Meetings Elementary ...

These are some of the most ignored best practices concerning the meetings

For the meeting organizer:

• The meeting invitation must include the meeting subject and an agenda, as summary as it may be; also include all the connection information as needed, if it is a teleconference
• The subject of the meeting should be expressed such that is clear for everybody invited
• The info relevant to the subject of the meeting should be provided in advance, ahead of the meeting, but don't assume many would study it; put aside a part of the beginning of the meeting for the review of this information with the team
• If some technical arrangements need to be taken care of (like a projector or a connecting to a screen or an internet link for teleconference) make sure to do this before the meeting, not when everybody waits for the meeting to start
• If needed, clarify the meeting ground rules at the beginning of the meeting (for periodic meetings with same participants, aware of the ground rules, this step is not necessary)
• Keep the discussions to the point stated, don't let the meeting be derailed; any point worth more discussion should be put aside as subject for a separate meeting; again, only if worth it.
• Notes should be taken of the main points discussed, the conclusions and the action items
• The action items must be very specific: who is expected to do what, by when
• The wording of the action item must place the emphasis on an action verb: "Deliver x and y ..., date ..., responsible ..." and not "Delivery of x and y ..."; hard to believe but it actually makes a difference
• The notes and action items should be reviewed at the end of the meeting with the team, to ensure everybody is in agreement
• Do not exceed the planned duration of the meeting: this is unprofessional, disrespectful for your team and sets a bad example
• The meeting notes and the action items should be distributed ASAP after the meeting

For the participant:

• When accepting an invitation, set aside time in your schedule to study the information relevant to the meeting; off the cuff opinions during the meeting are not professional
• Also set some time before the meeting for a refresh of the subject and after the meeting to deal with quick actions or to reflect at the meeting discussions and complete some notes you may not had time to write down properly during the meeting (there is also the issue of overrunning the meeting allotted time)
• Ask questions ahead of the meeting if the subject or the agenda are not clear
• When taking part to the meeting follow the ground rules; pay attention and contribute to the discussion, as required; try not to go off topic
• Take notes of the details important for you; if needed, ensure these are captured in the meeting minutes; same for the action items.
• If you are requesting an action or if an action is requested from you, make sure that the date of the action is both achievable and it satisfies the driving need.
• If your actions could be solved quickly (less than 10 minutes), do them right away after the meeting; if you need more time, schedule the task(s) of addressing the action(s) and/or place reminders in your "TO DO" system