Convert meeting talk into action
Help attendees convert decisions into action after the meeting ends. Here’s how:
Category: Meetings
Event planning checklist: tracking and timelines
Size matters when it comes to planning events. For smaller events, you can go solo. But for larger ones, it takes a committee, a nod from management and a zinger of a spreadsheet for keeping tasks and timelines on track. To help you track the details, try this sample checklist below adapted from Midwest Meetings:
Tame the meeting madness
Almost half of executives say that employees would be more productive if their companies banned meetings one day a week, according to a recent survey by OfficeTeam. That may be the case, but administrative assistants say meetings are still very much a part of every day—to a fault. How are admins taming the meeting madness?
Cultures clash on technology use
Technology is blurring the lines between work and leisure and revealing real tensions between Gen Y, Gen X and baby boomer employees. A recent LexisNexis survey reveals divergent ideas about what is and isn’t an appropriate use of technology and software in the white-collar workplace:
Talking it out with the boss: 6 tips
Communication is a cornerstone of any relationship—at least any good relationship. So why do so many executives rely on casual, on-the-fly exchanges with their assistants? Joan Burge, an administrative trainer CEO of Office Dynamics, holds a daily huddle with her executive assistant. Here’s how they make the communication work:
Meeting scheduling made easy
With more than 200 other administrative assistants in her building, Ilja Kraag sees admins working away in their “own little boxes,” independently figuring out how to tackle tasks that an admin at the next desk may have mastered long ago. So she decided to share some of her “best practices,” especially for common tasks, such as scheduling meetings.
On the bookshelf
The Secrets of Facilitation, 101 Ways to Make Meetings Active, Instant Icebreakers …
Keeping meetings all about business
Problem: Your department meetings have too much socializing, especially at the beginning. People are complaining that the weekly gathering runs longer than it should. Advice: Address it with the group by citing some specifics, says Amy Henderson of Henderson Training.
Feel like your opinions don’t count?
When Angie shares her opinions in meetings, she feels the group tunes her out. Sometimes, others make decisions about her workspace without even asking for her input … Jennifer Webb, a consultant, trainer and coach, offers this advice for making your voice heard.
Stop the ‘not another meeting’ groan
Meetings can be brutally boring. They can be too frequent, too long and too unproductive. You may think you can’t do anything to make a meeting more efficient and results-oriented—you aren’t the person leading it, right? But Amy Henderson, Henderson Training Inc., believes you can do a lot to influence a meeting.