NCFE Business Administration L2 Communication Meetings, Minutes and Agendas

Meetings, Minutes and Agendas Objective: To understand how to run an efficient and effective meeting Success Criteria: I can define the key terms minutes and agendas I can create an effective and organised agenda I can conduct a meeting, using the correct etiquette and formal structure

We will be looking at how to run a successful meeting. In order for you to have an effective and useful meeting you need an AGENDA.

A

Ask other people if they have anything they wish to discuss

Give people advanced warning of the meeting points by sending out the agenda in plenty of time

important to stick to the timings and order of the agenda

Creating an effective agenda is one of the most important elements for a productive meeting. Here are some reasons why the meeting agenda is so important. The Agenda: communicates important information such as:   1. Who is attending/not attending the meeting 2. Topics for discussion 3. Presenter or discussion leader for each topic 4. Time allotment for each topic can be used as a checklist to ensure that all information is covered lets participants know what will be discussed if it's distributed before the meeting. This gives them an opportunity to come to the meeting prepared for the upcoming discussions or decisions. provides a focus for the meeting (the objective of the meeting must be clearly stated in the agenda)

During the meeting, lots of things will be discussed, agreed and tasks will be distributed. Someone will need to take a note of these. This document is called the “minutes” of the meeting.

TASK: Make a notes of what needs to be included in the minutes!

The Director of Shire Consulting has called a meeting to decide whether the company needs to recruit more people. The Director does not yet have a clear idea and needs to be convinced. Working in groups of 3. You must allocate roles: Director – chairs (runs) the meeting, records the minutes and does not yet have a view about recruiting more staff the Office Manager who has too much to do and is stressed and struggling with the workload and feels a new person would help the situation The Sales Manager who feels it would cost too much money to hire a new person and this would affect the profit the business makes, it would also jeopardise his position as top sale person The Director has to make his or her decision by the end of the meeting.

Read through the Meetings factsheet for some background information. Write a brief agenda to give the meeting some structure. Get creative – think about what these people might also discuss in a staff meeting 5 minutes

Meeting Etiquette…

Lets meet! The chair must make sure he or she directs the meeting. Make sure each person gets their say. Try not to let one person take over. Make sure each item is discussed in enough time. Remember to record the minutes – who speaks and what they say To hire or not to hire? What was your decision? Why? 10 minutes

Plenary: Answer the following in your books To hire or not to hire What was your decision? Why? How well did you perform as a team and individually? Why is it important to have an agenda? Why do we need minutes?