again, I’m afraid. And the second točka je razno, of course. B: What is the mjesto održavanja sastanka? A: Your office, believe it or not. 9 a.m. B: Oops. Will she predsjedati sastankom? A: Yes, as usual. But she told me you would be the zapisničar. B: Me? Voditi zapisnik? A: Yes, Sandy is on a sick leave, so she had to odrediti novog zapisničara. B: All right then. I just hope there will be a konsenzus on what needs to be done. A: Me too. And I hope she won’t odgoditi sastanak like last week. B: You never know. See you then. A: See you.

☺ GOOD OR BAD ☹ MEETINGS? ___ clear objectives ___ participants talk among themselves ___ meeting starts punctually and runs to time ___ participants well-prepared ___ meeting goes on far too long ___ constructive discussions ___ all points on the agenda covered ___ the chairperson talks too much ___ discussion dominated by a few participants ___ participants unprepared ___ clear action points agreed ___ discussion deviates from the agenda ___ discussion gets heated and personal

THE STRUCTURE OF MEETINGS – AT THE BEGINNING, DURING THE MEETING or AT THE END? emphasise action points comment on opinion go through the agenda say when the meeting will finish vote conclude the main points start the meeting close the meeting ask for clarification express doubt keep to the agenda state an opinion welcome the participants (dis)agree interrupt state the objective of the meeting make a suggestion check understanding introduce everyone if necessary summarize ask for opinion

What are the functions of the chaiperson, participants, or both What are the functions of the chaiperson, participants, or both? – RB, p.8 FUNCTION CHAIRPERSON PARTICIPANTS ...

MEETINGS (Dos and Don’ts) Call a meeting if you are clear about its purpose. Circulate a memo several days in advance. Hold a meeting on a Friday afternoon. Hold a meeting in the morning. Come unprepared. Invite the whole department (as many people as possible). Memorise your notes or read them out to other participants. Circulate the minutes after the meeting. Circulate the minutes before the next meeting. Draw out quieter members of the group. Sneak in if you are late. Make a constructive contribution to the discussion. (Do not speak if there is nothing new to say.) Call a meeting on a routine basis. Single out individuals for personal criticism. Arrive late. Be afraid to say “I don't know”. Save critical comments for a private occasion. Dominate the meeting. Apologise and find a seat quickly and quietly (if late).

HOW DOES THIS CARTOON COMMENT ON DOs AND DON’Ts?

HOW ABOUT THIS ONE?

TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE MEETINGS I Can you predict the answers? DON’T _________ ALLOCATE _________ SET ________ START _________ PROVIDE _________ END _________ KEEP _________ CAPTURE _________ II Watch the video, take notes and compare your answers. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSft2OeMmzQ

THE ROLE OF THE CHAIRPERSON prepare the a _____________ c _____________ the agenda check the v _____________ make sure the meeting starts on t _____________ a _____________ a minute-taker who will take the m_________ a _____________ enough time to each point on the agenda and keep time decide when to m _____________ on to another point allow all p _____________ to make their point deal tactfully with d _____________ avoid d _____________ (where people get off the point) ensure the meeting e _____________ on time circulate the m _____________ at the next meeting, c _____________ the accuracy of the minutes and see if there are matters arising

THE ROLE OF THE CHAIRPERSON prepare the agenda circulate the agenda check the venue make sure the meeting starts on time appoint a minute-taker who will take the minutes allocate enough time to each point on the agenda and keep time decide when to move on to another point allow all participants to make their point deal tactfully with disagreements avoid digressions (where people get off the point) ensure the meeting ends on time circulate the minutes at the next meeting, check the accuracy of the minutes and see if there are matters arising

VIDEO – HOW DO YOU CHAIR A MEETING? HANDOUT - Watch the video and fill in the missing words or phrases. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_kZT8t75J4

HOW MANY WORD PARTNERSHIPS DO YOU REMEMBER? TAKE A MINUTE-TAKER APPOINT THE MINUTES CIRCULATE TIME ALLOCATE THE AGENDA MOVE ON TO THE NEXT POINT AVOID ON TIME FINISH DIGRESSIONS

VOCABULARY - THE LANGUAGE OF MEETINGS - RB, p. 9 Do the exercises in the RB, p. 9 & 10. HANDOUT – do the additional exercises.

MEETINGS – DOWNTONING ways of making your point firmly but politely softening your points by avoiding aggressive and confrontational language Avoid: “You must reduce the price!” Use: “Why don’t we consider reducing the price?” “Let’s see what happens if the price is reduced.” “Perhaps we should consider reducing the price.” “Maybe you could reduce the price.” “The price is a little too high for us.” “The price is slightly too high for us.” “The price is a bit too high for us.” “The price is just too high for us.” “The price may be too high for us.” “The price might be too high for us.” “I wonder if you could reduce the price.” “Would you be prepared to reduce the price?” “I’m afraid the price is too high for us.” “It won’t be bad if the price is lower.”

SOFTENING We must… → I think we should… There’s no way we can... → I’m afraid we can’t… I want… → Could you give me…? I won’t… → Unfortunately I can’t… Can you…? → I wonder if you could…? Your…is far too… → Your… seems rather… TASK 2 Soften the following sentences so that they sound more diplomatic. a We must talk about the price first. b Your price is far too high. c There is no way we can give you any credit. d Can you alter the specifications? e I won’t lower my price. f I want a discount.

MAKING SUGGESTIONS AND PROPOSALS I advise you to read the report first. I suggest reading the report first. I suggest (that) we should read the report first. I suggest (that) we read the report first. Why don’t we read the report first? Shall we read the report first? TASK 1 Downtone the following sentences (use as many softeners as possible) or make polite suggestions: a That's a bad idea. b We want you to listen to our proposal again.

MEMO, AGENDA & MINUTES – RB, pp. 15 & 16 Study the examples in the RB, and do the tasks on pp. 15 & 16.

MEETINGS - INSTRUCTIONS FOR ROLE PLAYS MAXIMUM 5 STUDENTS PER TEAMS SIGN UP (CHOOSE A DATE AND TIME) PREPARE A CASE OR GET ONE FROM THE TEACHER (DURING THE OFFICE HOURS) ASSIGN ROLES (CHAIRPERSON, MINUTE-TAKER, PARTICIPANTS) PREPARE AND REHEARSE THE MEETING WELL (YOU DON’T HAVE TO LEARN THE ROLES BY HEART) USE A VARIETY OF USEFUL PHRASES DEALT WITH IN CLASS HAND IN: AGENDA AND MINUTES DURATION OF A MEETING: AROUND 20 MINUTES TEACHER’S FEEDBACK